I think it may be about time to have one of my Bibles rebound. I will announce which one in the coming days, but until then, what do you think about the new historical style offerings from Leonard's? I hope to blog about my experiences with Leonard's over the coming weeks as this new rebinding project proceeds. Can anyone guess which Bible I plan to have rebound?
18 comments:
I'm not convinced of the value proposition here, but if Corey is happy (and it seems he is) then that's what really matters.
Regarding guessing which Bible you plan to have rebound: Is it The Playful Puppies Bible? ("If you love puppies, you will love this Bible! Inside you will find 12 color pages of adorable puppy photos with inspirational thoughts that will encourage you day after day.")
Did I guess correctly? What prize did I win?
Woof!
Theo, where do you place the Catechism in terms of ranking single volume texts and their importance to the Faith? What single volumes rank ahead and why?
Consider our much loved Ignatius Catholic Study Bible. After "the Bible" what is the most cited text in the annotations and why?
Well surely it is a copy of the New World Translation....
I don't think he was questioning the value of the Catechism so much as he was questioning the value of spending hundreds of dollars to bind a book that can be obtained for $7.99 in the spin rack of every airport in the country.....
Eh...maybe I'm wrong, but that's how I took it
Biblical,
Amazon says $93.74.
Still, I think the original binding looked better. The "Revivalist Style" looks a bit out of place on that Catechism.
Javier
First, I want to repeat what I said: "if Corey is happy (and it seems he is) then that's what really matters."
Deep South: if a book is irreplaceable (for example, if it contains handwritten notes, or is a rare edition) and the original binding fails, then rebinding makes a lot of sense. I'm much less certain about rebinding a book while the original binding is still in good shape. Actually, I have a copy of the hardcover edition that Corey started with, and my copy seems perfectly fine -- I expect my copy (and its binding) to have a longer lifespan than I will.
Biblical Catholic: thanks for understanding the point of my comment.
Javier: you can currently buy that very same hardcover edition in what is advertised as a "Like New" edition on Amazon (which is what Corey used) for $28.50.
"Biblical,
Amazon says $93.74.
Still, I think the original binding looked better. The "Revivalist Style" looks a bit out of place on that Catechism."
That's the hardcover edition, which is no longer in print....the paperback edition, which is widely available including (at least the time I flew in 2009) on the spinner racks at airports for $7.99.
The Catechism is a good book to have, but given how cheap and widely available they are....I'm not sure I would pay to rebind it.
but....if he's happy with his purchase....that's all that matters....I wouldn't do it, but then are plenty of things I am willing to spend money on that many other people probably wouldn't......it his money he can do what he wants with it,
I get it. The "rule" is that only old, rare books may be rebound. Leonard's does a heavy business of rebinding new(ish) books. Why? Because of the value of the text, not the age.
I understand that many Catholics don't hold up Magisterial teaching very high to their families. The Catechism is something that I think should be visibly important to us. If we merely keep a cheap copy of it from the "spinner" rack, yet have really nice leather copes of secular classics, how does that speak to our family and friends? Just think about it. Why have ANY book improved in a nice binding...and how highly do you rank the Catechism in the life of your family? If not very high, then there you go.
Just a thought. Does this string reflect Catholic reverence of Magisterial teaching over the past, say, 30 years? Not that you guys don't think the Catechism is a "good book to have", but do you revere it as Saint JPG does?
Deep South Reader,
in my opinion (and it is only my opinion), the most significant indicator of how important a book is to me, is how much I have read from it. If the book is in pristine condition, then it means I have not touched it. When I like a book, I read from it intensenly, and I keep coming back to it. And it shows on the book (even though I'm careful with books).
The binding, on the other hand, is not a relevant indicator of the importance I give to a book.
Maybe binding is of paramount importance to you. That, of course, would be perfectly fine.
Javier
Corey/Deep South Reader--
First, congratulations again on your rebinding! I know you love this book and I am so happy for you.
Thanks also for your great questions!
I do not generally rebind books, unless they are falling apart and I cannot replace them. Leather bindings can be tricky, because leather requires regular care, and the stain and oil from leather can transfer to adjacent books. Softcover leather books can be double tricky, because they should not be stored vertically on a bookshelf.
There is a nice hardcover edition of the Catechism published by Doubleday -- you can buy it at Amazon for $11 -- or you can buy the same layout you use in paperback for for $14. Most middle-class people can afford an $11-$14 book. But at $255, we start to get nervous about really using our books. For example, most people would not dogear and mark-up such a precious volume. I know you will be an exception, but I worry that for some people, a fancy book might be like a family heirloom china set: "just for show."
May I ask a question: Are you considering a matching leather missal and Liturgy of the Hours? I know those must also be important books for you -- for some, they are even more important than the Catechism.
Good points. Just talking about why we would choose to nicely bind any book and what books we revere in our households and which we should but choose not to.
"I understand that many Catholics don't hold up Magisterial teaching very high to their families. The Catechism is something that I think should be visibly important to us. If we merely keep a cheap copy of it from the "spinner" rack, yet have really nice leather copes of secular classics, how does that speak to our family and friends? Just think about it. Why have ANY book improved in a nice binding...and how highly do you rank the Catechism in the life of your family? If not very high, then there you go."
Actually, I think it goes the other way around....the books you actually read are generally bought in cheap editions, ones that are purchased in expensively bound editions tend to be books that are for display or investment only, not for actual daily use...
One of the standard historic reasons that Bibles and prayerbooks were often published with leather bindings is because of the way people use them.
Consider a circuit rider, who would have to carry a Bible and prayerbook everywhere he went, often needing to balance an open book in the palm of his hand, and using the books multiple times a day. Such a person needs a super strong and super-flexible binding, and in the 19th and early 20th century, that meant a leather binding.
Catholic teachers or clergy were often in similar situations (look at older Missals or Breviaries, and you'll find a variety of leather bindings.)
Today, there are artificial bindings that are superior to leather, but that's a different story.
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Until about 10 years ago, the only time I had heard of rebinding new books was libraries that had new paperbacks rebound so they would be more durable. I grew up learning that when a beloved book fell apart (such as book that had personal notes in it, or a book passed through generations in a family, or rare book) then one would take it to a bindery.
My local bindery advertises that it specializes in rebinding worn books so that the book looks close to the way it did when it was originally bound! I had never thought of asking a bindery to rebind a book with a completely different binding.
But in the last few years, it seems that a few binderies have started catering to collectors who want to rebind new Bibles. It is great that this service is available for people who want it, but it seems to be a niche market.
Based on some of the entries Mark Bertrand's blog, it seems that when collectors do have a new Bible rebound, they often do it for aesthetic reasons (they want a beautiful Bible, or they are nostalgic for an "old-fashioned" looking Bible) rather than functional reasons (they need a Bible that can stand up to rugged use.)
Of course, aesthetics is a perfectly valid reason, but to me it seems a little like taking a brand-new car and putting a completely new paint job on it (I know some people do that too!)
Theophrastus,
I am sure you could understand if a person wanted a leather cover in an edition that doesn't offer one.
Tim -- Sure, for example, I understand that you work as a religious studies teacher and you previously did outreach, so you probably put an unusual amount of wear-and-tear on your Bibles. And, as a teacher, having a Bible that you can easily hold open in the palm of your hand could be a big advantage.
Plus, you have this nifty blog, so it is almost a business necessity for you! (And you've been dreaming for years about a premium Catholic Bible.)
I guess what I am trying to say is: we shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
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