If a paperback is sufficiently old, it might just break apart on you. I can think of at least two that have come apart in my hands during the last few years. I

If a paperback is sufficiently old, it might just break apart on you. I can think of at least two that have come apart in my hands during the last few years. I recycled them. A book once severed is going to keep shedding pages. It's fine to read once, but probably will not stand up to a second or subsequent reading. On the whole, I'd just as soon not buy books that I'm not going to look into again after the first reading. Having said that, Crime and Punishment is not really a scarce resource, nor I suppose Infinite Jest or Middlesex. I'd bet that I could buy all three at a used bookstore for less than $30. The author may be stepping up the recycling date for the books, but by how much?