It’s great to have a personal library. And it’s even better if you can keep it for life. Something to pass on to your kids. I, myself read books that are from my dad’s collection.

It’s amazing stumbling upon old books. I mean really old books. I remember we found a book published in the 1800s still in good conditions in a friend’s house once. Now that’s book care.
Proper book care starts the moment you strip the shrink wrap off of it.

• Turn pages with care

  Books are meant to be read. But the least you can do is to take extra care flipping the pages. Here’s a tip on “priming” your book for page turning:

  • Lay the book on its back
  • Open it a few pages.
  • Press lightly along the bound edge to reduce the stiffness.
  • Do it with the back cover side.
• Spine wrinkles

  Some book collectors are particularly keen on spine wrinkles. I’ve met book collectors who painstakingly peek into a little opening between pages just to make sure the book doesn’t get spine wrinkles. Use a bookmark too, instead of putting the book face down or using dog-ears.

  But if you really want a book in mint condition, buy two copies and keep one in its shrink wrap. The other, read and enjoy.

• Repair torn pages

  Torn pages do happen and the best way to deal with them is to repair them as soon as possible. Leaving a small tear alone can worsen in the long run with all the stress of page-turning. There are many ways you can repair torn pages but my best bet is to use archival repair tape. Some die-hard book repair people, however, go by Japanese paper (or rice paper) with some starch paste.

• Cover it with plastic

  Clear plastic book covers helps in keeping your book in pristine condition, especially your paperbacks. One tip though, allow for extra for shrinkage. Some plastic covers shrink with age.

• Storing in shelves
  Make sure that your shelves have ample space and are strong enough to carry the collective weight of the books. You don’t want to overcrowd them. You might unnecessarily use too much fore pulling books free that you may damage them. Use bookends if the shelves are not filled. Letting the books slump damages the binding.

  For large and heavy books like atlases and unabridged dictionaries, you may want to stack them flat on their back covers. The weight can put stress along the edges of their covers.

• Mind the heat

  Too much heat can dry out the pages causing them to be stiff. Some types of paper can crumble with too much stiffness. Too much moisture can cause mold and mildew to grow and ruin them too. So a cool dry place is suitable for book storage. Also, allow for ample space at the front and back of the shelf so air can circulate freely in the shelf.

• Cleaning and dusting

  Not because they’re individually protected by book cover and shelved, you can be off free not minding your book collection. Dust the shelves once a month. Schedule a yearly individual dusting too.

  As for your precious leather-bound books, you may want to condition leather with good petroleum jelly.