Finally taking some books out of storage and noticed some dirt and stains on the paper edges of a few of my books, is there any way I can clean them or do I just live with it? Thank you!

so I’ve been reading the walking dead and invincible via the compendiums (its a better deal) recently and I’ve been really enjoying them. However I’ve noticed the the spine of the books are getting creased and I’m worried that this damage might make them fall apart. it’s gotten to the point where I feel like I have to just barely open them so they cant crease further but I don’t enjoy reading like that. am I just over reacting or is there a solution so that I can fully open the books without damaging them

So, my mother is decluttering and gifting practically heirloom items to my children. A fair few of these were brought with us from the UK when we moved to Australia in 1995, and hold deep sentimental value.

Regrettably, as seen in the attached pictures, they are definitely showing their age. In terms of physical damage, you can tell we were raised to look after books with extreme care. The internal pages are in reasonable condition, my main concern is the covers. Once those are replaced, the internal pages should have some more longevity added.

Since they are just folded and stapled, I think reprinting the covers should be easy enough, but I would like to touch the colours up a bit to remove the fading, and remove the yellowed tape (one section lifted away and I was able to blow away the "sticky" residue, just to show how old these books are!).

I tried contacting the publishers, and unfortunately they don't have any digital copies of the sets due to their age. Their only suggestion was to use images from google for printing, but some of them seem to have undergone filtering and details have been lost (eg the black box cover has lost the shading on the box and is all black).

Is there a decent free and user-friendly program that can touch up the covers in this manner? I've tried using Paint and while I'm able to get most of the basic work done (fix the yellow background using colour sampler, paste the main image onto new background, move text across etc) I'm getting frustrated and a little confused when it comes to fine details in the image.

My plan once I'm happy with the cover images is to get them printed on semi-gloss or gloss paper with a higher gsm for strength and a little toddler resistance.

Many thanks!

Just found a 1st edition of White Noise for 25 bucks, so naturally I jumped on it. I noticed there were a few pages where the edges started getting brown like you see on the left for about 30 pages. Most are just the very edge, and the browning sort of ends right here. What the heck is this from?

Can I just spread some of this glue into the gap of this crack and squeeze together.

I bought a brand new book about two weeks ago and placed it on my bedside table across (maybe 8 ft) from the ac vent. I looked at it today and noticed what look like dark ink stain spray pattern along the spine, and I’m worried it’s mold. They spontaneously appeared and were not there when I purchased it. My apartment does have high humidity as I’ve been running a large dehumidifier daily and the tank is usually almost full by the end of the day. My other books in a different area don’t have this.

I’m worried it’s mold (in which case I’m concerned about contamination of everything it was around, and the apartment having a bigger issue) Or is it possible this is some sort of chemical reaction from the glue along the spine?

Edit: It was not wrapped in plastic originally, I put it in the bag after I noticed the spots.

I’m needing to replace the end sheets while I’m rebinding my book. Is there a recommended paper to use? Is cardstock fine?

I've recently inherited my father's personal library of 600+ books. This is one of several that are very special to me but the dust jacket has seen better days and I'd like to fix it up a bit before it gets worse. My first thought was carefully placed clear (packing) tape. I've done that before for smaller fixes on books of less importance with great success but I wanted to ask those who may know better before I do anything. Thank you🖤📚

i just got this book from a thrift market awhile ago. and throughout its pages, i noticed black spots around. it’s definitely not foxing. and somehow this reminds me of cigarette ashes.

knowing i’m no mold expert, could it still be mold tho? pictures above. i really need help!! thank youu

I feel horrible, so please be kind. I brought a library book to the beach and one of the people I was with put it in a bag with water toys. I found it full of sand and slightly wet. It was in there for about two days. I’m paying the fee, and the book is mine to keep, but is it worth it? Can I safely store it with my other books, or fix it in any way?

Don’t know what flair this should be under but the ribbon of the book seems to not be aligned. I’m worried about how this’ll affect the binding of the book in the long run, are there any ways to remedy it?

Semi-sticky brown stains on the cover of my manga. What’s the best way to remove them?

Currently reading a book borrowed from the library, and tried to mark pages using a sticky tab to return to specific passages in the near future. However, I discovered that the book is 100 years old. I don't want to damage it using sticky tabs! Does anyone have an alternative method? Or should I just jot down the passage I intend to return to in a separate notebook?😂

So I got this book with the dust jacket glued to the cover for some reason. It was in pretty nasty shape so I had to remove it. How can I get this residue off? I'd really appreciate any help. It's a hardback if that makes a difference.

I was rereading my copy of The Way of Kings and noticed that there was discoloring on the edges of the pages when the book was closed. There are some areas that are darker than others but what has me thinking that there might be mold or mildew is two dark spots that kind of look like mold on an old piece of fruit or something. My edition is the mass market one and I know those are supposed to have lower quality paper but I don't know if that's a factor or not.

Should I be concerned and have an excuse to buy the hardcover version? Took some pics and saved them here:

https://imgur.com/a/bUJp66h

Hi all, here’s another one for ya. (A different edition of the same book.) I’m thinking this calls for a taped reback, but not sure. Any guidance?

Hi all, here’s another one for ya. (A different edition of the same book.) I’m thinking this calls for a taped reback, but not sure. Any guidance?

Hi guys, firstly thank you for any responses.

I'm looking to fix the cover on a book, the film has started to peel off and I'd just like to reapply it without causing any staining or damage.

Should I be using some kind of transparent glue?

Hi! What tape is recommended for torn pages? Regular but also some glossy pages baby books? Thank you! :)