To quote Rita, who was talking about See Jane Score ( A | BN | K | S ), “My copy is worn to the point that the cover is completely frayed.”
YES. Exactly. When a book has been re-read so many times, the cover has fallen apart, and perhaps you've had to buy another copy because the book is that good, that's a 100% honest Frayed Cover Recommendation. The books don't lie!
I've posted pictures of a few of my Frayed Cover books, like Julie Garwood's The Bride, which is held together with duct tape, and my copy of Judith McNaught's Perfect ( A | BN | K | S) , which is the pinnacle of Frayed Cover: it has none:
Kingdom of Dreams ( A | BN | K | S) is in a similar state, as you can see.
And this is my replacement copy of Midsummer Magic ( A | BN | K | S), the first romance I ever read — replaced because, you guessed it, the cover fell off the first one. And this one is plenty frayed, too. (I had to order the original cover, because this to me is the PINNACLE of old Skool cover art: there is a swan freaking the fuck out behind him, her eyeshadow is a strange shade, and she's a redhead wearing orange – To say nothing of the SURPRISE BUTTSECKS position.) I reviewed this book in 2007 to see if it held up after all those years, and it surely did – I gave it a B, with much sentimental influence.
I have a lot of Frayed Recommendations on my shelf, more than I can count. Most of my paperbacks that I've kept are frayed from multiple re-reads, and by “multiple” I am probably up to counting in exponential numbers.
After posting about Frayed Cover Recommendations on Twitter, a flood of similar recommendations appeared:
Frayed Cover Recommendations
These are the books with covers that are falling off (or close to it) because you’ve re-read them so many times. You might even be on your second or third copy! Below are the Frayed Cover books from Twitter responses!
Storified by Sarah Wendell · Mon, Jun 11 2012 13:40:30
New term: “Frayed Cover recommendation.” You’ve read this book so many times, it’s fallen apart, and maybe you bought another, it’s so good.Sarah Wendell
@SmartBitches My “Frayed Cover Recommendation” is Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughan. Such an amazing series – so well imagined and romantic!KatiB
RT @KatiD: @SmartBitches My “Frayed Cover Recommendation” is Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughan. Such an amazing series – so well imagined and romantic!Sarah Wendell
@SmartBitches I like… But what’s the eBook equivalent?Jean Kaplansky
“@JeanKaplansky: what’s the eBook equivalent?” Hm. “Never leaves the reader.” “Always in the queue?” Not as visual, alas!Sarah Wendell
@SmartBitches Love it! mine would be “Good Omens” by Pratchett and Gaiman, definitely.Julie Leir VanSickle
@SmartBitches One of my ultimate Frayed Cover Recommendations is “The Last Arrow” by Marsha Canham. I love everything about this book. :))MsTypo
RT @DancinJulesJLVS: @SmartBitches Love it! mine would be “Good Omens” by Pratchett and Gaiman, definitely.Sarah Wendell
RT @Typo_eh: @SmartBitches One of my ultimate Frayed Cover Recommendations is “The Last Arrow” by Marsha Canham. I love everything about this book. :))Sarah Wendell
The Shadow and The Star @SmartBitchesMolly O’Keefe
@SmartBitches My Frayed Covers are: SEP’s Dream a Little Dream & Ain’t She Sweet. Those bks are actually falling apart–need to tape soon.Elyssa Patrick
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover is See Jane Score. Pages are loose. When it falls apart, I’ll replace it.Julia Broadbooks
@SmartBitches linda howard’s mackenzie’s pleasure. i, um, may have owned four copies at one point to try to avoid frayed cover syndromeKatie Dunneback
@SmartBitches also Elda Minger’s The Fling. I <3 <3 <3 that bk so much.Elyssa Patrick
@SmartBitches I own three copies of The Windflower – One to loan, one to read and one to keep. #FrayedCoverRecommendationKatiB
I second Dream a Little Dream!! @ElyssaPatrick @SmartBitchesMolly O’Keefe
@SmartBitches Dark Desire and Dark Fire by Christine Feehan-sadly I had to buy new copies-never read/never touchedSandy
@SmartBitches Love that! My favorite books are usually ones I no longer own because I keep giving them away, or the covers have fallen off.Deborah Nemeth
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover Recommendation has gotta be Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. I go back and reread that one at least once a year.Book girl 215
@SmartBitches I guess mine would be these. I was word perfect on Gone With The Wind aged 16. It’s 70% Sellotape now. http://pic.twitter.com/ucy77qiLKate Johnson
@SmartBitches My frayed cover recommendation is Pride & Prejudice.TweetWeekUSA/Shanda
@SmartBitches the Lady by Anne McCaffrey. It’s got sooooooo many problems, but I’m on my third copy anyway.Redheadedgirl
@SmartBitches my “frayed cover rec” is The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters. Gorgeous prose and brilliantly plottedAmy Taylor
@SmartBitches frayed cover recs: Chesapeake bays series, Nora Roberts, stardoc by SL Viehl & the JD Robb booksshiloh walker
RT @KatiD: @SmartBitches My “Frayed Cover Recommendation” is Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughan. Such an amazing series – so well imagined and romantic!Denise Pattison
RT @Typo_eh: @SmartBitches One of my ultimate Frayed Cover Recommendations is “The Last Arrow” by Marsha Canham. I love everything about this book. :))Joanna Novins
@SmartBitches Magic Bleeds @ilona_andrews. I love the way Curran and Kate finally get together.Vickie the Blunt
@SmartBitches A White Merc with Fins, the Stories of Eva Luna and Thud! – this year’s frayed cover recommendations – love the ideaPortia
@SmartBitches Frayed Cover Recommendation: “Cordelia’s Honor” by Lois McMaster Bujold. I never, ever get tired of it.Elizabeth DeHoff
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover Rec: Night Shield by Nora Roberts. I’m on my 2nd copy b/c the middle fell out of the 1st. Fantastic dialogue!Holly
@smartbitches My frayed cover is Monica McCarty’s HIGHLAND WARRIOR. I’ve been through 3 copies!highland hussy
@SmartBitches my frayed book covers are SEP’s This Heart of Mine & Judith McNaught’s Once & Always & Paradise.Kelli Carter
@SmartBitches Sandra Boynton’s Doggies and Philadelphia Chickens is my frayed cover rec. (It’s not all romance you know)Vassiliki Veros
@SmartBitches My Frayed cover rec is the 7 Brides for 7 Brothers series by Leigh Greenwood. Moved many, many times with meslphilli
@SmartBitches Jean M Auel. First three books fell apart; Mom looked for the pieces to have her sign them last year. I was ten and obsessed.Catherine Krahe
@smartbitches my Frayed Cover reccomendation is Naked in Death by J.D.Robb. Read more than 10 times!Ren Puspita
@SmartBitches My rec: Pride & Prejudice. 5 copies incl ebook. Also, 4 copies of BBC adaptation (VHS, 2 DVD, digital). Wow. Lol.Lisa Jimenez
@SmartBitches Also, Night Watch, by Terry Pratchett.Lisa Jimenez
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover recs: After The Night (Linda Howard), Garden Spells (Sarah Addison Allen), Blue Moon (Laurell K Hamilton) contJennifer
@SmartBitches please tell me someone’s Frayed Cover Rec’d Pride & Prejudice? (Or Witch of Blackbird Pond – YA romance! SWOON!)Kelly
@SmartBitches Magician by Raymond E Feist, and Hogfather by Terry Pratchett.Shell C
@SmartBitches Frayed Cover recs cont: Kiss of Fire (Deborah Cooke), Brides Series (Catherine Coulter), LoTR series (Tolkien), Dune (Herbert)Jennifer
@SmartBitches Frayed Cover Recommendation: Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Night Play. Held together with hope and promises of book tape.Ms. Lily Anderson
@SmartBitches: Frayed Cover recs: Judith McNaught’s first 10 novels (minus Tender Triumph). LaVyrle Spencer’s Separate Beds.Farrah Rochon
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover Rec: Improper English by Katie MacAlister. Every time I read it I have to tuck pages back in.Julie
@SmartBitches My #frayedcoverrecommendation is @LisaKleypas “Wallflower” series. Love them so much! Romance, humor & great stories.rayvyn2k
@SmartBitches Frayed Cover recommendation: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. The spines creased & some pages are loose.Michelle?
@SmartBitches Frayed Cover recommendation: nothing’s more battered than The Complete Works of Jane Austen.Julia Tew
@SmartBitches Son of the Morning Linda Howard. I’ve gone through four copies.Marty Mathews
@SmartBitches Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K Hamilton for me. Back when that series was still amazing.Sierra Dean
@SmartBitches other frayed covers: The Duke And I by Julia Quinn. Capital. and The Bargain by Mary Jo Putney.Julia Tew
@SmartBitches My Frayed cover rec: The Flame and The Flower K. Woodiwess. original 1976 copy, in pieces, wouldn’t trade it for the world!Natalie Nutting
@SmartBitches My frayed cover books are Pride & Prejudice, Orlando by Virginia Woolf, and The Ordinary Princess by M M Kaye.Mrs. Mystery Brewing
@SmartBitches most of my #frayedcover books are from when i was a kid, specifically Little House on the Prairie and Charlotte’s WebLusty Reader
@SmartBitches The Oracle Glass by Judith Merkle Riley. I don’t loan it out, I’m that attached to it. I think every page is dog-eared.Kate Ahern Loveric
@Smartbitches Frayed cover Rec: Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. Recently replaced Dragonfly, it was losing pages. http://pic.twitter.com/D1Jpo67RJurisha
@SmartBitches Heartless by Mary Balogh. Luke! It’s all about Luke.Phyl
@SmartBitches my adult #frayedcover books are Jane Eyre, Nora Roberts’ Born in Ice and V. Dahl’s Lead Me OnLusty Reader
@SmartBitches My dust jacket of Slightly Dangerous by Mary Balogh is horribly frayed. #FrayedHardcover.Mandi Schreiner
@SmartBitches My frayed cover books are Pride & Prejudice, Orlando by Virginia Woolf, and The Ordinary Princess by M M Kaye.Mrs. Mystery Brewing
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover Rec: “The Talisman” by Stephen King & Peter Straub. 1st book to lose its cover & really make me want to write.slod
@SmartBitches my #frayedcover is Ellen Kushner’s SwordspointMaria
@SmartBitches Dude, @lucymonroe’s The Greek’s Christmas Baby & my cover on her “The Italian’s Suitable Wife” has completely fallen off.DeeTenorio
@SmartBitches Goodnight Mister Tom,on the inside of book cover I have written the date for every re-read since the first read in 4th grade:)Annika
oh my god! Yes – Goodnight MR. Tom! Love that book – need to find my copy @AnnikaEinarsson @SmartBitchesMolly O’Keefe
@AnnikaEinarsson I’ve never met anyone else who’s read that book! @SmartBitchesLu@RegularRumination
@SmartBitches Midnight Warrior by Iris Johannsen. I’ve owned 3 copies.B303tilly
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover: Jennifer Crusie’s Bet and all Suzanne Brockmann’s..esp Into the Night.Ryann Murphy
@SmartBitches “A string in the harp” by Nancy Bond. It was a gift when I was 10 or 11 from a teacher. It’s still one of my favourites.Janne
@SmartBitches my copy of ‘the madness of lord Ian Mackenzie’ looks like it’s been through a threshing machine. #frayedbindingandcoverstacey agdern
@SmartBitches #frayedcover recommendation: Over the Edge by Suzanne Brockmann. Start of a lifelong love for Sam Starrett & Team Sixteen.Anne
@SmartBitches Jane Eyre. The pages are like soft cloth they are so worn, and the corners are all rounded. #frayedcovermidnightblooms
@SmartBitches Howl’s Moving Castle which wore out in about six months my family and I reread it so much. #frayedcovermidnightblooms
@SmartBitches Beauty by Robin McKinley. Isle of Glass by Judith Tarr. Arrows of the queen by Mercedes Lackey #frayedcoverwyvernfriend
@SmartBitches Strands of Starlight by Gael Baudino Infinity Concerto by Greg Bear; winds of darkover by MZ Bradley #frayedcoverwyvernfriend
@SmartBitches i have a collection of Saint and Baron novels that are in complete bits #frayedcoverwyvernfriend
@SmartBitches my #frayedcover – Conflict of Honors by Steve Miller and Sharon Lee – has been my comfort read since HS http://pic.twitter.com/Rl6UU11wKelli
@SmartBitches My #frayedcover is Peter S. Beagle’s The Last Unicorn.Cindy
@SmartBitches #frayedcover reccs: The Duke’s Wager, Windflower, The Temporary Bride, The Grand Sophy, Lord of Scoundrels, Shards of Honor.Darlene Marshall
@SmartBitches Again by Seidel. Notorious Rake by Balogh. A couple of old Burchell categories. #frayedcoverSunita
@SmartBitches Carnal Innocence by Nora Roberts and Shades of Twilight by Linda Howard #frayedcoverBrie (RAroundCorner)
@SmartBitches My #frayedcover would be my Christopher Pike. I collected and read them literally apart. Except Pepper. Hated that one.DeAubreyDigest
@SmartBitches Frayed Covers: Gerald Durrell’s My family and other animals,Terry Pratchett’s Guards Guards.Genoveva London
My Frayed Cover Recommendation: Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie @SmartBitches #frayedcoverRita Oberlies
Guilty pleasures by Laurell k Hamilton is my frayed cover. @SmartBitches #frayedcoverDena De Paulo
DARK LEGEND by Christine Feehan is my frayed cover. #frayedcover @smartbitchesPenny Watson
So many #FrayedCover. Daddy’s Little Dividend by Elda Minger, Dark Desire by Feehan, Guarding Jeannie by Beverly Barton @SmartBitchesLillie
I’ve rebought all of Garwood’s historicals because of #FrayedCovers @SmartBitchesLillie
@SmartBitches Not romance… Mickey Zucker Reichert’s Legend of Nightfall, CS Friedman’s Black Sun Rising, & Mercedes Lackey’s Magic’s PawnLisa Rodgers
@SmartBitches My #frayedcover recommendation is Black Beauty. My copy literally fell apart, so I replaced with an ebook.Linda Taggart
@SmartBitches Mine are “Eye of the world by Robert Jordan and Sheepfarmer’s daughter by Elizabeth MoonPatrick Doris
@SmartBitches Frayed cover rec. I can only read MacHugh now if I hold him Very Carefully (which I do 🙂 http://twitpic.com/9vdq6cSusanna Kearsley
What about you? What are your frayed cover books? Want to share a pic?
Mine is The Shell Seekers by Rosamund Pilcher. My grandmother gave it to me when I was 13, and I read it whenever I am feeling blue. Someone actually gave me a new copy to replace the old one, but it’s not the same. Bittersweet romance and Cornwall….doesn’t get any better than that!
I don’t actually have many books that I reduced to a “frayed cover” state – if they’re in that bad shape, then it’s usually because they were in bad shape (very used) when I bought them. I tend to treat the books I love best as good as possible, and I’m reluctant to let anyone borrow them – I’d rather buy a friend a copy than let them borrow mine. That said, there *is* one book in my collection that I was forced to buy a replacement for, due to wear and tear from me rereading it: Mercedes Lackey’s Arrows of the Queen.
Mine is Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts and Dance Upon the Air by Nora Roberts, too. I’ve had to replace a few by Barbara O’Neal or Samuel depending on what’s she publishing for the same reason.
SEP’s “Ain’t She Sweet” and “The Blue Castle” by LM Montgomery – found when I’d outgrown “Anne of Green Gables” but wasn’t quite ready for Barbara Cartland!
I’m on my 2nd copy of Pamela Clare’s UNLAWFUL CONTACT. The first one just fell apart. Also frayed are several Lisa Kleypas (SUDDENLY YOU, WALLFLOWERS & HATHAWAYS), Lori Foster (JUST A HINT CLINT, SIMON SAYS, TOO MUCH TEMPTATION & more) & Linda Howard (DEATH ANGEL, KISS ME WHILE I SLEEP, ALMOST FOREVER, AFTER THE NIGHT & more) books. Also LOVER AWAKENED by JR Ward.
The first three books of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series (the writing is bad, but these books contain crack, I can’t help it). Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts. I don’t know why. The Princess Bride, because I read it when I get sick—I’m on copy number three of that. Oh! And Bitten by Kelley Armstrong. It lost it’s front cover and I had to tape several pages back into it 😀
I am obsessively careful of my books, but all of my McKenzie books are a little shaggy, “Shanna” by Kathleen Woodiwiss is at the afraid of what will happen the next time I open it stage as is “Chance the Winds of Fortune” by Laurie McBain, along with -please don’t judge me – “The Crowd Pleasers” by Rosemary Rogers. Honestly I haven’t picked it up in maybe 15 years, but it’s still in the keeper box with a lamentably cracked and creased cover. And I just can’t seem to let it go……
From my pre-school years: “Randolph, the Bear Who Said No,” which is still on my bookshelf. As for more recent books, I do re-reads of books I love in e-format; always available, never frayed.
Seconding LMM’s The Blue Castle. My first copy is in tatters. And now that I’m talking about it, I feel the need to go read it again!
Also pretty much everything Robin McKinley has ever written, specifically Sunshine, Blue Sword, and Hero and the Crown. Of course, the wear on them these days is mitigated by the fact that I now own pretty hardcover copies, everyday reading copies, and lending-out copies.
All in all, I find it pretty impressive that I have any frayed cover recommendations in my collection—I’m absurdly obsessive about keeping my books in pristine condition. (When I was a kid, if anyone wanted to borrow any of my books, I gave them lessons in how to take care of the book before I let them have it. It should also be noted that the only time in our marriage my husband felt the need to get on his knees to apologize to me was after ruining one of my books.)
No frayed cover recommendations in romance yet—I only started reading the genre a couple years ago. Ask me again in a decade. I can’t wait to see which of my books I return to over and over again. =D
May I suggest that the electronic version of this is how many now-defunct software languages you have of a book on your backup drive. One trilogy I own as softcover, hardcover, Embid, LIT, Mobi, and Epub.
Mine would be Redwall and Mossflower, the first two books by Brian Jaques in his Redwall Abbey series. I first read them in 6th grade & have been through multiple copies of each. And now, my daughter just finished 6th grade and I started her reading them (while we’re also watching the animated series via Netflix). Sadly, I have loved none of the other books in the series as much as these two, although Mattimeo came close.
Shards of Honour by Bujold – I think it’s almost the perfect romance. The Ogre Downstairs and the Homeward Bounders by Diana Wynne-Jones, the Catch Trap by Zimmer Bradley, the Ice King by Dinah Dean, Tatya’s Story by Dinah Dean, Between Planets and Space Family Stone by Heinlein, my Mary Burchell collection starting with A Song Begins, Cotillion by Georgette Heyer, my complete tamora pierce collection – level of frayedness directly correlated with age. My Patrick O’Brien collection – same correlation. Kitty and the Midnight Hour, my Laurell K Hamiltons, WERE except I gave them away and got e-copies. My Sookie Stackhouse books, correlated directly with age, until they went digital as well…I could go on.
Every January, when I reread Pride & Prejudice, I buy a new edition. Penguin did a “fashion illustrated” deluxe paperback with french flaps that I love. Two years ago, I happened to be in the UK for the New Year and bought a lovely edition that isn’t sold here.
But when it comes to paperback romances, I’ve had to replace Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie, Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase and Heaven, Texas by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Now that they’re on my ereader, I won’t have that problem! I love that they are reissuing many of the regency romances that I grew up with—the Mary Balogh books that I scoured used book stores for are about to disintegrate.
All of my Mary Stewarts and most of my Heyers. Heyer’s books are slowly being supplemented by e-books, but Stewart’s still only available in print. Some of them are almost 50 years old (admitting my age here), and I usually re-read them every couple of years. My original copies of LotR are just as bad, but those are now stowed in plastic bags and I read from new movie tie-in copies I bought a few years ago.
I have to say that I’m pretty ocd with my books and take good care of them. The only frayed covers I have are second hand books. That being said. I do own 3 copies of Pride and Prejudice. My MacGregor novels by NR have been read through multiple times; they are the comfort food of books. Also in that category is Impulse and Initiative by Abigail Reynolds. I become slightly more appalled each time I read it by some of the bad writing and cliches, but it’s like crack, and I’m not ready to go to rehab.
My frayed covers have been on Gone With The Wind ( replaced three times now ) , Rilla of Ingleside & The Blue Castle , all of my Laura Ingalls Wilders , and The Grapes Of Wrath.
Definitely Shanna by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, but also Mackenzie’s Mountain by Linda Howard. I know have too many others to mention, but these two sprang to mind right away.
Sorcery and Cecelia by Patricia Wrede and Carolyn Stevermer – the cover is falling off, the book has split into at least two sections and the whole thing is held together with scotch tape and love. It’s been my go-to comfort read for almost 20 years.
Other frayed covers and cracked spines are The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley, Absolutely Positively by JAK and Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie.
I have a couple of much loved books that are at the falling apart stage. Some of them are not strictly romances, since I came to the genre late, but all of them have strong romance elements.
Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park; Far from the Madding Crowd; A Room with a View; Laura, by Vera Caspary; and Trojan Gold, by Elizabeth Peters.
Not just frayed, but dog earred, food stained and water damaged are: The Cliffs of Night by Beatrice Brandon, Now You See Her and the Blair Mallory books by Linda Howard, The Williamsburg novels by Elspeth Thane, The Ozark Trilogy by Suzanne Haden Elgin, and if I could find it for less than $70.00, I would buy House of Scorpio by Pat Wallace, because I lost my copy a couple of decades ago. Also in disgraceful shape are all my Jennifer Crusies and the classic Telsy Amberdon sci fi/telepathy novels by James H. Schmitz. Oh, yes, Sunshine and most Robin McKinley, and the Donovan Family romances by Elizabeth Lowell. Oh, oh, oh!!! Every year I re-read the “Madonna Key” series by Evelyn Vaughn and 4 other authors….. Smartbitches may be the only ones to appreciate the true greatness of goddess, mythology, romance, the Magdalene, and fairy tale tropes. if nothing else, please read AKA Goddess by Evelyn Vaughn.
Oh yes. “Dear Daddy Legs.” It was the first book I ever remember choosing for myself. I got it when the amazing “Reading Is Fundamental” charity came to my school when I was seven and let every child pick a book to keep. The pages are falling out, the cover is torn, and I love it so.
Mine is The Windflower – it was one of my first historical romances, and I read it way to many times to count. I had the hardest time finding a copy to replace the worn, tattered copy that i had bought brand new. I bought a second hand copy, which was just as worn as the one I needed to replace!!
A few others are Judith McNaught’s books. I loved those. I’ve gone back recently and reread a couple and really don’t like them now – at all-but they’ll stay on the shelf.
The Fever series, by KMM, is one that I will need to replace soon. Probably by Halloween, when her new series starts.
My childhood copies of the Mad Scientists’ Club books were falling apart, but then they republished them in hardcover a couple of years ago. Woot! I still have the very first grown-up books that I hoarded my allowance to buy: Watch the wall, my darling by Jane Aiken Hodge and Wildfire at midnight by Mary Stewart, and they’re pretty ratty. I also can’t bring myself to replace my original copy of Gone with the wind. Then there are the ratty hardcover library rejects that I bought at book sales: The Sherwood ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope, The witch of Merthyn by Richard Llewellyn, and a lot of books by Andre Norton, Elizabeth Cadell, Jan Westcott, and Frances Murray. Luckily it’s been relatively easy to replace Georgette Heyer, unless you hold out for hardcovers (but I like those old covers).
Gaudy Night, by Dorothy Sayers (though I actually own two copies, one that I keep at my parents’ house in Seattle, and one that I keep at my own home on the other side of the country, so they’re not that frayed). The Wood Wife, by Terri Windling (the real version, not the ARC I picked up somewhere years later). Tam Lin, by Pamela Dean (my paperback copy, not the hardcover that a friend gave me a few years later). My childhood copy of The Secret Garden and my childhood copy of A Christmas Carol. My personal copy (not my mother’s copy) of Dance Upon the Air, by Nora Roberts. My copy (stolen from my mother) of Jewels of the Sun, also by La Nora. My childhood copy of Anne of Green Gables, given to me used by my grandmother when I was 7. My copy of The Blue Castle actually fell apart and is glued back together.
(Can you tell that I’m a book hoarder?)
And, the two most tattered of all: 1) a tiny picture book called “Two Kittens” that mother bought when I was just a baby from the store she worked in; one kitten has my first name, and the other has my middle name. 2) A book of nursery rhymes that I believe once belonged to a great-aunt or distant cousin, but which has been mine for as long as I can remember, and which I used to carry around when I was so small that it was nearly as big as I was.
I love Elizabeth Cadell. And really old Harlequins by Essie Summers – they mostly take place in New Zealand and the heroines were always funny and feisty and capable. Very unlike the other Harlequins of the period, which ran to wealthy, uncommunicative zillionaires or doctors who dominated the naive, virginal 19 year old heroine (for her own good). And my childhood town library had all the Emilie Loring books from the 1940s, which featured jaunty, patriotic, post war heroines who had the BEST outfits. Every now and then I re-read a Loring just for the fashion.
I haven’t been reading mainstream romance long enough to wear out any covers (although I’m working on a few), but I do have an audio book copy of Possession: A Romance by A.S. Byatt that would be in very bad repair if it were a paperback.
My most frayed books are the Black Lace series (“erotic fiction written for women by women”), mainly the original edition of WHITE ROSE ENSNARED and FORBIDDEN CRUSADE, both by Juliet Hastings. Some less significant damage has also been done to DARKER THAN LOVE by Kristina Lloyd and ELENA’S CONQUEST by Lisette Allen.
For some reason, the early editions, with the original covers, had very poor binding and both individual pages and whole chapters can be expected to fall out after several rereads. That’s one definite advantage of eBooks: Paperbacks that aren’t sturdy and go for dozens or hundreds of dollars online can be had digitally for much cheaper. (Looking on Amazon, WRE goes for $292 in new paperback, but $8.99 on the Kindle.)
Many of my frayed cover books I’ve been able to find in e version, which is nice, because now my favorite reads won’t disintegrate. Alas, Pamela Dean’s “Tam Lin” still isn’t available in ebook. I have two copies of it, one of which the cover is so frayed that I basically laminated it back together with clear packing tape. I have a newer copy of the trade paper version when it was re-released a few years ago, but I’m keeping the older version because the author autographed it for me (her housemate used to be a co-worker of mine, and when I learned that, I had her take my beloved – already falling apart at that point – copy to have it signed).
All of my Carla Kelly books are at that point (Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand, and Miss Grimsley’s Oxford Career still get re-read yearly); several Jennifer Crusie books, although I bought Bet Me, and Faking It in hardcover, so they’ve held up better; Nora Roberts Norther Lights, Tribute, and Sweet Revenge; Mary Jo Putney’s River of Fire; Peter David’s Star Trek: New Frontier series; Marion Keyes Sushi For Beginners; Connie Willis The Doomsday Book.
I’ve got Willis’s Blackout and All Clear in ebook format, but I know I’ll be re-reading them on a yearly basis, so they are in my “keepers” folder on my Nook. I’m pretty sure I’ll be re-reading Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why a few more times too.
One of my favorite rereads is retrohell, a collection of articles reminiscing about the 70s and 80s (published in the 90s, so technically, this book would now be retro! brain melt) from the editors of the Ben Is Dead zine. It’s funny as hell and quite snarky – I love it for the same reasons I love this site! I wore out the library’s copy (had this checked out pretty much all the time), and finally acquired my own copy, which is now well-read, so I should be looking into a backup copy, now that I’m thinking about it…..
There’s my twenty-one year old copy of Anne of Green Gables. I would take that everywhere with me as a teenager. It’s fallen apart after years of re-reads and is barely staying together with tape. I even made a newer cover for it last year.
A friend bought me a fancier, hardcover copy with green soft felt and gold on the cover. She would pressure me to throw the other one out. But I still prefer my old, well-loved copy. It would be like getting rid of a cherish friend.
The Road to Avalon by Joan Wolf. It’s so frayed I have 4 copies: a “car copy” that lives in my glove compartment, the newest edition reprint, my original copy held together by rubberband, and the copy on my Kindle.
While compiling the Rachel Gibson “Which One First?” recommendation list (which I'll be posting this week), several readers mentioned what I've termed the “Frayed Cover Recommendation.”
Mine is The Shell Seekers by Rosamund Pilcher. My grandmother gave it to me when I was 13, and I read it whenever I am feeling blue. Someone actually gave me a new copy to replace the old one, but it’s not the same. Bittersweet romance and Cornwall….doesn’t get any better than that!
One of mine is Summon the Keeper by Tanya Huff. I have reread it so many times.
I don’t actually have many books that I reduced to a “frayed cover” state – if they’re in that bad shape, then it’s usually because they were in bad shape (very used) when I bought them. I tend to treat the books I love best as good as possible, and I’m reluctant to let anyone borrow them – I’d rather buy a friend a copy than let them borrow mine. That said, there *is* one book in my collection that I was forced to buy a replacement for, due to wear and tear from me rereading it: Mercedes Lackey’s Arrows of the Queen.
Mine is Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts and Dance Upon the Air by Nora Roberts, too. I’ve had to replace a few by Barbara O’Neal or Samuel depending on what’s she publishing for the same reason.
Montana Sky – Nora Roberts, it is my absolute fav of hers! I have owned 3 copies, next copy will be ebook!
SEP’s “Ain’t She Sweet” and “The Blue Castle” by LM Montgomery – found when I’d outgrown “Anne of Green Gables” but wasn’t quite ready for Barbara Cartland!
I’m on my 2nd copy of Pamela Clare’s UNLAWFUL CONTACT. The first one just fell apart. Also frayed are several Lisa Kleypas (SUDDENLY YOU, WALLFLOWERS & HATHAWAYS), Lori Foster (JUST A HINT CLINT, SIMON SAYS, TOO MUCH TEMPTATION & more) & Linda Howard (DEATH ANGEL, KISS ME WHILE I SLEEP, ALMOST FOREVER, AFTER THE NIGHT & more) books. Also LOVER AWAKENED by JR Ward.
The first three books of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series (the writing is bad, but these books contain crack, I can’t help it). Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts. I don’t know why. The Princess Bride, because I read it when I get sick—I’m on copy number three of that. Oh! And Bitten by Kelley Armstrong. It lost it’s front cover and I had to tape several pages back into it 😀
I am obsessively careful of my books, but all of my McKenzie books are a little shaggy, “Shanna” by Kathleen Woodiwiss is at the afraid of what will happen the next time I open it stage as is “Chance the Winds of Fortune” by Laurie McBain, along with -please don’t judge me – “The Crowd Pleasers” by Rosemary Rogers. Honestly I haven’t picked it up in maybe 15 years, but it’s still in the keeper box with a lamentably cracked and creased cover. And I just can’t seem to let it go……
From my pre-school years: “Randolph, the Bear Who Said No,” which is still on my bookshelf. As for more recent books, I do re-reads of books I love in e-format; always available, never frayed.
Seconding LMM’s The Blue Castle. My first copy is in tatters. And now that I’m talking about it, I feel the need to go read it again!
Also pretty much everything Robin McKinley has ever written, specifically Sunshine, Blue Sword, and Hero and the Crown. Of course, the wear on them these days is mitigated by the fact that I now own pretty hardcover copies, everyday reading copies, and lending-out copies.
All in all, I find it pretty impressive that I have any frayed cover recommendations in my collection—I’m absurdly obsessive about keeping my books in pristine condition. (When I was a kid, if anyone wanted to borrow any of my books, I gave them lessons in how to take care of the book before I let them have it. It should also be noted that the only time in our marriage my husband felt the need to get on his knees to apologize to me was after ruining one of my books.)
No frayed cover recommendations in romance yet—I only started reading the genre a couple years ago. Ask me again in a decade. I can’t wait to see which of my books I return to over and over again. =D
May I suggest that the electronic version of this is how many now-defunct software languages you have of a book on your backup drive. One trilogy I own as softcover, hardcover, Embid, LIT, Mobi, and Epub.
Mine would be Redwall and Mossflower, the first two books by Brian Jaques in his Redwall Abbey series. I first read them in 6th grade & have been through multiple copies of each. And now, my daughter just finished 6th grade and I started her reading them (while we’re also watching the animated series via Netflix). Sadly, I have loved none of the other books in the series as much as these two, although Mattimeo came close.
Shards of Honour by Bujold – I think it’s almost the perfect romance. The Ogre Downstairs and the Homeward Bounders by Diana Wynne-Jones, the Catch Trap by Zimmer Bradley, the Ice King by Dinah Dean, Tatya’s Story by Dinah Dean, Between Planets and Space Family Stone by Heinlein, my Mary Burchell collection starting with A Song Begins, Cotillion by Georgette Heyer, my complete tamora pierce collection – level of frayedness directly correlated with age. My Patrick O’Brien collection – same correlation. Kitty and the Midnight Hour, my Laurell K Hamiltons, WERE except I gave them away and got e-copies. My Sookie Stackhouse books, correlated directly with age, until they went digital as well…I could go on.
Judge away, but mine is Until You, by Judith McNaught. On my second copy, and the cover is missing.
Every January, when I reread Pride & Prejudice, I buy a new edition. Penguin did a “fashion illustrated” deluxe paperback with french flaps that I love. Two years ago, I happened to be in the UK for the New Year and bought a lovely edition that isn’t sold here.
But when it comes to paperback romances, I’ve had to replace Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie, Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase and Heaven, Texas by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Now that they’re on my ereader, I won’t have that problem! I love that they are reissuing many of the regency romances that I grew up with—the Mary Balogh books that I scoured used book stores for are about to disintegrate.
All of my Mary Stewarts and most of my Heyers. Heyer’s books are slowly being supplemented by e-books, but Stewart’s still only available in print. Some of them are almost 50 years old (admitting my age here), and I usually re-read them every couple of years. My original copies of LotR are just as bad, but those are now stowed in plastic bags and I read from new movie tie-in copies I bought a few years ago.
I have to say that I’m pretty ocd with my books and take good care of them. The only frayed covers I have are second hand books. That being said. I do own 3 copies of Pride and Prejudice. My MacGregor novels by NR have been read through multiple times; they are the comfort food of books. Also in that category is Impulse and Initiative by Abigail Reynolds. I become slightly more appalled each time I read it by some of the bad writing and cliches, but it’s like crack, and I’m not ready to go to rehab.
@SmartBitches My Frayed Cover Recs would have to be Nora Roberts’ Chesapeake Bay Series! Loved and read until they’re tattered and torn!
My frayed covers have been on Gone With The Wind ( replaced three times now ) , Rilla of Ingleside & The Blue Castle , all of my Laura Ingalls Wilders , and The Grapes Of Wrath.
Definitely Shanna by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, but also Mackenzie’s Mountain by Linda Howard. I know have too many others to mention, but these two sprang to mind right away.
Sorcery and Cecelia by Patricia Wrede and Carolyn Stevermer – the cover is falling off, the book has split into at least two sections and the whole thing is held together with scotch tape and love. It’s been my go-to comfort read for almost 20 years.
Other frayed covers and cracked spines are The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley, Absolutely Positively by JAK and Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie.
I have a couple of much loved books that are at the falling apart stage. Some of them are not strictly romances, since I came to the genre late, but all of them have strong romance elements.
Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park; Far from the Madding Crowd; A Room with a View; Laura, by Vera Caspary; and Trojan Gold, by Elizabeth Peters.
Not just frayed, but dog earred, food stained and water damaged are: The Cliffs of Night by Beatrice Brandon, Now You See Her and the Blair Mallory books by Linda Howard, The Williamsburg novels by Elspeth Thane, The Ozark Trilogy by Suzanne Haden Elgin, and if I could find it for less than $70.00, I would buy House of Scorpio by Pat Wallace, because I lost my copy a couple of decades ago. Also in disgraceful shape are all my Jennifer Crusies and the classic Telsy Amberdon sci fi/telepathy novels by James H. Schmitz. Oh, yes, Sunshine and most Robin McKinley, and the Donovan Family romances by Elizabeth Lowell. Oh, oh, oh!!! Every year I re-read the “Madonna Key” series by Evelyn Vaughn and 4 other authors….. Smartbitches may be the only ones to appreciate the true greatness of goddess, mythology, romance, the Magdalene, and fairy tale tropes. if nothing else, please read AKA Goddess by Evelyn Vaughn.
http://goo.gl/dDxcq
Oh yes. “Dear Daddy Legs.” It was the first book I ever remember choosing for myself. I got it when the amazing “Reading Is Fundamental” charity came to my school when I was seven and let every child pick a book to keep. The pages are falling out, the cover is torn, and I love it so.
Mine is The Windflower – it was one of my first historical romances, and I read it way to many times to count. I had the hardest time finding a copy to replace the worn, tattered copy that i had bought brand new. I bought a second hand copy, which was just as worn as the one I needed to replace!!
A few others are Judith McNaught’s books. I loved those. I’ve gone back recently and reread a couple and really don’t like them now – at all-but they’ll stay on the shelf.
The Fever series, by KMM, is one that I will need to replace soon. Probably by Halloween, when her new series starts.
My childhood copies of the Mad Scientists’ Club books were falling apart, but then they republished them in hardcover a couple of years ago. Woot! I still have the very first grown-up books that I hoarded my allowance to buy: Watch the wall, my darling by Jane Aiken Hodge and Wildfire at midnight by Mary Stewart, and they’re pretty ratty. I also can’t bring myself to replace my original copy of Gone with the wind. Then there are the ratty hardcover library rejects that I bought at book sales: The Sherwood ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope, The witch of Merthyn by Richard Llewellyn, and a lot of books by Andre Norton, Elizabeth Cadell, Jan Westcott, and Frances Murray. Luckily it’s been relatively easy to replace Georgette Heyer, unless you hold out for hardcovers (but I like those old covers).
Bet Me in paperback and Lord of Scoundrels on Kindle – I’ve re-read both so many times…. sheer joy and comfort, all in one.
Gaudy Night, by Dorothy Sayers (though I actually own two copies, one that I keep at my parents’ house in Seattle, and one that I keep at my own home on the other side of the country, so they’re not that frayed). The Wood Wife, by Terri Windling (the real version, not the ARC I picked up somewhere years later). Tam Lin, by Pamela Dean (my paperback copy, not the hardcover that a friend gave me a few years later). My childhood copy of The Secret Garden and my childhood copy of A Christmas Carol. My personal copy (not my mother’s copy) of Dance Upon the Air, by Nora Roberts. My copy (stolen from my mother) of Jewels of the Sun, also by La Nora. My childhood copy of Anne of Green Gables, given to me used by my grandmother when I was 7. My copy of The Blue Castle actually fell apart and is glued back together.
(Can you tell that I’m a book hoarder?)
And, the two most tattered of all: 1) a tiny picture book called “Two Kittens” that mother bought when I was just a baby from the store she worked in; one kitten has my first name, and the other has my middle name. 2) A book of nursery rhymes that I believe once belonged to a great-aunt or distant cousin, but which has been mine for as long as I can remember, and which I used to carry around when I was so small that it was nearly as big as I was.
I love Elizabeth Cadell. And really old Harlequins by Essie Summers – they mostly take place in New Zealand and the heroines were always funny and feisty and capable. Very unlike the other Harlequins of the period, which ran to wealthy, uncommunicative zillionaires or doctors who dominated the naive, virginal 19 year old heroine (for her own good). And my childhood town library had all the Emilie Loring books from the 1940s, which featured jaunty, patriotic, post war heroines who had the BEST outfits. Every now and then I re-read a Loring just for the fashion.
I haven’t been reading mainstream romance long enough to wear out any covers (although I’m working on a few), but I do have an audio book copy of Possession: A Romance by A.S. Byatt that would be in very bad repair if it were a paperback.
My most frayed books are the Black Lace series (“erotic fiction written for women by women”), mainly the original edition of WHITE ROSE ENSNARED and FORBIDDEN CRUSADE, both by Juliet Hastings. Some less significant damage has also been done to DARKER THAN LOVE by Kristina Lloyd and ELENA’S CONQUEST by Lisette Allen.
For some reason, the early editions, with the original covers, had very poor binding and both individual pages and whole chapters can be expected to fall out after several rereads. That’s one definite advantage of eBooks: Paperbacks that aren’t sturdy and go for dozens or hundreds of dollars online can be had digitally for much cheaper. (Looking on Amazon, WRE goes for $292 in new paperback, but $8.99 on the Kindle.)
Many of my frayed cover books I’ve been able to find in e version, which is nice, because now my favorite reads won’t disintegrate. Alas, Pamela Dean’s “Tam Lin” still isn’t available in ebook. I have two copies of it, one of which the cover is so frayed that I basically laminated it back together with clear packing tape. I have a newer copy of the trade paper version when it was re-released a few years ago, but I’m keeping the older version because the author autographed it for me (her housemate used to be a co-worker of mine, and when I learned that, I had her take my beloved – already falling apart at that point – copy to have it signed).
All of my Carla Kelly books are at that point (Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand, and Miss Grimsley’s Oxford Career still get re-read yearly); several Jennifer Crusie books, although I bought Bet Me, and Faking It in hardcover, so they’ve held up better; Nora Roberts Norther Lights, Tribute, and Sweet Revenge; Mary Jo Putney’s River of Fire; Peter David’s Star Trek: New Frontier series; Marion Keyes Sushi For Beginners; Connie Willis The Doomsday Book.
I’ve got Willis’s Blackout and All Clear in ebook format, but I know I’ll be re-reading them on a yearly basis, so they are in my “keepers” folder on my Nook. I’m pretty sure I’ll be re-reading Jay Asher’s Thirteen Reasons Why a few more times too.
My copy of Arrows of the Queen is in really bad shape because of constent rereads
Heather
One of my favorite rereads is retrohell, a collection of articles reminiscing about the 70s and 80s (published in the 90s, so technically, this book would now be retro! brain melt) from the editors of the Ben Is Dead zine. It’s funny as hell and quite snarky – I love it for the same reasons I love this site! I wore out the library’s copy (had this checked out pretty much all the time), and finally acquired my own copy, which is now well-read, so I should be looking into a backup copy, now that I’m thinking about it…..
Loving all the recommendations, btw!
There’s my twenty-one year old copy of Anne of Green Gables. I would take that everywhere with me as a teenager. It’s fallen apart after years of re-reads and is barely staying together with tape. I even made a newer cover for it last year.
A friend bought me a fancier, hardcover copy with green soft felt and gold on the cover. She would pressure me to throw the other one out. But I still prefer my old, well-loved copy. It would be like getting rid of a cherish friend.
“Deep Creek” by Dana Hand. A terrific love/hate/love story plus a ghost story, set in the 1880s but wonderfully vivd and alive.
The Road to Avalon by Joan Wolf. It’s so frayed I have 4 copies: a “car copy” that lives in my glove compartment, the newest edition reprint, my original copy held together by rubberband, and the copy on my Kindle.
I LOVE that book! I’ve got it on audio and I listen to it at least once a year.