Now that I'm in college (actually, I have been for about 5 semesters) they don't really seem to care about informing you on taking care of your books.

Of course, in high school, they made you take care of the books because of the fact that it was THEIR books. Even then all they made you do was cover them with a book cover.

Ok, on to the point.

How do I protect my text books? The hardback ones, but especially the paperback ones? Their flimsy-ness always seems to get a dent in it somewhere if I put it in my backpack... I also have way too many to carry around, otherwise I would carry them around so nothing would happen to them in my backpack...

So all in all, how do I protect both my hardback and paperback textbooks from getting screwed up? (Bent pages, scratched covers, bent covers... etc)

The hardbacks can be protected by the old school paper bag method or the do make reusable book covers that you can buy in most stores. They are mad of a stretchy material. As far as the paperback ones you could try the stretchy reusable ones. I have not personally used these for anything but hardback so I do not know if they would work but if you have one or know someone that has one. The other thing you could do is use contact paper on the covers and spine folding it over on the inside of the cover. This is not the greatest but it is better than nothing.

I hope this helps! Good Luck!!!

I used to work at a college library, and we protected the paperback textbooks by laminating them. If you could find the supplies, it's actually really easy to do it yourself.

Of course, I never bothered to try to protect them. I rarely sold them back, and I always considered the tears and dents to be proof that I loved and read them

caseyjo wrote:I used to work at a college library, and we protected the paperback textbooks by laminating them. If you could find the supplies, it's actually really easy to do it yourself.

Of course, I never bothered to try to protect them. I rarely sold them back, and I always considered the tears and dents to be proof that I loved and read them

There's just something about seeing a book that is a little faded or a little torn up. It just means that it got a lot of action...it's cause to assume it's popular and amazing.

This question actually makes my day. I'm always glad to see students wanting to take care of their textbooks. I feel like I could contribute a good answer because I unpack boxes and boxes of college textbooks at a sell textbooks website. Here is a list of things that may possibly cause extra wear on text books:
1.) Storing (or sending) the textbooks vertically in a box.
I think books travel (and store) best laying flat in the box. If the books are packed vertically, any movement (bouncing or otherwise) can cause the pages and sometimes the binding to spread outward, especially when the bindings are at the top. Further, books shipped or stored vertically may possibly end up with bent or broken corners.
2.) Sand/dust on the covers.
Don't do this -- but if you were to take 2 brand new books, add a little dust and slide them back and forth, you'd notice the shine starts to wear off and little scratches form on the textbook's covers. So it's best to keep the books clean and dust free.
3.) Moisture, water
Never ever ever ever spill water on a textbook. If this happens by accident, try to wipe it up immediately. Otherwise the pages will curl, and sometimes stick together. If you have to go out into the rain with a textbook (sometimes on college campuses you have to walk a long way out in the open, and it could be raining out), try to keep the book covered.
4.) Textbook writing
If you plan on selling your textbook, try to avoid writing in it. If you absolutely have to write in it, try to write in such a way the writing can be completely erased. If you plan on keeping the textbook forever, then obviously, the writing thing is moot.
5.) Bookmarking pages
If you need to bookmark a page in your textbook, try to use either an actual bookmark, or a piece of paper -- don't fold over the edges. One or two pages, no biggy, but if you have dozens and dozens of folded textbook pages, the book is going to look pretty worn
6.) Smells
Chemically smells, smoke, etc., seem to stay in books a long time. Try to keep unnecessary smells away from your book.
7.) Some people like to sell their textbooks; however, like the previous poster said, if you plan on keeping your book and it looks a little worn/used/aged, that's a good sign that you've used the book alot and shows you enjoy it, and as we all know, it's always great when books are enjoyed!

Yeah, I only really have a problem with the paperbacks. I'm not sure how to take care of them; I've only used one, and since it was for a post-secondary class, I had to return it.

My theory when I was in college was to never open them or remove them from my shelf. Unlike me, they were in perfect condition when I finished.