Protect your books to make them last

What is it about books that makes us want to surround ourselves with them? Is it the way they feel? Their smell? Or is it just the thought of all the wonderful places and times they can take us to? Here's how to make sure your beloved books are around for your grandchildren to enjoy.

Do your part to keep books in good condition while reading them by following a couple of simple steps:

• Instead of turning down page corners, use a bookmark — or, better yet, a long strip of acid-free paper.
• Don't forget to turn pages by the top corner; turning them from the bottom edge is a good way to cause accidental tears.

• Position books at the front of bookshelves instead of pushing them to the rear.
• By leaving some space behind your books, you're permitting air to circulate and inhibiting the growth of mildew and moulds on the books.

• The secret to removing a book from a shelf or bookcase without tearing it is to push the books on either side of it slightly inward, then gently grasp the book around its midsection and ease it free.
• Never pull out a book by its spine; you'll eventually damage the binding and cause it to rip.
• Also, be sure to use both hands when handling large, heavy tomes or encased volumes.

• They may look nice, but decorative bookends aren't always kind to your books.
• Many don't support the full length of the books they lean against, which can leave books warped and worn.
• Other types of bookends have rough or uneven edges that can actually rip or tear book covers.
• If you have some empty space left on a shelf and want to keep your books standing upright and undamaged, a smooth block of wood covered with either leather or felt is the best way to go.
• If you decide to keep your bookends, make sure they provide adequate, top-to-bottom support for your books and don't have any sharp edges to cut book covers.

• Tape, glue, paper clips, staples, and other ordinary fasteners can cause irreversible damage to books or to valuable papers. Metallic fasteners like paper clips and binder clips can corrode and leave rust stains on paper.
• Even the ubiquitous sticky notes can leave behind residue that may cause pages to become stuck together. Also avoid using rubber bands as bookmarks.
• A rubber band left in a book for a prolonged period can dry out and leave pages stuck together or badly stained. 

• Many libraries and professional archivists prefer to keep their most important books in what are known as Solander boxes.
• Invented by Swedish botanist Daniel Solander (1733-1782) while he was a librarian at the British Museum, these expensive boxes are lined throughout with acid-free paper and are virtually light-proof and dust-proof; they even offer good protection against fluctuations in humidity and temperature.
• Most are covered in cloth and constructed on a plywood frame.
• Solander boxes typically incorporate a drop-front design for prints and documents or a drop-back design to accommodate a single book.