Academic Books Are Way Too Expensive

Buying books for her store, Lori, aka the Brookline Blogsmith, wonders whether university-press titles are worth it. $45 for a 160-page paperback? “Thanks for nothing, Michigan State University Press.” $21 for an previously unpublished James Michener novel — in paperback? Get real. “Why not make the book $10 and market it to all the fans out there who loved reading his historical sagas and are just curious for something new and different? It makes me think the publishers don’t really think Matecumbe is worth reading at all. In that case, why are they publishing it?”

Listen up, University Press of Florida! “I just have a hard time asking people to pay more than $20 for a paperback. I understand the economics behind the high prices of university press books (well, some of the economics — some seem a bit sketchy to me), and that I, the trade bookstore buyer, am not their target customer, but it is frustrating.”