Even a well-bounded book may be easily ruined at the first opening. So be sure to follow these rules and you’ll preserve your book and ensure that you have it for a lifetime — and then some!
- Place the book with its back on a table.
- Let the front cover down.
- Then the back cover.
- Then open a few leaves in front.
- Then a few at the back, alternating front and back, gently pressing them down until the center is reached.
- Do this two or three times in order to limber up the binding. Should you open the volume roughly or carelessly, you may break the back and cause the leaves to loosen.
Never force the back! If it does not readily yield, it is too tightly or strongly lined. It needs gentle treatment, much the same as a machine needs lubricating.
