The reason books have the statement about covers and copyright pages in the US is that paperback books are sent out to bookstores, and if not sold, the bookstore can return the cover and copyright page for credit on their account. The bookstores are supposed to destroy the rest of the book, but occasionally you'll see a "stripped" book, and these are the ones that you shouldn't buy. For that matter, dress patterns are handled the same way, with just the envelope returned, and the pattern itself destroyed. When my DD worked at a fabric store (right after college), the way they destroyed them was take them into the back alley in a garbage bag and fill the bag with water. The resulting mush was then useless to anyone except a recycler or someone working in paper mache.
As for depriving an author of money when you sell a second hand book, that simply doesn't make sense. The author was paid for their intellectual property. You are selling a physical object which you own, which is not illegal unless you make a copy of that book before you sell it. If that book changes hands six times, that author was paid for that one book. Sometimes highly-sought-after books go out of print (think lace books!) and the only way a lacemaker can get one is on the secondary market. But the author of that book has been paid for any books that come onto the secondary market... although the publisher evidently leaves something to be desired if they will not do another release. Clay From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] I then looked at a couple of recentish > novels nearby (because I was sure I had seen some sort of statement > somewhere) > and they both have wording to the effect that the book can't be resold > without > the original cover and without a similar copyright statement. > Helen in dark Vancouver, BC on the west coast of mainland Canada - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]