Hard stop. The Hobbit is my favorite book (part of why I have so many copies), and I’ve had this edition for something like 25 years. It’s not the first edition I ever read (that was a hardback, with Tolkien’s illustrations in every chapter, and it was a library book), and I can’t really say that it’s even my favorite edition, but I love the physical object. It’s one of the few possessions I’ve managed to keep for so long, it’s like an old friend. Some people keep locks of hair from old lovers, or baby clothes and baby blankets, or good luck charms. None of those are my cup of tea, but I get it.
Also… inherently disposable? A book is inherently disposable? I’m a librarian, so I’m heavily biased, but… man, we have very different philosophies when it comes to books.
