When I first ventured into the new (to me) world of print-on-demand publishing two years ago, my research indicated that there were a number of fairly standard book trim sizes, such as 5-1/4" x 8", 5-1/2" x 8-1/2", 6" x 9", and "mass market" paperbacks at 4-1/4" x 6-3/4". While doing my grocery shopping Sunday afternoon, I wandered through the book aisle of the stupidmarket and I noticed that the vast majority of the novels on sale didn't appear to fit into any of those sizes. For work-related reasons, I carry a (very) small tape measure in my pocket, so I pulled it out and measured a couple of books. Sure enough -- they measured 4-1/8" x 7-1/2". I suspect that this may be an emerging trade standard. What it does is to allow a seller to display more books with the covers facing out in the same amount of shelf space. I would interested if anyone else has noticed this. Or if you ALL know about it and (as usual) I'm just late arriving at the party.
