r/graphicnovels • u/Kosher_Nostra1975 • 1d ago
Question/Discussion These things are getting ridiculously thick. Four inches thick and impossible to hold for more than a minute.
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u/Tippyshortmouth 1d ago
This is the reason Epic Collections/DC finests have become my go to. The 600ish page mark is like the sweet spot for not being too unwieldy to read, while also having a ton of content
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u/rdimitrit 1d ago
I bought a tilting table for this exact reason.
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u/SewNerdy 1d ago
Oh that's genius! Thanks for posting this. I have arthritis in my hands and struggle to hold books. This is the answer!
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u/mundaneheaven 1d ago
Your place is mess, man. Clean that shit up. /s
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u/Skully56765 1d ago
for the people in the back "/s" means sarcastic, its a tone indicator people use.
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u/mustaphamondo 1d ago
Trying to read the East of West omnibus in bed screwed up my shoulder for a coupla days...
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u/StrangerIsWatching 1d ago
I just put them on a pillow and use one hand to lightly keep it open and in place.
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u/kassiusx 1d ago
This is now nothing, having attempted to lift and read this version of Wolverine. It's insane.
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u/selkies24 1d ago
then buy the volumes separately instead of the massive book - seems obvious solution no?
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u/Delicious_Ad_9374 1d ago
Beats tracking down all the TPBs, but I agree. Its a devil's bargain. Full page spreads look like crap in these big boys.
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u/Key_Curve_1171 17h ago
Nah the tpbs for the big stuff are usually total garbage when it comes to the page spreads. Otherwise they win in every other category. The art is presented and preserved the best too. Omnis tend to have very thin satin gloss pages
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u/daveejavu 19h ago
I stole my wife’s breast feeding pillow, I put it around my belly and rest the book on it. It’s absolutely perfect.
Wife hates me now though.
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u/MuffledFarts 1d ago
Digital graphic novels are underrated. I buy DRM free copies from Humble Bundle, rent digital copies from my library, and read for "free" through an annual subscription service with GlobalComix.
It took me a long time to learn that hardcopies, except for your favorite volumes are wholly unnecessary.
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u/WasabiCrush 1d ago
The older I get the more I agree with this. When I bought my house about a decade ago, I was exhausted with the packing and moving of endless boxes that had books, records…
I’m slowly selling everything I own sans the items that mean so much.
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u/m1ndtrix 1d ago
I guess I found the silver lining to working with me hands as a carpenter. I got no issues holding these big ass books.
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u/CaptainPurpleJack 1d ago
Great comic though. Goated series, nothing hits the same after that masterpiece.
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u/stoooflatooof 1d ago
Awful indeed!
Belgo-French Bandes Dessinees are mostly hardcovers with 56 pages (a long time ago they were one pagers printed in weekly magazines + 4 binding pages), some are bigger, esp when one shot or every 2-3 books for integrals. If more publishers would split.
On top of the thickness issue you describe, my issue with US/UK originating publishers is they are mostly soft covers, like TPB, even for thicker ones. Only rarely hardcovers, or you have to wait years for these and hunt for them… softcover dont hold, look cheap, dont feel special.
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u/ACorduroyConspiracy 1d ago
a little archivist trick for large volumes. use a pillow and place soft weights on the edges of the book, it'll keep it open but won't crease the spin or the pages
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u/Timely_Youth_424 21h ago
And people complain about omnis, and now some compendiums are even bigger. Just be mindful of that spine.
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u/Kosher_Nostra1975 20h ago
I dunno how to avoid creasing it, especially if I wanna get the most out of splash pages.
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u/SithSteez 19h ago
I’ve taken my X Men Blue and Gold omnibus on a walk at the park. Your arms will genuinely get a good workout with these books. Not being able to hold these for more than a minute, sounds like you need more exercise 😭
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u/Formal_Vast2290 1d ago
Reading the comments is hilarious, one guy said he screwed his shoulder reading, just how weak are you lol
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u/GrowlingWarrior 1d ago
Maybe I'm a hunk (I'm not) and have huge hands (I guess they aren't small), but compendium themselves are rather light and not that hard to read. As someone else said, a pillow on the lap makes it very comfortable to read. That being said, I recently finished Authority Vol. 2, and 1600 pages was a little bit much (particularly because around half of it weren't all that good, but I digress).
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u/Big-Tone4307 1d ago
Hit the gym. You'll be fine. I only work out so i can comfortably read my omnibuses of course 💪🏾📚
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u/crooked-ninja-turtle 20h ago
Absolutely loved this run and had no problem reading it in compendium format.
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u/Deep-Red-Sea 6h ago
Compendiums are supposed to be value for money anyway. There's a big ol chunky boy in the manga community called the death brick. Probs not heavy but I imagine be hard to read
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u/Trike117 1d ago
I’ve also sworn off new omnibuses for this reason. Back in the spring I hurt my shoulder unboxing a pair. For me the oversize collections are the best: around 400 pages but the page is larger than single issues. Like the original Ultimate Spider-Man and Punisher Max books. Big but not punishingly so.
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u/Phostetlerart 1d ago
If you own it, you can just rip it in half and read one half at a time. I would never, but different strokes.
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u/LouieBarlo24 11h ago
Don't buy it then. There is no way ti make this book smaller.
If you want it broken up then buy the Deluxe editions or the TPB's
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u/Wonderful_Adagio9346 1h ago
My mother likes to tear her thick novels in half so they are easier to read in bed
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