A book signature is a sheet of paper consisting of four or more printed pages and folded one or more times to the approximate size of one page of a future book or other printed product. It folds in a way that puts the pages in the correct order. A whole sheet of paper 70x100cm, 64x90cm, or another size can have a different number of signatures. The number of signatures in a whole sheet is determined by how many pages there are in each signature, and the number of pages depends on the size, type of paper, paperweight, and the type of binding.

Book with 16 signatures with no spine

Also known as a book block, the book body consists of sheets or book signatures that can be bound. This does not include the front and back pages, which are additionally glued to the body, like the endpapers.

The outer part of the book, which surrounds the book block to protect it during use and storage, and, of course, serves as a way to communicate with the client after graphic design, printing, and decoration. The two main types of binding of modern books are hard and softcover:

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Flexible and thick paper (thickness over 0.30 mm) is used to make the cover of a paperback book. The paper body is fastened to the cover by gluing (usually or PUR).

To make the cover of a hardcover book, cardboard with a thickness of 1.5 mm to 3 mm is used. The bulkier the body, the greater the thickness of the cardboard.

The flaps are a continuation of the paperback, folded to the inside of the book. They can perform the same function as the hardcover cover, providing more space for presentation and marketing, a summary or additional layout. Of course, you can leave all this space free or add just a little emphasis. The flaps have a functional value that allows the reader to use them as a divider. You can choose to have two flaps or just one.

Covering/Cloth covering is the material used to cover the cardboard. The cardboard should be covered to have a better aesthetic appearance of the hard cover. It is usually covered in paper, cloth, leather or imitation leather. There is also a possibility for a mixed option: the cover of the cardboard could be made of paper, and only the spine – left as is. Some artists leave the cardboard without covering it in paper or cloth. Between the cardboard and the covering paper/cloth you can add foam, which gives extra volume and softness. Cloth covering does not allow standard offset printing and requires the use of techniques such as embossing, hot stamping or screen printing.

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Cloth

Faux leather

This is the part of the book where the cover material hides the set of book signatures. It is the part that is visible when the book is placed on the shelf. Usually the name of the work is written, and the name of the author, and the number of the book in the series (if it is a part of a series). The spine of the hard cover can be straight or rounded. The rounded back is preferred especially for a larger number of pages of the book, as it gives it elegance.

Spine with cloth and cardboard debossed

Straight spine

Round spine

Spine in blue and chrome paper cover with print

Foam rubber

These are the pages, usually white, that are always glued to a hard cover. Their purpose is to make the binding between the book body and the cover stronger. Usually one endpaper consists of 2 sheets (4 pages). The front endpaper is glued with its first page to the back of the front cover, the back with its fourth page to the inside of the back cover. Logically, the pages of the endpapers, which are glued to the covers, are left white. At your request, the other pages of the endpapers can have a print with text, illustration or image. They can be without printing, but instead with colored paper (such as offset) in different colors to match the design of the book.

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Endpapers with print

Head and tail band is a small piece of canvas added at the top and bottom of the spine of the book, between the body and the cover. It is glued to strengthen the spine and eliminate the gap between the book body and the hardcover, when the book is closed. It also has a decorative, aesthetic significance. It can be in different colors. The head and tail band must be added for spines exceeding 10 mm.

Represents the place where the back passes into the cover. Its shape is not straight, but slightly concave – like a gutter.

It is a more elegant version of the classic paper divider. It is a thin piece of cloth glued under the head-band and serves to mark the pages read. For more sophistication, there may be two bookmarks in different colors instead of one. The rbbon bookmark is completely suitable in works of art, and the possibilities for numerous color shades combine the useful with the sophisticated.

Ribbons in different colours

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In the field of book publishing, but also for other printed documents, there are standard formats and custom formats. It can be assumed that standard formats are formats designed for optimal use of paper while taking into account machine limitations. Custom formats, on the other hand, are more original, but the paper consumption is not optimized and they cause higher waste.

The format depends on the type of book that the publisher wishes to publish (“finished book format” in our examples), the technical possibilities of the machines and the available sheet sizes (“sheet size” in our examples). The choice of the format of the finished product depends on the number of pages that will enter the format of the sheet and therefore the cost of the product.

The number of pages printed on a sheet of paper is determined first. Then the folded sheet will form signatures. Books can be composed of signatures of 4, 6, 8, 12, 16, 24, 32 or 64 pages.

Example 6 pages

Example 8 pages

Example 24 pages

The trimmed / finished formats depend on the white margin, in mm, needed for binding, as well as the capabilities of the machines, and of course the size of the sheets of paper.

As shown in the table below, depending on the “format of the sheet” the final mini and maxi finished formats of a perfect bound book can be the following:

And for a sewn book we will find:

For standard sizes, a book, like any other document, is printed either in the direction of the height (portrait format) or in the direction of the width (landscape format).

Landscape format

Portrait format 

Square format

Finished formats also depend on machine limits, with a minimum size and a maximum size.

*All formats are in centimeters.
** The sizes may vary slightly from one printer to another, depending on their machines.
Larger or smaller formats, outside the technical machine limits, are possible but with a “manual” or semi-automatic intervention. Pulsio Print advisors are at your service to answer these specific requests.

Several technical parameters influence the choice of a book format. We chose 3: the type of binding, the type of paper and the presence of printable elements near the outer edges of the book.

For a perfect bound book, for example, we need to provide a 2 or 3 mm cut on the bonded side. While for that of a sewn book this is not necessary. Therefore, we must deduce these 2-3 mm of the maximum format to ensure the bonding.

When choosing paper, you should know that the price depends on the sizes of paper sheets available. For example: a book printed on offset paper in A5 finished format will be cheaper than on the bulky paper, while the price per ton of paper is the same. If all the parameters of the book are the same and the paper price too, this difference may appear if the chosen paper is not available in the format required for printing. In our example of the offset paper book – we can find paper in format 64 X 90 cm – optimal format for the finished format A5, while suppose that this format is not available for the bulky paper that exists only in the 70 × 100 format. Printed on the sheets of 70X100 cm, the “bulky paper” version book will have a higher cost.

You should know that some papers exist in unique formats, including creative papers or art, which can determine a greater waste (more cutting) and therefore a higher cost.

When calculating the price and choosing the finished formats, it is essential to take into account the presence of printable elements near the edge of the book.

By the way, it is not possible to print on a margin of about 8 mm from the edge of the finished book format. That means that the paper can pass into the machine, but the printing to the edge can’t be done. This is not a problem when this margin is white, but a larger sheet of paper is required when there are some printable elements in this white margin.

In conclusion, the choice and optimization of the format of a book can be a complex process because of the multitude of parameters to be taken into account. This is one of the areas where a printer-publisher interaction is paramount.

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