Judging a book by its size

I confess that I have browsed through many a book store and walked out with books that I chose primarily because they had an interesting cover and were in the trade paperback format. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the conventions of book publishers, trade paperbacks are basically paperbacks with a hardcover form factor (the regular paperback size is known as 'Mass Market'). So - not only am I a victim of marketing, but I guess I'm somewhat of a book snob.

However publishers often put books nominated for awards, or new and notable works out in trade paperback form (not a whole lot of John Grisham - not that there's anything wrong with it), so their marketing has led me to some pretty good reads. Recently the New York Times released a new book review format, and they've included a separate category for trade paperbacks. You can find it here: New York Times Best Sellers - Trade Paperbacks.

For an interesting commentary on it, check out the Sept 19 entry on bookblog.net - bookblog.net 9/19/07.