<P> A trade paperback, sometimes referred to as a "trade paper edition" or just "trades", is a higher - quality paperback book . If it is a softcover edition of a previous hardcover edition, and if published by the same publishing house as the hardcover, the text pages are normally identical to the text pages in the hardcover edition, and the book is close to the same size as the hardcover edition . Significantly, the pagination is the same so that references to the text will be unchanged: this is particularly important for reviewers and scholars . The only difference is the soft binding; the paper is usually of higher quality than that of a mass - market paperback, for example acid - free paper . </P> <P> Trade paperbacks are typically priced lower than hardcover books and higher than mass - market paperbacks . Virtually all advance copies sent for promotional and review purposes are issued in trade paperback format . </P> <P> In the U.S., the term trade paperback also encompasses the medium - sized paperbacks described as B - format, above . </P> <P> Trade paperbacks are often used to reprint several issues of a comic series in one volume, usually an important storyline or the entire series itself, and the name "trade paperback" has become synonymous with a collection of reprinted material . Graphic novels may also be printed in trade paperback form . Publishers sometimes release popular collections first in a hardback form, followed by a trade paperback months later . Examples include Marvel Comics' Secret War and DC Comics' Watchmen among many others . </P>

What does a mass market paperback look like