Desperate Gambit: Project X and the American Aerial Defense of Java, 1941–1942

[Edward]

Originally Posted by edwest2

Look at any book published by an academic press. $190 is a starting price.

Between 1992 and 2014 TAMU Press published five of Bill Bartsch's books with the cost ranging from c. $25-$40 for a hardback edition.

Obviously things are different in 2026. I know of one other author whose upcoming WWII history is being priced at $120 by TAMU Press for a hardback copy with the ebook for much less.

Many academic presses will price a hardback edition at $100+ that is marketed to libraries and institutions while a concurrent release of a paperback edition is priced at $40-60 for undergraduate and graduate students. Archaeological site reports are often underwritten by an institution so that the cost might be kept below $200.

I assume that the higher cost for many books published by academic presses is due to factors such as limited print runs, editing by salaried editors, verification of content, creation of maps and charts, archival printing standards etc

[edwest2]

That is mostly accurate. I have been working in book publishing for over 40 years. Most people have no idea how any book gets from proposal to printed copy. And that's understandable.

However, on a specialist site like this, it's good to have such background information.