Glossary

Book formats

TP (Trade paperback): Books with soft cover, usually collecting 4 to 6 issues* and generally having the same trim size as the original comic book. TP books do not have a dust jacket and usually do not contain extra content (such as covers gallery, sketches, authors interviews and so on). The paper quality of these books are generally the same as the one of a single issue.

* An exception is represented by "compendium" books which are the cheapest way to collect dozens of issues in a single volume.

HC (Hard Cover): Premium book editions which often are oversized and may have a dust jacket (Omnibus, Absolute and Library editions) and/or a ribbon bookmark (Absolute or some Library editions). This kind of books usually contain extra content like covers gallery, sketches, interviews and so on. 

Omnibus: An oversized HC (hard cover) variant collecting many single issues (dozens) and having a high page count (often more than 1000 pages). Many publisher utilize this term for their books, but unfortunately there is no a general agreement on the omnibus specification in terms of trim size or cover type (soft or hard). Usually by "omnibus" we refer to the ones produced by Marvel and DC, so an oversized HC book having a dust jacket. Recently also Image Comics has joined the "true omnibus club" releasing Invincible omnibus and following the same specifications of Marvel and DC. 

Absolute edition: An oversized HC (hard cover) variant collecting several single issues. Compared to an omnibus the page count is lower but the trim size is bigger and generally the biggest format available (there are some rare exceptions represented by special artwork formats). Absolute books have also a slip case and a ribbon bookmark. The paper quality (having a higher grammage) and coloring of these books is the best you can dream of. Generally speaking this is the most prestigious edition a reader can buy.

Library edition: Another HC variant very similar to an absolute but not providing a slip case and not always including a ribbon bookmark.

Compendium: A soft cover variant collecting tons of issues (up to 50+!). This is the most cheap way to collect stuff to read and it's a convenient way to catch up with a long run/series in a single shot. However from a collector prospective it's also the worst format to get, because the bindings and the manufactory quality combined to the huge number of pages make such editions very likely to form creases on the spine in the first place * and they do not contain any extra or improvement compared to the single issues.

 * this is issue might be particularly relevant for certain publishers (like Image), while almost not an issue for others (like DC)

Acronyms

MR (Mature Readers): Books intended for adults containing material not suitable for kids. This might include: gore and violence, sex, drugs and/or alcohol abuse, vulgar language, sensitive topics like suicide and so on.

DM (Direct Market): Book variant available only through comics shops and retailers like NerdBeast and not available for other channels like traditional bookstores.

NM (Near Mint): Refers to the conditions of a book. In this condition the book is in perfect shape, without dents, scratches, tears, discolorations or wrinkles. This is how you should expect to receive your books when ordering from NerdBeast (unless you are specifically buying defected books from our outlet for a higher discount).

OOP (Out Of Print): A book that is not printed anymore (it might get a reprint in the future but usually after years)