Caveat emptor (Penguin)

Just a word about the word shoddy and the Penguin Little Black Classics box set: the eighty small paperbacks are a great adventure in browsing, but their production is poor. Covers spell Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s last name as Caleridge and Thomas Nashe’s last name as Nasha. One volume (I’m not going to check which) has page numbers in different sizes on the recto and verso. My copy of Wilfred Owen’s poems (but not Elaine’s) has six blank pages. The text on pages that have text is often crooked. Many of the books have traces of adhesive on their covers or spines or both. Some Amazon reviews mention missing books, duplicate books, and damaged slipcases.

I’ve written to Penguin three times — no replies. I would not take a chance giving this set as a gift. Too many chances for disappointment.