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Mass Market Paperbacks to Discontinue by 2025 Amid Sales Decline

1/21/2026

Summary

Story summary

The mass market paperback will cease distribution by the end of 2025, Publishers Weekly reports.
ReaderLink, a distributor, confirmed a decline in mass market paperback sales in recent years.
Steve Zacharius, CEO of Kensington Publishing, said affordability concerns exist, but buyers resist cheaper options.
Dawn Dailey, library director, expressed mixed feelings, preferring trade paperbacks for durability.
Anne Paulson, bookstore manager, lamented the loss as a sign of declining reading.

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Story summary

The mass market paperback will cease distribution by the end of 2025, Publishers Weekly reports.
ReaderLink, a distributor, confirmed a decline in mass market paperback sales in recent years.
Steve Zacharius, CEO of Kensington Publishing, said affordability concerns exist, but buyers resist cheaper options.
Dawn Dailey, library director, expressed mixed feelings, preferring trade paperbacks for durability.
Anne Paulson, bookstore manager, lamented the loss as a sign of declining reading.