Lola’s Ramblings: Do you Read Multiple Editions of a Book?

Recently I was reading the first book in a reworked series, the first book is new, but some of the later books are reworked versions of previously published books. It made me think of how some books get special editions with bonus content nowadays or stories like in anthologies get republished once they’re out of the anthology and then published with some extra content as an expanded edition. I sometimes struggle a bit with these, but then I also read some books that were new editions or got new editions that I really enjoyed, so wanted to share my thoughts today. All covers included are from books I enjoyed that got new editions and the covers link to my reviews for those.

Special Editions and Bonus Content

Books that get a new special edition with bonus content is something I’ve been seeing more often lately. Often the authors use Kickstarter for these special editions that are limited time available only, but I’ve also seen authors publish these as a separate book on vendor sites. Often they have a different cover or some artwork or extras added to the book. The story itself is often the same, but there are still new things added.

In general I don’t really buy these type of special editions. While I like seeing what the authors do for these and they often look great, it’s not something that really appeals to me. I don’t really feel like it’s worth spending my money on these. I don’t have as much money and these special editions are usually pricier than the normal version. And they’re often psychical books which I don’t read much anymore. The only times I am tempted is when it’s an ebook special edition of a book I haven’t read yet as in that case it’s similar to buying a book for the first time.

Reworked and Republished Versions

My definition of reworked and republished editions are books that get quite a lot of new content or some elements like characters and world building get changed or expanded. They feel quite different than the original version and often the authors publish these instead of the original version.

When it comes to books I already read I often struggle with these. I don’t re-read a lot of books and I find it hard to decide whether it’s worth buying the new version. Sometimes these new versions are discounted when they first release, which makes me more likely to pick up the new version.

I know Carysa Locke plans to re-publish the first book in her Telepathic Space Pirates series, I love that series and was planning to re-read it anyway so I’ll plan to buy that one when it releases. That’s an easy one, but then there are also books that I really liked but might not have planned to re-read anytime soon. The series that inspired this post kinda falls in that category, The Purple Oak Oasis by Laura Greenwood and Arizona Tape is the new version of the previously Purple Oasis series. The genre and world have drastically changed and there are new books in the series, but also republished books. I’ll probably buy the next book in the series to see how much has changed, as the first book was a new one. I just read the first book and it’s kinda weird knowing what the series was like and what it is now and it’s kinda confusing and weird to have both versions in my head. It’s a bit of an unique situation.

The easiest is when a book that I haven’t read yet gets a new edition. In that case I can just get the new version and never have had or read the previous version. An example of this is Annette Marie’s Steel & Stone which will get new versions for all books in the series, I never read this series and plan to get the new versions in audio. I heard some readers compare the new version of the first book Chase the Dark with the older version with some preferring the original and others the new one. As I haven’t read the original version I won’t be aware of what has changed and can read the new version without that knowledge, which can be nice. Another example of this is The Sorcerers Concubine by Lidiya Foxglove, I didn’t read the original version and just read the new version and loved it.

 

Expanded Versions

The last category I wanted to talk about is expanded versions, with this I mean stories that are published in mostly anthologies and then afterwards are published on it’s own as an expanded version. In general my preference is for the stories in anthologies to be the complete version, but I know this is not always possible due to time or word limits on those, so I understand to need to publish an expanded version.

It usually just depends on how much I enjoyed a story whether I’ll get the expanded version or not. If I really like a story I might be more tempted to get the expanded versions like Carol Van Natta’s stories from Pets in Space. In the case were I like a story, but not sure if enough to re-read them, it become tricky. I also struggle with not knowing whether it’s worth it for me to spend money on the same book again and how much has even changed or be added. Some authors add a lot and others not as much.

There are also cases where I anticipate or know the author will do an expanded version and just wait for that one, which is the easiest way to handle it and I often go for that route if there is only one or a few authors in an anthology I am curious about. In the case of Pets in Space anthologies I always buy the anthologies and then later decide what to do with expanded versions and whether to buy any of those. Again if authors discount the expanded versions that makes it a bit more tempting and easier to buy those.

Conclusion

I general I don’t like buying any new type of version of books and would be happy if I can just read the one and only version and there won’t be new versions, but that’s not always possible. There are lots of good reasons why authors might publish a new version and I understand that, it just can be a difficult decision to make whether to buy and read a new version. I don’t have as much money to spend so that’s also a consideration. It often depends on how much I like an author’s books, series or that specific story whether I will be tempted to buy a new edition. Other factors are how much has changed and how much new content there is and how pricey the new version is. It’s also nice if I never have read the original version and can just get the new version. I don’t re-read a lot and reading a new versions and comparing it to the original can be kinda jarring, but other times I really enjoy them and experiencing the changes or extra content.

Do you Read Multiple Editions of a Book?