Anthology

Last September I attend an event at one of my local libraries to hear Phyllis Reynolds Naylor speak. The author of Shiloh, Naylor has also written one of my favorite book series to date. The Alice McKinley series. The event had advertised that books would be available for purchase, so I left my copies of the books at home and was hoping to fill the gaps of my collection.

As I surveyed the selection before me my heart began to sink. No Alice. I toyed with the idea of picking up  one of her new releases. The following caught my eye:

I loved the cover, the yellow flowers and rain boots. Lo and behold, after I opened it, I discovered that it was actually these books

packaged into a new cover. So I happily got my Alice book for one of my favorite authors to sign.

But having the anthology has always set a little funny with me. I love books and the thought I put into them makes my nerdiness meter go through the roof. While I'm sure to buy more anthologies, I think I will always prefer having a copy of the individual books. Sure the anthology was sold at a great price (3 books for the price of a book and a half) and the cover was much better then the series' cover. But there is just something about looking at a row of book in a series, you know? 

So which do you prefer? Does it matter to you? I know some book bloggers buy finished copies of books they already have and some who replace slightly damaged ones. What are your thoughts on the way books look?