limp binding

Limp binding is a bookbinding method in which the book has flexible cloth, leather, vellum, or (rarely) paper sides.

In limp binding the covering material is not stiffened by thick boards, although paste-downs, if used, provide some stiffness; some limp bindings are only adhered to the back of the book.

From about 1775 to 1825, limp leather was commonly used for pocket books, but by the 1880s limp bindings came to be largely restricted to devotional books, diaries, and sentimental verse, sometimes with yapp edges.