FAQ
How to buy
Where can I buy your books?
You can get them right here on our website, or better yet, via our network of great resellers around the world. You won’t find us on Amazon, as we believe in supporting local music stores and individual bookshops. You can find the list of resellers here.
Claims
Help! My book showed up damaged!
Sorry to hear that – however, we want you to have the best possible reading experience, so please contact us with your order number and photos of the damage(s) and damaged packaging, and we’ll look into it.
What the heck? I received the wrong book. Now what?
Wow, this is like finding a four-leaf clover, as it only happens a few times a year. Please contact us with your order number and a photo of the item you received, and we’ll solve it.
Shipping
Why can’t I choose a shipping price / method?
That’s because we’ve made special arrangements with our warehouses in the US, UK, and EU, to get the lowest possible prices on shipping. Our books are quite heavy – close to 2 kg (4 lbs) each! – which means they are a bit more expensive to ship around the world, especially to countries outside the US, UK, and EU.
How long will it take until I get my book?
The normal shipping time varies according to where you are in the world. If you’re in the US, UK, and Europe, you should receive your package within 3 to 8 business days. If you’re in Canada, Australia, or the rest of the world, it usually takes between 6 and 14 business days. Shipping may take longer for remote areas and during peak season in November and December.
Due to the drastically altered environment of the current world situation, shipping and delivery times may be delayed beyond our control, and we appreciate your patience.
I have not received any tracking info – what do I do?
All customers in the US, UK, and Europe receive tracking information when ordering on this site. If you haven’t received tracking information within three business days after your order, please check your spam filter. Otherwise, please contact us. Outside the US, UK, and EU, you might not get tracking info, in which case you can contact us.
According to tracking, my package has not moved in several days – when can I expect it?
This is quite normal, especially for shipments outside the US, UK, and the EU. Please be patient, and if the tracking code shows that the package is at a facility in your country, please don’t hesitate to give the carrier a call. If nothing works and you have been waiting for more than 15 business days (3 weeks), please contact us.
Prices and discounts
What’s up with the price of your books?
Our books require a lot of work, with a lot of people involved. Photos, illustrations, research, etc. – not to mention printing physical books on environmentally-responsible top-quality paper – all carry significant costs. This is what we do for a living, and we’re a small business. We hope you’ll want to support that, and we love you for it.
If you’re still not sure, ask around; we’re confident that everyone who owns our titles will tell you that they are well worth the price.
Do you give discount codes or student discounts?
We only issue discounts under certain circumstances, such as holiday specials. However, if you’re with an educational institution and would like to purchase six or more of our books, we recommend asking your academic library to set up a purchase order; if that’s not feasible (or your institution doesn’t have a dedicated library), please contact us here and we will do what we can to help you out.
Other questions
I bought a book. Can I get a PDF of it too, for travel etc.?
Thanks for buying our books! Unfortunately, aside from samples sent out with our e-newsletter registrations etc., we don’t make PDFs of the books. We believe in the significance of physical books in a digital world, and this is how we make our living.
Why are your books not published as ebooks?
The physical aspect is a big part of experiencing these titles – there’s nothing like a real, physical book, and we are intensely proud of what we’ve created as objects of design and art as much as sources of information and inspiration. We think it’s a bit like the difference between making music with a hardware synthesizer vs. doing it with software!
Will the books be published in other languages?
No, unfortunately not. Because of the highly technical nature of what we write about – and the necessity of turning that information into language that readers find clear and welcoming – stepping away from English becomes a very expensive and risky proposition. However, if enough people ask us for publications in one particular language, we might look into it in the future.