How Books Designed for Soldiers’ Pockets Changed Publishing Forever

(via Atlas Obscura)  In early June, 1944, tens of thousands of American troops prepared to storm the beaches of Normandy, France. As they lined up to board the invasion barges, each was issued something less practical than a weapon: a slim, postcard-sized, softcover book.  These were Armed Services Editions, or ASEs—paperbacks specifically designed to fit in a soldier’s pockets and travel with them wherever they went.