Saddle Stitch Binding.
A saddle stitch binding is a term that means a booklet is stapled on the fold, as in the photo above. The staples can vary in thickness to hold a booklet or catalogue together, but not a large number of pages.
Saddle stitching is never used in professionally bound books. The booklet, or signature in book printing terms, must not be too thick in a well-bound book. Star Print Brokers assembles the signatures for a book, and glues them together, or they are sewn together, also called Smyth sewn.
Saddle stitch books are Not for bookstores!
A stitched binding is fine for workbooks or inexpensive booklets. But, bookstores require a spine with a title on it. So, it you are publishing a book, you will definitely want a perfect bound book rather than a stitched book. The good news is there is not much of a difference in cost. However, be aware that to print the title on the spine, we need a spine that is wide enough.
Most print-on-demand services require 64 pages. We can print a soft cover book with a spine that has a lower page count. It also depends on the thickness of the cover and text sock. We can most likely print a 24-page book with a spine, but 32 pages would be better. The type would be small.