The First-Ever 3D-Printed Book Cover

Everybody knows what a book looks like. Even as e-books become more popular, the basic idea is the same as it's been for centuries: a rectangular block. And Chang-rae Lee's On Such a Full Sea is no exception-on the inside, at least. On the outside, however, the novel is something entirely new.

The book will be available Jan. 7 in limited edition with what the publisher, Riverhead Books, is calling the first-ever 3D-printed slipcover, the result of a collaboration with the 3D-printing mavens at Makerbot.