(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)
Usually I like a hardcover notebook when the notebook is large and needs the extra structure to keep it in line. A hardcover on a pocket notebook seems odd--but it's brilliant.
The Field Sketch Book from Kokuyo offer all the marvel of Kokuyo's fantastic paper in a compact but durable package that's perfect for taking on the go. I am a constant pocket notebook user--they're bound scrap paper for me, and I can fill one in a week, easily. But this one has some special features that nudge it into its own category of use, and it's an essential category.
The cover is made from firm resin board that is quite inflexible. It's stronger than heavy cardstock and more closely resembles the hardness of a hardbound fiction book, but it's as thin as cardstock, and very lightweight.
Inside are 40 sheets of Kokuyo's lightweight 3 mm grid paper that is so fine it looks like it will melt if ink is applied, but instead it holds up to almost any ink you throw at it. All liquid inks did well, even in a wet flexy nib, with no bleeding or feathering and almost no show-through. The only ink that bled was the notorious Sharpie.
While I typically use a cardstock pocket notebook like Field Notes for my everyday use, this hardcover version feels great in the hand. At 3.7" x 6.5" it is a little taller than a typical pocket notebook, and that plus the hard cover means it's not great in the back pocket. This notebook will never take on that telling curvature of a well-used back pocket Field Notes. But one thing it is ideal for is being its own surface. Often, when I'm making the kind of note that goes in a pocket notebook, I'm not at a table or desk--I'm on the go. The closest thing I have to a writing surface might be a shopping cart handle or my knee. Having the sturdy hard cover on this pocket notebook means I always have a writing surface when I make my notes. Which is why I've picked one to be my official convention notebook, where I'll be taking notes on panels and readings all day. Its slim profile will make it easy to keep on hand whether I'm shoving it in a tote bag between panels, or in my fancy clutch for the formal evening events.
These have won me over in a big way. I'll keep putting my cardstock pocket notebooks through the wringer every day, but this slim and sturdy $5 workhorse will perfectly meet my needs when I need something just as small, but with more structure and 200% better paper.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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