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Books that suffer from cocking, lean, twist or roll, or are otherwise no longer square, can be brought back to square in many cases, but keep in mind that the resulting repair may contribute to the further degradation of the spine. In order for a spine to become cocked, for example, a certain amount of loosening in the stitching or movement of glue must take place in the spine. The repair suggested here doesn't restore a stitched book to its original tightness; it only applies the defect in the other direction as well so as to balance things out. If the book is relatively tight to begin with, this may not be significant because chances are it will remain relatively tight. As cocking progresses, however, the odds of a satisfactory result decrease. True restoration of a spine can only be accomplished through rebinding.
In the case of books that are perfect bound, or glued, some glue flow may occur during the correction process and a measure of restoration may result, but again, there's no guarantee that things won't be made worse. In either case, practice on disposable books first; then proceed with caution.
One or two spring clamps will be all that's required for this repair. For a cocked, slanted or twisted book, simply cock or otherwise move it in the opposite direction of the defect and clamp it in place. When doing this, it's important to go slightly beyond the point at which resistance is first encountered. This stresses the spine and will deform it. Practice makes perfect here, preferably on books you're prepared to discard. Check for progress after a few hours.
For rolled paperbacks, try to assess how brittle the spine glue is before attempting anything. Sometimes this can be accomplished by pushing a fingernail into the glue channel on the top or bottom of the spine. If it feels brittle, it might be possible to soften it slightly with a heat gun or blow dryer before clamping. If not, it might be best to leave the book as is or re-glue the spine entirely. If the spine is cupped, application of heat may also help in working a cupped spine back to square with one's fingers.
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