Why specialist naval-history books become expensive

Why can a relatively recent specialist naval-history book become so expensive?

Small print runs create scarcity; if readership later grows enough to justify larger editions, publishers can reduce the price while still making a return.

D. K. Brown's Nelson to Vanguard remained costly soon after publication because the publisher printed too few copies. The later discussion broadens this into a critique of specialist academic publishing, where very small runs and high prices can keep useful scholarship out of readers' hands. Pen & Sword's larger popular-history market is presented as a preferable model for authors who want their books to be read. Growing demand can also allow prices to fall, as happened with Andrew Lambert's books. For learners building a naval library, the exchange explains how print-run economics rather than age alone can make a reference work hard to obtain.