College affordability has recently become the preeminent issue in higher education, as student-debt figures have hit staggering levels.

But most conversations center around the ballooning tuition costs, rather than a less-well-known source that strains the wallets of college students: textbooks.

Since 1977, the price of college textbooks has more than tripled the rate of inflation, meaning a 1,041% rise, according to NBC News, which cites Bureau of Labor Statistics Data.

“They’ve been able to keep raising prices because students are ‘captive consumers.’ They have to buy whatever books they’re assigned,” Nicole Allen, a spokeswoman for the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources read more >>>

Source:: BusinessInsider.Com