PAGES : Madonna Gets Into a Bad Bind

Bad “Sex?” “It seems that the material girl could’ve used better material,” quips one bookseller at B. Dalton’s Beverly Center store.

The problem? Sales of Madonna’s book, “Sex,” have proven to be impervious to criticism from feminist and family values fronts, but it is having trouble withstanding the handling of fans because of its unusual construction.

“The book’s cover tends to get caught in the spiral binding, bending it out of shape,” explains John Howell, assistant manager of the Beverly Connection Bookstar. “Customers have come in unable to close the book, with the pages falling out.”

Nanscy Neiman, executive vice president and publisher at Warner Books, which released “Sex” on Oct. 21, acknowledges that the book’s binding has been a source of trouble. The number of complaints has caused Warner revise its unprecedented “No Returns” policy for the heavily hyped, $49.95 tome.

“If it is damaged, we will take it back,” Neiman says.