diff --git a/src/calibre/library/catalogs/epub_mobi_builder.py b/src/calibre/library/catalogs/epub_mobi_builder.py
index 383ced377e..5fdc70d5cd 100644
--- a/src/calibre/library/catalogs/epub_mobi_builder.py
+++ b/src/calibre/library/catalogs/epub_mobi_builder.py
@@ -2784,7 +2784,7 @@ class CatalogBuilder(object):
 
         # Comments
         comments = ''
-        if 'description' in book and book['description'] > '':
+        if book.get('description'):
             comments = book['description']
 
         # >>>> Populate the template <<<<