Unearthing anthropology
The study of anthropology is the study of man—that fascinating creature with all its various cultures, histories and quirks. For the collector, this area offers numerous fields and endless choices in collection focus and investment costs. For the dealer, anthropology requires knowledge of the various fields as well as some knowledge of the rarity and value of the literature in order to sell to the collector. [Read more]
Photographs & memories: A case for preserving family memorabilia
I recently played a small role in bringing a set of letters relating to Ashland country history from Philadelphia to Ashland University. At that time, I was surprised to learn that there were some people in the area who didn't understand why anyone would want old letters that were not those of their own family. They didn't know about the brisk traffic in manuscript material of all kinds. Why would anyone want such things? To offer a few answers to that question, let me respond. [Read more]
Richard Morgan: bibliographer & collector of Ohio imprints
"Collectors with money are like dealers with prices. We never know what we'll pay for a book until we actually pay for it," says businessman Richard Morgan, who also happens to be an avid collector of Ohio Imprints. [Read more]
What it's worth: taking the guesswork out of appraisals
Most booksellers, particularly those living relatively close to a school, library, museum, or university, are called upon sooner or later to appraise printed, manuscript, and photographic materials for donation or insurance purposes. Since the mid1980s, when the IRS began questioning appraisals more frequently and issuing more specific rules governing them, fewer and fewer antiquarian booksellers have been motivated to perform appraisals. Many feel they are just not worth the trouble. Others fear incurring the wrath of the IRS if the appraisal is questioned. Still others prefer to discourage donors from sending collections into the black hole of institutional collections where they may be lost to the marketplace and, possibly, to view and study forever. [Read more]
Bookcase games: a collector's empire
When thinking of the term "board games," one might recall the games that were fashioned in one’s youth, with the ancient games of Chess, Backgammon and Checkers being among the more elite of these gemstones of man’s effort to pass the time in thought. Others may have become aware of the existence of games of strategy in the late 1950’s or l960’s, with developments such as "Risk" by Parker Brothers, or "American Heritage Series" games by Milton Bradley, which included such titles as "Battle-Cry," a game of the Civil War, or "Broadside" concerning the War of 1812. [Read more]
Civilizations in the sand — rare and collectible books on the Middle East
In almost every Arab capital these days there is an annual book fair. Except for Cairo, these book fairs are usually for new books. In Cairo there is a side fair for secondhand and out-of- print books which takes place at the same time as the main Cairo International Book Fair. There are secondhand book dealers in Beirut, Aleppo, Baghdad, Damascus, Amman and Cairo. Most of them trade locally, except a few in Cairo who are known internationally. I have met most of them and unfortunately all those I have met suffer from what I call the Suq (local bazaar) syndrome. The unknowledgeable among them think that every book which is a few years old must be worth a fortune. Even those who know the value of their books price them exorbitantly. [Read more]
The magic of magic
The word “Magic” is defined by Webster’s Collegiate Thesaurus as “the art of producing mysterious effects by illusion and sleight of hand.” The word “magician” is defined as “one who practices tricks of illusion and sleight of hand.”
These are nice, concise definitions; but for the book dealer or collector there is much more to magic than any thesaurus or dictionary can describe. Magic is the most universal of the performing arts and one of the oldest. Magic is an art that is, and always has been, known and practiced in every country of the world throughout the centuries. [Read more]
First things first
Many of us first came to appreciate the importance of edition points in college, when we learned, to our chagrin, that the third edition copy of the Sociology 101 text that we cleverly purchased used from our frat brother for five bucks and a six pack would not suffice for the $79.95 fifth edition that was required for the class. Indeed the primary orientation for the general book-buying public has always been upon the latest, and presumably, most current edition of a book. [Read more]
Condition, condition, condition
After 17 years in the business, I have become convinced that there are only two types of booksellers: those who grade their books accurately and those who do not. The fundamental difference in mindset between these two groups speaks volumes about their differing approaches to the trade. Ultimately, I believe that a dealer’s attitude toward the topic of condition comes to be reflected, for better or worse, in all of their key business practices. [Read more]
Common antiquarian ailments
My standard line as a mender of hurt books is: "Half my work is pathology before I ever get to the surgery."
A book falls apart for a reason. Sometimes, the reason is obvious—it was dropped, or it got wet, or the materials just rotted. But most of the time you have to let books tell you why they fell apart. And if you learn a little of their language, they're marvelously communicative.
I'm going to run through a short list of problems that cause dealers to throw themselves and their books on the mercy of binders, discuss what may have caused the problem, and give you an idea of what you should expect from a binder if you find you need one. [Read more]
Collecting children's books primer
Putting together a collection of children's books seems to be a lot of fun. Over the 20 years we have dealt in them, we've had many interesting conversations with collectors, most of whom are adults, 30 years and over. Generally, collectors fall into two categories: those who remember their favorite childhood book characters and those who prefer something unusual about the books, such as illustrations, size, shape, or topic. [Read more]
Collecting books in the area of space exploration
For centuries, human beings have looked to the sky and wondered about the lights they have seen there. Even today, our understanding of the heavens is rather modest. But we have at least escaped the atmosphere of our earth and have traveled to its natural satellite, the moon, even if this is only a tiny fraction of what lies beyond. [Read more]
Collecting history
Upon opening Pandora's Books, we virtually had no Modern Fiction, Science Fiction, paperbacks, Metaphysical and New Age, Self-Help, or other categories of books. Our emphasis was on Art, Politics, History, Native American and Ethnic Studies, Western Americana, Cooking, and Sports. We had a moderate number of Antiquarian books on various subjects. We have acquired, through time and demand, the categories we originally did not have. However, our preferred emphasis is still on the nonfiction subjects of History and Politics. We have greatly embellished our History sections by fortunately acquiring a collection of original World War I and World War II posters. [Read more]
Collecting mass market paperbacks
Collecting mass market paperbacks can be fun, rewarding, and often more affordable for beginning collectors. The following is simply a brief history and overview of this vast genre. Although paperbacks had been issued sporadically in the early- to mid- part of the century, the launching of New Pocketbooks in 1939 really led the way to an explosion in mass market publishing. The idea was to issue reprints of classic and popular hardbacks in a small paper format that was cheap, handy to carry, used less paper (a wartime consideration), and to capture audiences that had not been able to afford the original hardcovers. [Read more]
Evolution of a book collector
I didn't enter the world of bookselling for the traditional motivation of assembling a spectacular book collection. Nor did I have a very impressive library of my own. For me, the business offered a pure and honest opportunity in our rapidly changing society. Technology was revolutionizing the ways in which booksellers could ply their trade and book enthusiasts could seek and purchase their treasures. [Read more]
Collecting early printed books
Collecting early printed books, published before 1900, is a very rewarding and challenging area of book collecting. Unlike other areas of collecting, where if you have enough money you can find almost anything that you want, there are many early printed books that you can't find no matter how much money you have.
The value of older books is determined by many of the same criteria as modern books—condition, content, and edition. Many people think that just because a book is old, it is valuable, but a book has no collectible value by age alone unless it was printed in the 1500s or earlier. [Read more]
Collecting cooking, food & wine
A collection of cookery books in the 21st century is far different from a comparable collection at the beginning of the 20th century. The art of cooking reflects the changes in social history and now the great expansion of travel around the world.
The cooking of many lands is influenced by the discovery of spices by 14th-century Europeans and by 17th-century North Americans. No doubt in due time modern archeologists can write books on the foods of the Incas and the spices the Spanish conquistadors brought to Mexico. [Read more]
A Guide to book collecting in the 21st century
My 1929 edition of The Fishmonger's Fiddle by A.E. Coppard looks almost new, is it worth anything? How about my first edition of Jurassic Park? Is collecting everything published on space aliens worthwhile? Answer your questions on beginning or sustaining a book collection by reading some advice from Roger Gozdecki who has been collecting and selling books for more than 20 years. As you dive into the world of bibliomania, take a look at our Glossary of Book Terms for further reference. [Read more]
The advantages & disadvantages of collecting strategies
Single Author advantage: The least time-consuming, easiest way to plan and focus a collection- i.e. acquire all the first editions and ephemeral items by an author that you especially enjoy, along with any biographies, and critical studies about them... [Read more]
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