Book Scouting

On the subject of non traditional book scouting locations....


Rare Charles Darwin book found on toilet bookshelf

LONDON – An auction house says it is selling a rare first edition of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" found in a family's guest lavatory in southern England.

Christie's auction house said Sunday the book — one of around 1,250 copies first printed in 1859 — had been on a toilet bookshelf at a family's home in Oxford.

The book will be auctioned on Tuesday, the 150th anniversary of the publication of the famous work. Christie's said the book is likely to sell for 60,000 pounds ($99,000).

Darwin's "The Origin of Species" outlined his theory of natural selection, the foundation for the modern understanding of evolution.

Celebrations around the world this year have marked the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth.

I also check out the books used for displays in furniture stores and restaurants, have not found anything exciting yet but I can dream...

bibliofanatic part II

Keeping a calendar of favorite authors publishing dates-fan

Downloading the ebook version at midnight on date of publication and then still buying the hard copy--fanatic

bibliophile

The most straight forward definition of a bibliophile is "a lover of books" and as a life long fan of books, both the reading and collecting thereof I think it would be fun to discuss the signs and symptoms of when a fan becomes a fanatic.

Buying every book written by an author as soon as it hits the stores-fan

Haunting the bookshops to see if anyone accidentally shelved a new title prior to the book's release date--fanatic


Discussing an author or specific book with friends-fan

Trying to talk about same book or author with strangers on the street--fanatic


Joining book groups to discuss books and learn about new titles or authors-fan

Trying to peek at the title of a book that the stranger on the bus (or gym, or doctor's office...) is reading--fanatic


Watching your favorite decorating show and trying to read the titles of the books on the shelves-fan

Refusing to ever watch said decorating show again when the decorator stacks books to hold up vases or removes dust jackets from books because "the books look neater"--fanatic

I'll post more examples of these as I do them, uhmm I mean as I think of them.

Gotta Love Grandfathers

I've sold children's books since the early 1990's, first by catalog sales and since 1996 via the internet. From my earliest days in business one of my favorite type of customer to talk to has been Grandfathers. In print or out of print they want to provide there grandkids with the best of the best. Whether it is my Armenian American grandfather who wants books that reflect that culture, the grandfather who wanted to replace the books he read to his daughter, for her to read to her own daughter, or the call I got recently from a soon to be granddad who wants to surround his new family member with the best of children's literature. They are dedicated buyers and repeat customers.

Wizard of Oz Waddle Book-Auction Price Realized

PBA auction house in San Francisco auctioned this great copy of Baum's The Wizard of Oz Waddle Book complete with slotties for a most impressive $21,600.

[8], 211 pp. Illustrated with 8 color plates by W.W. Denslow with text on the versos; black & white illustrations in the text and some full page; how-to assemble directions for all 6 waddle toy die-cuts illustrated on the last 3 pages, perforated stubs present between pages 46/47, 94/95, 143/144 (Waddle sheets detached). 9x7, olive-green cloth, color pictorial cover label. First Edition, First State.
Includes the rare 6 die-cut "waddle toys," while the sheets containing the Waddles are detached from the binding the Waddles themselves are still in their flat cardboard panel state, never removed or assembled. Also with the folding yellow brick road, likewise unassembled and never used. The waddle toys are printed in colors on a thin stock cardboard and intended to be assembled with metal hip connectors, 10 of which are present in a small envelope as issued. Also included are the original instructional envelope which holds the die-cut parts for the ramp and a wrap-around band which proclaims: "Under this band in the large envelope, you will find an ingenious runway. It can be set up by any child and will form a perfect base on which to set the Waddle Characters. Just place them on this runway, tap them gently to side and off they will go, walking all by themselves, without the aid of any mechanical power...". Very rare to find a copy with all six of the Waddles present, exceedingly so to find them in the original unused state. This is the first state, with publisher's imprint at foot of spine. Hanff & Greene I, pp. 35-36, Plate 7.Condition: Wrap-around band clipped open at one end and with some chipping to fold at other end; envelope chipped at edges and with a large chip on rear (blank) side, several tears at edges of printed side; sheets holding Dorothy Waddle and Scarecrow Waddle each with a separation where the corner of the die-cuts come very close to the edge of the sheet, one tab on ramp bumped; light wear to volume edges, some faint soiling on rear cover, hinges cracked with mulling exposed, previous owner's name on front pastedown endpaper and 1937 gift inscription on verso of dedication leaf; volume about very good; Waddles near fine though Waddle sheets detached from binding.

2009 Edgar Award-Juvenile and Young Adult

The 2009 Edgar Allan Poe Award for the best juvenile went to THE POSTCARD by Tony Abbott published by Little, Brown.

In the young adult category the award went to PAPER TOWNS by John Green, published by Dutton.

Rest in peace my son

Sometimes there are no words....