AbeBooks' Reading Copy

It’s 1977 and Stephen King publishes his third novel called The Shining. The book powers King into superstar status in the literature world. Stanley Kubrick goes on to make a famous movie in 1980 and interest never seems to wane in this story about the Overlook Hotel, an isolated resort in Colorado.

Today, we have finally have a sequel – Dr Sleep. And yes, there are signed copies available.

We can also look forward to seeing a limited edition of The Shining, signed by King, published by Subterranean Press in October.

King had already published Carrie and Salem’s Lot when The Shining appeared – a hat-trick of scary books meant that millions of readers around thr world were going to bed half scared to death.

The Shining is based on King’s experience of staying in an almost-deserted Colorado resort called the Stanley Hotel as it was about to close for the off-season.

Australian author Christopher John (CJ) Koch, famous for writing The Year of Living Dangerously, has died at 81 in Tasmania, reports the BBC.

His first novel, The Boys in the Island, in 1958, was a coming-of-age story about a young man growing up in Tasmania. The Year of Living Dangerously, published in 1978, follows a reporter after the fall of Indonesia’s Sukarno regime in 1965. The main character was loosely based on Koch’s brother Philip, who was a foreign correspondent. The book was adapted into a Hollywood movie with Mel Gibson and Sigourney Weaver.

“If a book is made into a film, they hang it around your neck forever,” he said last year. “I’ve written other books since, that I think might be better, but people always come back to that one and it’s because it was a film. That’s how much film dominates our culture.”

We love books about books. Lolita – The Story of a Cover Girl: Vladimir Nabokov’s Novel in Art and Design is a book about a book’s artwork. The question behind the book is what should Lolita look like? The question that has challenged cover designers since 1955 when Lolita appeared in a plain green wrapper. Eighty graphic designers and illustrators offer their own takes on the book’s jacket, while other folks cast their critical eyes over dozens of Lolita covers.

With lots of excitement surrounding the Bay Psalm Book that’s coming up for auction at Sotheby’s, this is a good time to step aside and consider the most expensive books that have ever been sold. By saying books, we are including documents and manuscripts, and not just objects published on a press. I would be thrilled just to see any of these books, but imagine bidding for them?

1 Codex Leicester (pictured above) by Leonardo da Vinci – $30.8 million (sold in 1994)

Bought by Microsoft mogul Bill Gates. A 72-page document (and therefore not a printed book), Codex Leicester is a collection of scientific writing and gained its named from Thomas Coke, Earl of Leicester who bought it in 1719. The journal covers theories on astronomy, water, rock, air, the moon and the heavens.

2 Magna Carta – $21.3 million (sold in 2007)

Bought by American financier David Rubenstein at a Sotheby’s auction. A 1297 copy of the historic document, this was handwritten and has the seal of King Edward I.  The Magna Carta was issued in 1215 by England’s feudal barons to limit the power of the King.

3 St Cuthbert Gospel (pictured right) – $14.3 million (sold in 2012)

Bought by the British Library. The St Cuthbert Gospel is a tiny leather-bound Latin gospel book from the 7^th century that remains in remarkable condition. A very special piece of Anglo-Saxon history. If only all books lasted as well as this one.

4 The Gospels of Henry the Lion – $8.1 million (sold in 1983)

Bought by a German collective including the German government. The Gospels of Henry the Lion was the world’s most expensive book until Bill Gates opened his wallet in 1994. This illuminated masterpiece was produced for the Brunswick Cathedral by the Duke of Saxony late in the 12^th century. It contains 50 full page illustrations.

5 The Birds of America (pictured right) by John James Audubon – $11.5 million (sold in 2010)

Bought by London art dealer Michael Tollemache. One of only 120 complete copies. This book was first owned by Henry Witham who subscribed to Audubon’s masterpiece. Birds of America was published in parts between 1827 and 1838, and contains stunning hand-colored, life-size illustrations.

6 The Birds of America by John James Audubon – $8.8 million (sold in 2000)

Bought by Sheikh Saud Al-Thani of Qatar at auction.

7 The Birds of America by John James Audubon – $7.9 million (sold in 2012)

Bought by an unknown buyer. Another complete copy.

8 The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer – $7.5 million (sold in 1998)

Published in 1477 by William Caxton, the pioneering English printer, this is one of only 12 known first ‘printed’ edition copies.

9 Shakespeare First Folio – $6.1 million (sold in 2001)

Published in 1623, Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies is a collection of the Bard’s 36 plays. I’m sure you are familiar with this writer’s significance.

10 Les Liliacees (pictured below) by Pierre-Joseph Redoute – $5 million (1985)

Bought by a syndicate led by art dealer W. Graham Arader. This was Empress Josephine’s copy of the botanical gem featuring 468 watercolors of flowers on vellum. Sixteen volumes, published between 1802 and 1816.

The Daily Telegraph carries an interview with Eleanor Catton, the 27-year-old novelist from New Zealand who has been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.  The Luminaries is tale set in the New Zealand goldfields during 1866, and Catton is the youngest writer to be ever shortlisted for the award.

In her second novel, The Luminaries, a series of crimes have been committed, and a council of 12 men has convened to solve them. Fiendishly complex plotting ensues. She set out to write a murder mystery, not a historical novel, but found the past offered more opportunities for misapprehensions. At more than 800 pages, it is “big by necessity”, because she wanted to give each of the 20 main characters “a decent show”. Also, it has a unique, slightly mad, astrological framework. One imagines the queue of travellers behind her at passport control growing longer and longer.

Catton, who was born in Canada, is a teacher of creative writing at the Manukau Institute of Technology. She has attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop on a fellowship in 2008, a year after her debut novel, The Rehearsal, was published.

Buzz is building for the November sale of an ultra-rare Bay Psalm Book. The book, predicted to become the world’s most expensive printed book when it is auctioned by Sotheby’s, has been touring the United States.

It’s interesting to see regional media giving considerable space to the subject of rare books.  David Redden, Worldwide Chairman of Sotheby’s Books Department, and David Spadafora, President of Chicago’s Newberry Library, appeared on Chicago Tonight to discuss the book and its significance. The Chicago Tribune previewed the book’s appearance at the Newberry. The St Louis Post-Dispatch did the same for the Missouri leg of the tour and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was another major newspaper to shine the spotlight on rare books.

There will more headlines in the mainstream devoted to this rare book as November comes closer. This interest benefits everyone in the rare book business and serves as a wonderful reminder for the historical significance of books in American culture.

The Bay Psalm Book was printed in 1640 and it’s important because it was the first book printed in what became the United States. It is a psalter – a small book of psalms translated from Hebrew into English by the colonists. The last Bay Psalm Book to be sold was bought at a Sotheby’s auction in 1947 for $151,000 by representatives bidding on behalf of Yale University. Only 11 copies survive, and Sotheby’s estimate the sale price will be between $15 million and $30 million.

Below are some pictures from the book’s recent public appearances.

Some news from our neck of the woods here in British Columbia. Five finalists have been selected for the 2013 City of Victoria Butler Book Prize.  The award goes to the best book published in the preceding year by a Greater Victoria author in the fiction, non-fiction, or poetry categories, though there aren’t any poets in this year’s list. The finalists are:

Psychology and Other Stories by C.P. Boyko (fiction)
The Book of Marvels: A Compendium of Everyday Things by Lorna Crozier (non-fiction)
The World by Bill Gaston (fiction)
The Life and Art of Ina D.D. Uhthoff by Christina Johnson-Dean (non-fiction)
A Crowbar in the Buddhist Garden by Stephen Reid (non-fiction)

The second award is the Bolen Books Children’s Book Prize, with three fiction finalists:

Three Little Words by Sarah N. Harvey
One Year in Coal Harbour by Polly Horvath
And Nothing But the Truth by Kit Pearson

Winners for both prizes will be announced on October 16th.

The National Book Award released its long-list for 2013′s Young People’s Literature Award. The list of 10 is an eclectic one, with protagonists ranging from a pair of raccoon brothers to a squirrel to an orphaned baker.  Here are the contenders:

The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt
Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCammillo
A Tangle of Knots by Lisa Graff
The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson
The Thing About Luck by Cynthia Kadhota
Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan
Far Far Away by Tom McNeal
Picture Me Gone by Meg Rosoff
The Real Boy by Anne Ursu
Boxer and Saints by Gene Luen Yang

Appelt and DiCammillo are not strangers to the Young People’s Literature list, but the stand out nominee may be 2006 finalist Gene Luen Yang for his two volume graphic novel Boxers and Saints, two tales of the Boxer Rebellion in 1900 China.

Finalists will be announced on October 16th.

Sidney on Vancouver Island in British Columbia is a book town by the sea thanks to its multitude of bookshops. That bookishness continues next month with its literary festival on October 4, 5 and 6. Lots of local authors will be appearing including Susan Musgrave, Brian Brett and poet Wendy Morton, who is sponsored by AbeBooks.

Friday Evening Gala hosted by CBC Radio’s Gregor Craigie and MP Elizabeth May

7:30 pm at North Saanich Middle School, $20

Performance by Students. Readings by M.A.C. Farrant, Anny Scoones, Grant McKenzie, Sylvia Olsen, Pamela Porter

Saturday Evening Gala hosted by Wendy Morton

7:30 pm at the Charlie White Theatre, $25 (tickets available from Tanner Books)

Featuring Arthur Black, Brian Brett, William Deverell, Elizabeth May, Frances Backhouse, Susan Musgrave and Mark Zuehlke

Sunday morning brunch hosted by Elizabeth May

9 am to 11 am at Pier Hotel

Featuring William Deverell, Arthur Black, Grant McKenzie, Adrian Chamberlain, Sylvia Olsen and Susan Musgrave

Saturday Workshops

Age 9 to 12 writer’s workshop with Nickki Tate – 1 pm to 2:30 pm, Sidney Library, Nell Horth Room

Age 12 to 15 writer’s workshop with Sylvia Olsen – 10:30 am to 12 noon, North Saanich School, Home Ec Room

Age 12 to 15 writer’s workshop with Wendy Morton – 1 pm to 2:30 pm, North Saanich School, Home Ec Room

Age 16 to 18 writer’s workshop with Brian Brett – 10:30 am to 12 noon, North Saanich School, Multi-purpose Room

*all workshops for ages 9-18 are Youth Sponsored workshops

Adult Writer’s Workshop with Frances Backhouse – 9am to 10:30, Sidney Library, Nell Horth Room, $30

Saturday Author Readings

9:45 am to 10:45 am – Joan Neudecker and Nicola Furlong at Beacon Books $10

11 am to 12 noon – Pamela Porter and Grant McKenzie at Red Brick Café, $10

12:30 pm to 1:30 pm – Patrick Lane and Anny Scoones at North Saanich School, Multi-Purpose Room, $10

2 pm to 3 pm – Susan Musgrave and Brian Brett at Pier Hotel Sallas Room, $10

3:15 pm to 4:15 pm – Mark Zuehlke, Military Bookstore $10

4 pm to 5 pm – Arthur Black and M.A.C. Farrant at North Saanich School, Multi-Purpose Room, $10

The book that could become the world’s most expensive book is going on tour. Rather like a rock star except the gigs are in libraries rather than stadiums. However, the Bay Psalm Book actually does have celebrity status within the rare book world and Sotheby’s will auction a very rare copy on November 26.

In the meantime, the copy in question is touring America – a sort of final countdown to the big auction night in New York. The first stop is Chicago’s Newberry Library on September 11. It goes on to St Louis and then Cleveland.

The Bay Psalm Book was printed in 1640. Experts at Sotheby’s estimate the sale price will be between $15 million and $30 million.

It was the first book printed in what became the United States so it has huge cultural significance. The last Bay Psalm Book to be sold was bought at a Sotheby’s auction in 1947 for $151,000 by Yale University. Only 11 copies survive and this particular copy is in remarkable shape considering its age. The book itself is a psalter, a book of psalms that were translated into English from Hebrew in the early years of the American colony.

The most expensive book ever sold was Codex Leicester by Leonardo da Vinci, bought for $30.8 million in 1994 by Bill Gates.  However, Codex Leicester is a handwritten journal featuring da Vinci’s thoughts and theories on various subjects, while the Bay Psalm Book is a printed book (just one worth at least $15 million).

If you have a chance, then you should see this piece of American history. The tour dates are:

Wednesday, 11 September – 10am to 4pm at Newberry Library, Chicago, 60 W Walton St

Friday, 13 September – 10am to 4pm at St. Louis Mercantile Library, University of Missouri, St. Louis, 1 University Blvd.

Wednesday, 18 September – 10am to 4pm at Cleveland Public Library, 325 Superior Ave. E.