Our friends at English PEN, an organization devoted to literary freedom, are staging an exciting event later this month when 50 modern first editions are to be auctioned. However, these are no ordinary first editions. All the books have been annotated, usually at length and in great detail, by their authors specially for the ‘First Editions, Second Thoughts’ auction.

Many famous authors have added annotations, commentary or illustrations, including Margaret Atwood, Julian Barnes, Alan Bennett, William Boyd, Margaret Drabble, Helen Fielding, Nadine Gordimer, David Hare, Seamus Heaney, Kazuo Ishiguro, Howard Jacobson, Ian McEwan, Michael Morpurgo, J.K. Rowling, Lionel Shriver, Ralph Steadman, Tom Stoppard and Jeanette Winterson.

The authors have explained their inspiration for characters and scenes, added background information, context, and details about why plots took a particular turn.

J.K. Rowling added annotations on 43 pages of a first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (yes, a real first edition, first printing – one of the 500 from the initial Bloomsbury print run). Rowling’s annotations include 22 illustrations and 1100 words.

Hilary Mantel added annotations on 123 pages of a Wolf Hall first edition, which included 2,650 words.

DBC Pierre added annotations on 188 pages of a first edition of Vernon God Little, which included illustrations on 57 pages and about 3,400 words.

Julian Barnes added annotations on 68 pages of a Metroland first edition, worth about 2,300 words.

Ralph Steadman added new illustrations on 55 pages of a first edition of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, including 14 full page and four double page ink drawings across the text and rear end-pages. He also added two portraits of Hunter S. Thompson, the book’s author.

I could go on and on. Here’s the full list.

The auction takes place at 7:30pm on Tuesday, May 21st at Sotheby’s in London. The books can be viewed on Monday May 20th and on the day of the sale from 9am to 4:30pm. All proceeds will benefit English PEN. To attend the auction, order a printed catalogue, or arrange a telephone bid, contact Sotheby’s.

Mixed in with the many books at the fair you can also find rare maps, prints, photos and sometimes items so unique they are hard to categorize.

There were several standout items for me at this fair, and just choosing a few to share was challenging. Here are just a few of the items I loved:

By far, my favorite at this fair was a small illustrated songbook manuscript presented by White Fox Rare Books, which can also be found on AbeBooks, Cahier de Chansons Commence en Captivite Le 1/10/1941.

The manuscript was made by Leo Osteng, a French prisoner held in a German POW camp during World War Two. Vibrant and lively illustrations accompany the hand written song lyrics.

White Fox Rare Books also brought along another of my favorites, a Monogram Album with Monograms Incorporated into Watercolors and Ink drawings. Monogram albums were common place in the Victorian era. People would cut out and save the crests and monograms found on letters and envelopes they received and then past them into albums. Some books were very simple and others more detailed and decorative, such as the one I found at the New York Book Fair. There are many great examples of Monogram albums on the AbeBooks site.

Lux Mentis Books always has unique books and ephemera and this time they brought some beautiful miniature books, each one no larger than a few inches.

The art historian in me loved this small, untitled but signed oil painting by poet E.E. Cummings that Massachussetts bookseller Ken Lopez brought to the fair.

If you’re interested in paintings by E.E. Cummings, there are many more on the AbeBooks site.

This is just a small sample of the incredible books and ephemera that you can find at an antiquarian book fair. Everything you see at the book fair is accessible and available to handle, and there’s nothing quite like picking up a book that is being sold for $10,000.

What I love most about these fairs is the friendliness and accessibility: although there are many high-priced books, there are also always items for new collectors, and the booksellers are more than happy to answer your questions and help you enter the world of collecting.

Guest post compliments of Maria Hutchison, AbeBooks Account Manager for our rare and collectible segment.

Today’s interesting old-timey find on the site is The Good House-Wife Made a Doctor by Thomas Tryon, 1692. We only have one original copy, priced at just over three grand, so one would have to be very interested indeed to purchase it. But for those chiefly interested in its contents and text, there are several modern print-on-demand copies available for as little as $25.00.

It’s a fascinating book. Its full title is The Good House-Wife Made a Doctor, Or, Health’s Choice and Sure Friend Being a Plain Way of Nature’s Own Prescribing to Prevent and Cure Most Diseases Incident to Men, Women and Children by Diet and Kitchin Physick Only. In short, it sounds like a very early book of herbal remedies and nutrition as preventative medicine. I find it interesting, since so many health professionals seem to be trying to return to similar thinking now.

The preface (pictured above) reads (in part):

THE PREFACE TO THE READER –
Health is the greatest temporal Blessing we can enjoy in this Mortal State: Without it the choicest Beauty vanishes in a Moment, like a withered Flower; the stoutest Strength dwindles into a childish Weakness, scarce able to the Support the tottering Carkass (sic); Riches become insignificant Lumber; Honour an empty Bubble, or extrinsick shadow, yielding no delight; Nay, Wit and Parts grow Useless, and Life it self but an unwelcome load and continual Torture. For how often may we see Lords and Aldermen, the Rich and the…

That does indeed sound dire.

Thomas Tryon was a 17th-century author, primarily of health and self-help books, and a big believer in and advocate of plant-based food as medicine. He touted the benefits of a vegetarian diet long (long!) before it was common or fashionable.

Walking into an antiquarian bookshop is a bit like opening a treasure chest; you never know what you are going to find and there are always hidden gems. I love knowing that I can walk into these stores and find something that I know has had a long and interesting life and belonged to people that cared enough to preserve and share them.

One of the shops I visited was Argosy Books in midtown Manhattan. Argosy Books was founded in 1925 and is now in its third generation of family ownership. There are books on the shelves, books in stacks and piled on tables. All combined with great lighting and small pops of colour from flowers placed throughout the store to make you feel instantly comfortable and welcome.

Argosy specializes in Americana, modern first editions, autographs, art, maps & prints and books about the history of science and medicine. If those aren’t up your alley, you will also find many other books in a wide variety of topics and with a wide variety of prices. If you have the time and you’re in New York, Argosy is definitely a store you should visit.

Another shop I visited was the Complete Traveller Antiquarian Bookstore on Madison Avenue. This store evolved from The Complete Traveller Bookstore which was the first travel bookstore in the US. As the name states, this shop specializes in collectible travel literature and has one of the best collections of authentic Baedeker travel guides. Baedekers are considered to be the first modern travel guides and can be easily identified by their distinct red cover. The books were treasured for their detailed historic accounts and the many fold out maps they contain.

This is a unique and specialized shop and definitely worth a visit if you love travel, history and culture.

No visit to New York is complete for me until I visit The Strand. Strand never disappoints and I always walk away with at least one, well really several books. This time I came home with something for my children, but I love it too: This is New York by Miroslav Sasek. We love these books in my house and have many others in the This Is…. series.

Most people know that Strand is a great place to go for affordable books, but it also has a fantastic Rare Book Room. Hop in the elevator and go up to the 3rd floor, and you’ll walk into a room filled with lovely old books, many of which can be found on AbeBooks.

Strand also has many affordable and collectible signed first editions. The day of my visit, they were getting ready for a book signing and talk with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Junot Diaz, discussing his newest book This is How You Lose Her.

Bookstores in New York offer a slice of history and small pieces of beauty that will draw you in and make you love books even more.

Guest post compliments of Maria Hutchison, AbeBooks Account Manager for our rare and collectible segment.

Our latest video is brought to you by the letter P: Penguin, Puffin, Ptarmigan, Peacock and Pelican – apparently not even all of the “P-birds” in the Penguin pantheon. It also sheds some light on the different colored covers on the vintage Penguin paperbacks you no doubt come across in bookstores. Orange, cerise, dark blue, green, red, purple – even yellow and grey, though they’re scarce – all had meaning behind the color choices. And light blue means the Pelican imprint – but what does THAT mean? Watch and find out.

Last week I was in New York for the ABAA New York Antiquarian Book Fair and also the Manhattan Vintage Book & Ephemera Show. As always, New York offered amazing bookstores and a buzzing city.

I had some spare time, and in keeping with the book theme, decided to visit the main branch of the New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street. For me, this building is the very best of what a library can be; beautiful architecture, unique books and a great children’s book collection.

Walking down Fifth Avenue, my first glimpse of the library was the iconic lions (top left), Patience and Fortitude. The library lions are instantly recognizable and mark the library as a special place. On this visit, there were two Lego replicas of the beloved lions (top right) inside the building – definitely worth a look for Lego lovers!

The NYPL is the second largest library in the US and the third largest in the world, with at least 53 million items. The building was designed by John Merven Carrère and Thomas Hastings between 1897 and 1911 and is stunning example of Beaux-Arts design. At the time of construction, the library was the largest marble structure ever built in the US.

In a corner of the children’s library I discovered an exhibit of the real Winnie the Pooh animals: Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga, Tigger and Pooh. The animals belonged to Christopher Milne, son of the author, A.A. Milne and the books were donated to the New York Public Library in 1987 by the publisher of the Pooh books (aside: if you don’t know the origins of Winnie the Pooh, they are fascinating).

When you look at these animals you can see they were well loved, with worn patches and bits of fur missing, this makes them that much more endearing . Knowing that the stories were based on treasured and well-loved toys makes them even better to read, I can’t wait to rediscover these tales with my daughters.

The real animals of Winnie-the-Pooh: Piglet

Guest post compliments of Maria Hutchison, AbeBooks Account Manager for our rare and collectible segment.

Initially launched in 1916, the Little Leather Library churned out millions of copies seven short years. However, longevity was not in the cards; by 1925 publication of the Little Leather Library had ceased. Today the books may not be worth all that much in a dollars and cents calculation, but as a collectible they are absolutely charming.

Find out more about the history and books of the Little Leather Library

At the height of the Great Depression, New York’s Phoenix Press was churning out pulp fiction as fast as it could print the books. Murder, mayhem, mysteries and molls – you will find them all in this selection of classic pulp literature, worth exploring for the remarkable vintage cover design as well as the stories.

The times were hard but at least the books were entertaining. Check out this collection of classic pulp from Phoenix Press.

When the late author, the alter ego of Theodor Seuss Geisel, was penning his beloved Beginner Books for Random House in the 1960s, he’d have his editor in chief, Michael Frith, over to his house, where they’d work until the wee hours. And when they’d get stuck, according to “Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel” by Judith and Neil Morgan, Geisel would open a secret door to a closet filled with hundreds of hats. Then, he and Frith would each pick a different hat, perhaps a fez, or a sombrero, or maybe an authentic Baroque Czech helmet or a plastic toy viking helmet with horns. They’d sit on the floor and stare at each other in these until the right words came to them.

And they were behind a secret false door in his home! What a marvellous thing to know. It’s no wonder he was so able to tap into the joy and mystery that appeals to well to children. His collection of hats was apparently quite extensive, containing hundreds of hats.. And as reported in the article, many of them can now be viewed as part of an exhibition that is traveling across the U.S.A.

Read the full article for more information.

Today I came across this collection of magazines from 1930s France called Police Magazine. We have quite a number of them for sale on the site, happily with images to peruse. From what I can tell, the publication ran from 1931 until 1937. I’ve found little information about it, but I think the magazine was a crime-fiction rag with stories, some continued week after week. I’ve included a selection of the covers below, along with a link to the listings. If anybody has more information about this publication, we’d love to know it and flesh this out – please leave a comment!