Attention Londoner’s - This weekend (November 6 and 7th) over 75 dealers from around the UK and abroad will congragate at the Chelsea Old Town Hall (King’s Road, London SW3 5EE) for two days of rare books, prints, maps, photographs, ephemera, letters and manuscripts.
Tickets are £5 at the door, but if you head to the Chelsea Boook Fair website you can print off a ticket to give you free entry to the fair. Fair Hours are Friday 2-7pm and Saturday 11am-5pm.
As a special attraction this year, the fair will also stage an exhibition on behalf of the London Library celebrating the 150th anniversary of the first publication of Edward Fitzgerald’s translation of the 11th century Persian poem, The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.
The Library’s collection was donated by Edward Heron-Allen, a London solicitor who himself produced a prose translation of the Rubaiyat. Representative samples from the Heron-Allen collection, including the earliest editions (and even some of the strangest), will also be on show.
Boe Rushing reports from the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar - it’s day five.
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Just when I thought things couldn’t get any better today happens. I’ll keep it short because it is very late. Greg Gibson, the nautical specialist, gave the most touching talk of the seminar.
After a discussion on auctions we had one. All of the proceeds go to support local libraries. I had the winning bid on a ver cool Between the Covers shirt signed by Tom (Congalton) and Dan Gregory. The last item in the auction was the highly coveted dinner for two with the faculty tonight. I had no plans on bidding but then I noticed that Ellie, from Australia, who was sitting near me was in a bidding war with someone in the front of the room. I asked her if she had someone to take and said I would go in with her. After a while we agreed we couldn’t go any higher and dropped out. Everyone congratulated the winner who stood up. It was Robin, my friend from the airport. She turned to me and motioned that I was going with her. So I had been bidding against myself without even knowing it.
I just got back from a wonderful evening with some of the top antiquarian book dealers in the country. Hopefully some of their knowledge is rubbing off on me. This has been a great week with one more day to go.
Boe Rushing reports from the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar - it’s day four.
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Day four began with me realizing I have been living in a bubble for four days. The dorms where most of us are staying have no TVs and we’ve hardly been in our rooms anyway. It’s all books all the time. The day’s first presentation was by Dan Gregory and concerned rare book photography. If this book thing doesn’t work out for him I think he could make a living on the comedy circuit.
After our break Dan DeSimone gave an excellent talk on selling books to libraries. Over the years I have sat in front of a lot of instructors. At least half of the time I didn’t want to be there and I think the other half of the time the instructor didn’t want to be there. This week is the opposite of that. I, and I am sure many of the others, are eagerly absorbing this information. Likewise the instructors are passionate in their love of books and the trade. In my discussions with Dan, and in his talk today, I have been very impressed with his genuine desire to pass on his knowledge and I am very appreciative.
After lunch Mike Ginsberg, Kevin Johnson and Rob Rulon-Miller each spoke on evaluating and pricing books. There were some technical problems but Rob kept us entertained by describing the various things that were supposed to be displayed on the screen as he spoke. He might be able to open for Dan on the comedy tour. We also spent time going over some of the student’s book descriptions from the day before.
The afternoon ended with Kevin Johnson discussing buying and selling books on the Internet. This talk was filled with great practical tips and was a great way to end the day. But the day wasn’t over yet for myself and half of the class. After dinner we took a bus to Hooked on Books, a very nice local bookstore where Mary Francis Ciletti gave a very interesting presentation on the nuts and bolts of operating a bookstore. Being one of the few present actually considering opening a store (again) I asked lots of questions. Maybe too many. Sorry guys.
So after we all bought some books we returned to the dorms and here I am. I would encourage anyone who has a dream like me to have a succesful career dealing in antiquarian books to attend this seminar. It might just change your life.
Boe Rushing reports from the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar - it’s day three. (Hey, Boe - great blogging - you’re relentless)
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Most everyone here has now caught up with their sleep and adjusted to the altitude. That was a good thing because we covered a lot of material today. The first session was on bibliographic description and taught by Steven Smith, the Associate Dean for Collections and Services at Texas A&M University. His personality kept a dry subject entertaining and informative.
At 10:30, Rob, Kevin, Tom and Greg Gibson with Ten Pound Island Book Co., discussed how to Catalog a book. They all had good suggestions both on modern and much older books. After lunch Steven gave the second part of his presentation on bibliograpic description. We were all given full sheets of handmade paper to fold, cut and assemble a small book. It was a unique experience.
After a break we had a workshop on book descriptions. Each of us was given a book, along with a corresponding reference book as the faculty wandered around giving advice. Half of the class, like myself, were given modern books, while the other half were given older books to describe. Paul, sitting next to me was given a first edition Charles Dickens in its original parts. It was one of the nicer books either of us had handled. I couldn’t help myself.
Next Barry Spence gave an informative talk on preservation and preservation. About half of the class went to a local bookstore tonight for a session on operating a bookstore. The other half, myself included, had the night off. I ended up in a Nepalese restaurant downtown with four other dealers. Good times.
Boe Rushing reports from the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar - it’s day two.
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I just left the seminar picnic and I’m hoping to get some quality sleep tonight. Many of the seminarians and some of the faculty are exhausted. Today was a wonderful day for me personally. I’m already blown away by how generous and sincere the faculty are with sharing their knowledge. I’m also making some friendships that I hope to continue.
After a brief segment on how to handle books, Rob Rulon-Miller and Kevin Johnson spent almost two h
ours on Bookselling 401. I personally got more out of this session than all of the reading I have done up to know on bookselling. I could go home now and be happy. But I’m not ready to go home yet.
Kevin Johnson’s story really affected me. He walked away from a career with the CIA and went into bookselling full-time, operating as Royal Books in Baltimore. He talked about how “books saved me.” Both he and Rob have such a passion for this business it is contagious. It really has inspired me to go at this full tilt. Now I just need a plan.
After a break Dan DeSimone gave a very interesting talk on reference tools for the book trade. At lunch I had a good discussion with faculty member Barry Spence, who is a bookbinder in Shelburne Falls, Mass. He is a very cool guy and clearly understands bookbinding and conservation.
After lunch Dan Gregory with Between the Covers gave a two-hour lecture on computers and databases. He has a great sense of humor and I can’t imagine someone more qualified lead this discussion. His work with their website is very impressive.
After a break we split into three groups - Barry, Dan, Rob and Heidi Congalton, from Between the 
Covers, gave us a hands-on exhibit of books, which included binding styles and materials, techniques of printing and illustration. As I mentioned earlier we also had a picnic tonight which was a great chance to get to talk to other students and some of the faculty.
After only one full day I can say that I am truly impressed. The faculty obviously love what they do and want us to succeed. I feel so fortunate to be here and feel like anything is possible going forward. Pretty cool.
Regards
Boe Rushing
Boe Rushing from Florida is currently enjoying the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar at Colorado Springs. Boe won the AbeBooks contest for a scholarship to attend this excellent annual event, now in its 31st year. Here is Boe’s first report…..
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I just returned to my room after a long and exciting first day. Arriving at the airport in Colorado Springs my first goal was to find another seminarian to share the cab ride with. Fortunately Robin from Charleston also thought I looked like a “book person”, so we rode together to the Colorado College campus. We went to lunch with a couple of other book dealers and were scouting in a neighborhood store before we had even registered.
After everyone had settled in their rooms we all went over to a large room on campus where Robert Rulon-Miller (pictured right) had the faculty introduce themselves. He then asked each of the seminarians introduce themselves. It was amazing how many states were represented. There was also one attendee from Ontario and another from Australia.
Next up was Mark Dimunation (pictured left), the Chief of the Rare Book Division of the Library of Congress, spoke. The stories he shared were fascinating. He told of how he discovered that the library contained books that Walt Whitman and Thoreau had inscribed to each other during their one meeting. He also discussed in depth the relationship between librarians and “the trade.” Very interesting stuff. It’s almost 1a.m. Florida time so I have to get some sleep. Big day tomorrow. I can’t wait.
Regards
Boe Rushing
In a fundraising effort for The Word On the Street, Canada’s largest one-day liteary festival, an Adopt-An-Author campaign is under way.
Don’t worry, you’re not expected to feed, clothe and house the author. It’s actually much easier and much cheaper than that. For a $100 (CAD) contribution, you can sponsor (adopt) an author for the day. (You can choose an author from the list or can have the festival organizers choose for you.)
In return for your contribution you’ll get:
• A tax receipt for your charitable donation
• A copy of your author’s book
• Your name announced at your author’s reading
• A personalized certificate
• Acknowledgment on The Word On The Street website
• A chance to be a part of Canada’s largest one-day literary festival!
A Spanish man has been gored to death at the running of the bulls in Pamplona. I spent the first 18 years of my life on a dairy farm and know full well that a rolled up newspaper is not an effective deterrent against a charging bull. Of course, the article mentions Ernest Hemingway and The Sun Also Rises. I read that book years ago and have never felt the urge to run with the bulls in Pamplona.
The whole thing is very interesting because bravery is usually defined by standing up to something or not backing down. In Pamplona, bravery is defined by running away. Surely, this is the only example where running for your life is considered valiant.
On the otherhand, running away can be great fun. My kids love it when I suddenly yell “I’m coming to get you” and take two strides towards them - they scream with joy and leg it.
Ok, I know and freely admit that it is ignorant but here in Canada when we think of Calgary, Alberta we tend to think of horses, rodeos, cowboys and stetsons. Sorry but that’s just the image the Stampede and oil industry have perpetuated. But the city really has come up literary trumps with this year’s Calgary Book Drive and Sale, supported by the Calgary Herald.
A copy of The Historie of the Reigned of King Henry the Seventh found on AbeBooks
Amongst hundreds of other books from a fire hall donation bin, a treasure was found - The Historie of the Reigne of King Henry the Seventh, published in 1641 by the Rt. Hon. Francis, Lord Verulam (Sir Francis Bacon). Authenticity of the book has been confirmed by Calagarian antiquarian expert Cameron Trevealen of Aquila Books.
The book is expected to make a nice contribution to funds raised by the book sale to support Calgary’s Servants Anonymous Society, which helps young women escape sexual exploitation, and literacy programs that receive funding from the Canwest Raise-a-Reader initiative.
Interested in checking out the book sale? The sale runs over two weekends, June 12 to 14 and June 19 to 21 — at the Crossroads Market, just off Blackfoot Trail and Ogden Road S. E. in Calgary.
How fantastic. In Adventure and fantasy writer’s Jules Verne’s hometown of Nantes, France, the Estuary 2009 Arts Festival will include a 9.5- metre-tall deep-sea diver, the latest creation from French mechanical marionette street theater company Royale de Luxe.
The theater company includes elaborate stories with each of their creations, and the giant deep-sea diver is no exception. His history includes the Titanic, a dead sister, a missing niece, secret messages from geysers and a job spent sawing icebergs.
On Friday, the giant “woke” and made his way through the town, to the delight, admiration and astonishment of onlookers. The functioning marionette weighs two and a half tons, and requires 30 people to operate and move him.
I can only imagine Jules Verne, with his love of adventure, a story well told, and the grandiose, would approve.
To buy a rare James Joyce, or to buy a very nice house. It’s the kind of delemia some people face. Yesterday at the Olympia Antiquarian Book Fair in London someone purchased a copy of the most collectible book from the 20th century, Ulysses by James Joyce. Or more exactly a signed, first edition which was limited to 100 copies and printed on Dutch handmade paper.
As reported by The Guardian the novel sold for £275,000 (about $440,000), the highest price on record for a 20th century first edition.
This is a fine example of how condition and scarcity are everything in book collecting. If you look on AbeBooks there are other Ulysses first editions for sale for a fraction of the price, somewhere around $50,000 would net you a nice copy. But not that won’t get you this edition with its Dutch handmade paper and shorter print run.
The extra 400 affords the shorter print run on the higher quality paper and a virtually untouched copy - it was only opened only once (just to the racy bit at the end), and was kept out of the light in its original box. Pom Harrington described the colour as:
“The colour is amazing – this lovely Aegean Sea, Greek flag blue which would normally have darkened into a more dirty blue but because it has been in a box it is a complete thing of beauty,”