Top 10 most expensive books purchased on AbeBooks for January 2009
1. YA-WAE PA-HU-CAE E-CAE AE-TA-NAE E-TU-HCE WA-U-N A-H A. Original Hymns In the Ioway Language by William Hamilton and Samuel M. Irvin – $13,500
A rare item of Americana relating to Native Americans. Printed in 1843, this book was one of the first two titles issued from the Sac Mission Press, limited to 125 copies. It is a lengthy hymn book, with the text written in the dialect used by the tribe from Iowa.

2. Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama – $12,500
The 44th president’s first book, this is a copy of the original edition from 1996. Signed by Obama.

3. The Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ by Eric Gill – $11,000
Printed and published at the Golden Cockerel Press, 1931, Limited to 500 numbered copies. With 64 wood-engraved initial letters and illustrations by Gill. (*Link to Facsimile editions)

4. Wonders of the Invisible World by Cotton Mather – $9,500
This is the second edition, printed in London in 1693, This copy also contains a fine engraved bookplate of Samuel Mather (1851-1931), on the front marbled paste-down endpaper as well as a handwritten slip by Thomas J. Holmes, that compares it with the first London edition, giving some omissions, and differences in spelling and punctuation. (*Link to later editions)

5. Lamia, Isabella, The Eve of St. Agnes, and Other Poems by John Keats - $8,500
First edition of Keats’ third and final book, published in 1820.

6. Sonnets et Eaux Fortes by Various – $8,248
A collection of sonnets and etchings published in 1869. 42 original etchings by Manet, Corot, Daubigny, Jean François Millet, Jongkind, Bracquemond, Victor Hugo and others. Limited edition to 350 copies.

7. Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie - $7,400
First edition, first printing from 1981. Uncorrected proof copy in publisher’s original printed wrappers, signed by Rushdie. (*Links to signed first, editions not proof copies)

8. Histoire générale des Antilles habitées par les François by Jean-Baptiste du Tertre – $5,224
Comprehensive history of the Caribbean from the 1600s, as recorded by Jean-Baptiste during his 18-year study of the habits of the people, their storytelling and geography. Published 1671.

9. Aline et Valcour; ou, Le Roman philosophique by Marquis de Sade – $5,224
First edition published in eight volumes in 1795. The book was written one year before the French Revolution while Sade was incarcerated in the Bastille (1780s) and was his first book published under his true name.

10. Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov – $5,000
Signed first edition copies of each of the three Foundation books: Foundation (1951), Foundation and Empire (1952) and Second Foundation (1953).

1. Signed Photo of Pablo Picasso. I love Picasso. I love his art, and having seen/read much about him, he seemed like a vibrant, loving, creative, hot-tempered, exciting man to be around. A film about the life of Picasso inspired my first (quite successful) attempt at Dada poetry when I was in University for Creative Writing. Sadly for you folks, I can’t remember the poem off the top of my head (disappointed groans all ’round). $18,000.00

2. Truman Capote’s Birth Certificate. I love Truman Capote. I love his witty, neurotic, New York reputation. I love Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Holly Golightly wildly. I love that he was Harper Lee’s best friend. I love that I’ve not yet read In Cold Blood, but am dying to. And I love that Philip Seymour Hoffman played him, because I love Philip Seymour Hoffman. And we have Truman Capote’s birth certificate! How cool. Crossing fingers for lottery winnings.$35,000.00

3. Virginia Woolf’s Day Planners for Eight Years. Okay, I admit these would probably be fairly mundane and straightforward. “Lunch with Brent”, “Call dentist – have lost crown”, “send Roger for flea-dip” and the like. But I can’t help the hope of glimpses into her life, like she’d have absently scrawled on one Thursday “note to self: Write ‘A Room of One’s Own’. Also, buy pork chops.” $112,480.25

4. Two Life Size Green Eggs – Original Artwork by Dr. Seuss Who wouldn’t want this?! Dr. Seuss was such an integral part of my upbringing. The first taste of environmentalism I recall came in the form of the Lorax. The Cat in the Hat, Hop on Pop, and of course Green Eggs and Ham were all staples in my househould. I still have a stuffed Cat in the Hat doll somewhere, and we still watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas every year.$5,624.01

5. Land Sale Transaction Receipt from 1349 – the Year of the Black Death. Ok. I can be a little morbid. Speaking of the Black Death, have you read The Doomsday Book? If not, and you like science fiction, time travel, or just really good fiction, I recommend it. It’s a book I loved. Anyway, back to the document – imagine completing tedious paperwork while people have ghastly buboes and fevers and are falling down dead all around you. What a conversation piece! $1500.00

6. Charles Bukowski button with art by R. Crumb R. Crumb and Charles Bukowski. What a couple of dirty, lecherous, skirtchasing old boozehounds. God Bless ‘Em. $95.00

7. Edward Gorey’s Dracula Jigsaw Puzzle. A 15×21 inch 500 piece jigsaw puzzle in black, white and red depicting the poster for the Edward Gorey production of DRACULA in New York City. Edward Gorey is fantastic. If you’re not familiar with him, check him out – he tells twisted tales of ennui and torture and oddities and eerieness, accompanied by dark, ghoulish and demented illustrations. He was very prolific and is now very collectible – there’s a lot there to love. $475.00

8. Einstein’s Notes on Unified Field Theory. A page of a bunch of calculations, notes, theories, all part of Einstein’s second serious attempt to unify gravity and electromagnetism within a single field. Really though, so what? Everybody doodles. Look, I drew a kitty, just now. Didn’t trace it or anything. Nope. That’s allllll freehand. $38,500.00

9. Funny Letter By Mark Twain to a Friend in which he amusedly recounts that reports of his demise have been greatly exaggerated; apparently a Mark twain impersonator had been traipsing about enjoying Twain’s fame, when he died, and was buried, as Mark Twain. $15,000.00

10. Original Screenplay for the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang I love Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. What’s not to love?! It’s cheery, it’s got Dick Van Dyke, it was written by Ian Fleming (of James Bond fame), it has an incredibly nefarious and fearsome villain called the Child Catcher, and now, a new reason to love it – the screenplay was written by Roald Dahl! No wonder it’s so wonderful. $500.00

To all my friends who last year went “Argh! Why didn’t you TELL ME it was on?!?” when I showed you all my great books – consider yourself informed!

If you live in Victoria and want to attend the the Times-Colonist book sale, dress warmly, bring coffee, and prepare to be patient. Preferably bring someone with you so if one of you has to use the bathroom, the other can hold the line (though if you’re desperate, the person ahead of or behind you might be kind enough to hold it for you – er, the line, that is.).

Last year’s wait was about an hour in line, as I remember – my friend and I arrived about 11 a.m. on the first day. It was entirely worth it. Collectors report some great finds each year, too – serious collectors arrive really, really early.

The prices are pretty great – last year I ended up with 15 books for under 40 dollars. The proceeds from the sale go to benefit the community and literacy. All in all, it’s a pretty great thing.

Last year’s haul for me included:

-Elle by Douglas Glover
-Sideways by Rex Pickett
-Disobedience by Naomi Alderman
-a lovely leather-bound Works of Shakespeare
-a gorgeous little green copy of some of of Robert Browning’s poetry, which I bought because there was a signature in it which read “Clifford Floyd Olson” and I thought I might get to own a grisly collectible. However, upon returning home I learned the horrible serial killer’s name is Clifford ROBERT Olson. Fortunately, I still like Robert Browning. And if Clifford Floyd Olson is reading this – I’m not suggesting you do anything rash).
-Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
-Choke by Chuck Palahniuk
-Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke
-Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier
-Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernieres

and of course many more which have now completely left my head.

Regardless, the only real stinker in the bunch was The Pilot’s Wife, and if it only cost me a dollar to learn to trust my instincts, it was worth it. All hail the Victoria Times-Colonist book sale!

Now to box up the books I’m finished with, to donate to this year’s sale…starting with you, Ms. Shreve.

Penguin’s director of sales in Australia, Peter Blake, came up with the idea for ‘Popular Penguins’ 10 years ago, but higher-ups were skeptical whether the idea would be a success. Blake’s plan entailed re-releasing 50 titles (25 fiction, 25 non) in the original, now retro, orange & cream coloured covers. As a result, the idea was only approved last year, and so far only in Australia, New Zealand and India.

The books are only $10 each, and given the average cost of books in Australia, that’s a bargain. Also, in a time of some global economic worry, uncertainty and the like, appealing to people’s sense of nostalgia is a winning move.

“They are instantly recognisable and have an emotional pull,” Mr Blake said. “Most people or their parents have got second-hand or old Penguins at home that have the same livery.

But it’s not only pulling on that nostalgic lever, it’s also got that retro coolness. We’ve found that younger readers have been really drawn to them.”

I really like so much of what Penguin does. Their Penguin Classics Deluxe Editions that they’ve been putting out over the past few years are fantastic, and make me want to own them all. Check out some of these covers:

Any time I see one of those in a bookshop it makes me salivate. One day I want to own them all. But really, what a brilliant idea – releasing a bunch of classics, that people have probably been “meaning to read” anyway, but putting them in such irresistable covers. Of the above selections, I only own One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and my copy is falling to bits. The others are all books I’ve been wanting to read for ages (with the exception of New York Trilogy, which is new to me), and now, finally, I have the motivation to own them and get on it. My bookshelf will be so beautiful.

I always find it fascinating when we sell large collections of ephemera such as magazines, there were a few magazines I collected as a child out of pure interest in the subject matter but the concept that a it could become valuable never entered my brain. I suppose that is how most of these collections started as well. The other thing I sometimes forget about is when sets of books or magazines are sold online they can be quite large. I can imagine the anticipation the buyer is having waiting for their new prize to be delivered, I get excited when a single book arives at my door, imagine 125 kilos of Islamic art….

1. Gedenkweerdige Brasiliaense Zee-en Lant-Reise by Johan Nieuhoff - $6,849
Voyages and Travels into Brazil, and the East Indies by this 17th century Dutch explorer.
2. Security Analysis by Benjamin Graham – $6,000
First edition and first printing of Graham’s legendary book on speculative investing – published in 1934
3. Le Capital by Karl Marx – $5,795
First French edition of Das Kapital, published in 1872 and revised by Marx himself. The English edition, edited by Engels, was based on the French.
4. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand - $5,750
True first edition, first printing from 1957 – signed by Ayn Rand
5. Cezanne by Duret, Mirbeau et al – $5,600
First edition 1914, limited to 600 copies, one of 400 printed on Papier a Grain.
6. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson - $4,870
First London edition, published 1883. Includes publisher’s adverts dated October 1883.
7. Hali Magazine (147 issues) – $4,805
A complete run, issues 1 to 147 from 1978 to 1995, of Hali – a London-based magazine devoted to oriental rugs and carpets.
8. On the Anatomy of the Breast by Astley Paston Cooper - $4,729
First edition, published in 1840. Two volumes with 27 lithographed plates. The last book written by the famous English surgeon. *Note first editions available at time of writing
9. The Quran Al-Qur’an of Sultan Mulay Zaidan $4,364
A 1996 Spanish facsimile edition of the 1599 publication from Marrakech, Morocco. Limited pressing of 980 copies.
10. The True Prophecies or Prognostications of Michael Nostradamus by Nostradamus - $4,300
The first English translation of the works of Nostradamus, printed in 1672. Rebound in leather. *Note link leads to archival reprint