Jolly Olde BookBlog

As a book seller, I am also a book collector (although most of my books end up in the store – I gotta eat…).  For me, it is all about collecting Mario Puzio first editions.

For me, the joy is not only collecting them, but also reading them.  I want to read the scarce 1st edition of The Dark Arena (1955) , not just have it on my shelf.  Here are some tips for those who want to read their collection, and keep them in good shape (but of course, reading them WILL produce minor wear  – so be prepared)

1. Take Care
Seems simple, but it’s the truth.  Treat it gingerly – don’t open it too wide and stress the binding, don’t lay it face down on a table open.  I ALWAYS use Brodart acid-free dustjacket protectors.  Personally, when I read a book I remove the dustjacket and store it in a safe place.  Jackets are the most delicate part of your book, and the easiest to damage.

2. Avoid Food and Drink
Avoid eating and drinking while you read (let alone reading in the bathtub!).  Books are alergic to liquids!  Also, food gets on fingers, fingers touch the pages, pages absorb the food – so be careful!  Also, take a good look at the table you set your book down on.  Sticky tables make for sticky books.

3. Keep Out-of-Kid’s Reach
We all want to have our children see us read – it helps encourage them to become readers.  Just make sure you put your prized 1st edition out of reach when you are done.  Children can do very mean things to books…

4. Avoid Writing
It is amazing how often books come into the store with writing/highlighting.  It instantly devalues the value of a book to practically nothing.  Please, use pens to write your own novel, not mess up one that somebody else wrote!

5. Avoid  Direct Sunlight
The bookshelf may look great in the bath of sunshine by the window, but in a very short abount of time that sun will bleach the spine.  The best place is out of direct sun, away from heat, and with no moisture.  Avoid the basement or the garage as the books will absorb the moisture and get musty.

These are my tips, any have any others?

I found this online today and thought I’d share. You man have noticed that new books now have a 13 number ISBN instead of 10. Here is a summary of the changes:

1. The ISBN will change from 10 to 13 digits on 1 January 2007
2. Existing ISBNs will be prefixed by 978
3. The resulting 13-digit number will be identical with the EAN-13 number that is currently encoded in the bar code
4. The 979 prefix will be introduced when the current stock of numbers is exhausted
5. Publishers’ identifier prefixes are not likely to remain the same for ISBNs using the 979 prefix
6. Bar codes will carry the 13-digit ISBN with hyphenation above the barcode and the EAN-13, the identical number without hyphens or spaces, below the bar code.