Rare Books

[Sark79]

I wonder if anyone else has had a painful experience related to a rare book as I have recently had. Painful is perhaps a slightly dramatic word, however I feel it best describes my current feeling  .

As the anniversary of Ayrton Senna's death has just passed, I thought it would be fun to look at some of the old books and memorabilia I owned about him. One book that always stuck in my mind was called "Ayrton Senna's Principles of Race Driving". At one point I actually owned four copies of this book. I bought a copy when I was 13 from Waterstones for around £5 with my pocket money upon its release. My friend stole a copy for me from a Kilmarnock Library as he knew I was a massive Senna fan. The other two copies came from my Uncle and Gran for Christmas that year.  I hung onto one copy and gave the rest to Oxfam.  

After some searching I couldn't find the book anywhere so decided I would just buy another copy from amazon. To my dismay I was surprised at the current value of the book  

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ayrton-Sennas-Principles-Race-Driving/dp/1874557403


A few years before my Father died he had a similar experience. While watching an antiques show on tv related to movie and art memorabilia he saw a feature on the movie 'The Hobbit'. As a kid he was given a 1930's edition of  J.R.R. Tolkien's book The Hobbit. I remember the book well and often used it as a make shift wall when acting out battles between He-Man and Skeletor with my action figures. Even up until my middle 20's I remember the book as it sat in his houses bookcase. However when he tried to find it the book had disappeared most likely to a rubbish tip somewhere.

This copy of 'The Hobbit' has the exact same cover as his version

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit

[Redsgirl]

Its a bummer when this happens isn't it?

I've mentioned before how I've only ever bought books second hand from jumble sale and carboots and such, even as a child, and I remember most of my collection being really old looking even 25 years ago.
No doubt I have had plenty of first editions of Enid Blyton, Roald Dahl or Stephen King for instance, which are all collectable now but some I had which really do stick in my memory are these by Ian Flemming, I especially remember liking the skeletal hand on Thunderball!

Click to see full-size image.

Click to see full-size image.

Worth about £200 and £400 each now apparently, but that's only because people like me and you get rid of things when were done. 
Maybe if we hang on to every single book we buy from now on, one day our grandkids will make a killing!
First edition Kerry Katona autobiography anyone? 

[Sark79]

I like that Thunderball cover

haha,  I don't even think  Kerry Katona's kids would want to read her book. Although racking my brain I suspect I know a few people who probably own a first edition if I checked their bookcase. 

[Tal]

On the reverse side of that coin, charity shops are a great place to pick up books.

Oxfam has its own books and music shops. There's even a website, cataloguing what is there:

http://www.oxfam.org.uk/shop/books

As with any charity shop, the sticker price is only a guide. If you spot what you have picked up is an early edition and worth far more than they realise, it is open to you to pay what you consider a fairer sum.

I picked up a Bond book (IIRC From Russia with Love) with a similar dust jacket a few years ago in a charity shop. Not a first edition, sadly, and the dust jacket has seen better days, so no £8.5k for me. Still worth more than the £1.50 guide price!

[Sark79]

Byres Road in Glasgow has Oxfam books and Oxfam music.  Both are great shops . 

[Jon MW]

Oxfam tend to have higher administration costs than a lot of smaller charities - I agree with the general sentiment, but I think there are better bargains to be found which contribute a higher proportion to their stated aim.

[Tal]

Fair enough, Jon. Just making the point it's not all Reader's Digest and Jilly Cooper novels.

[Sark79]

Yea, I agree that a lot of profits are sadly lost through administration . On a side note, I have a friend who used to volunteer in PDSA and he used to tell me some shocking stories about  books being thrown away through ignorance of their value. I donated around 20 university text books that he said were often thrown away as they take up too much space or the staff in the shops don't know what they are. Some of these books were bought for £40 and more. I spoke to a woman who runs the nearby PDSA shop to point out my donated Anthony Gidden's Sociology book cost me £42 and not to throw it away. I saw it on the shelf a week or so later when I visited so I got the message across  

[Redsgirl]

Fair enough, Jon. Just making the point it's not all Reader's Digest and Jilly Cooper novels.

I love Reader's Digest.
I genuinely think my grandads seemingly never ending supply of old 70's copies that I was forever pilfering contributed at least 60% of my education.

Business, medicine, science, history it was all in there along with the hilarious anecdotes, IQ tests and my personal favourite 'It pays to enrich your word power'
All finished off with some incredible tale of daring or survival from someone in some far corner of the world.

What more could a slightly nerdy ten year old want?