The Will and Last Testament of Constance Cobble. Best 100 Mysteries of All Time

The Last Will and Testament of Constance Cobble—Stanton Forbes–1980–used A mystery within a mystery makes this a standout among many Stanton Forbes’ excellent novels. I first came across Ms. Forbes the summer after my first year at college. I was at loose ends, didn’t have a job, couldn’t figure out what to do, so I … Read more

When Is It OK To Remove Illustration Plates From Books?

If it were up to me, probably never. No, that’s not true, I’ve taken some Anne Anderson Mother Goose illustrations and framed them. The book was missing half of the other plates, and  already damaged. So, if the book is damaged, is it OK to remove plates? And how damaged is damaged enough? And once … Read more

Storing & displaying books to keep them in best condition

Book shelves

Storage and display are the bane of the bookseller’s and book collector’s existence.  The more valuable the book and the better the condition it is to start with, the more likely poor display and storage are to damage the book.  Reading copies are already so far gone in condition, they’ll tolerate less than optimal condition with little hit to value.  But a fine first edition with a fine jacket needs special handling.

Books need to be kept somewhere cool and dry.  If you live somewhere humid and hot, this will be the thing you spend the most time fighting. You’ll need air conditioning.

Conversely, somewhere TOO dry can damage bindings. Books are like Goldilocks, they like it in between.

Heat can also damage books as it can cause mold and bacteria to grow on the item.

Direct sunlight can cause the cover to fade or crack.

Storing books packed too tight against another book can cause it to warp around the other book if its taller.  Or it may stick to the other book.  Standing it open to display can cause the spine to warp. Standing it up without any support may cause it to tilt sideways.

Handling can also wear the top and bottom of the spine and dustjacket (if it has one) just from it being pulled on and off the shelf or even when it’s jostled. Books with raised lettering will also have it rub off if they’re too tightly packed or if jostled against other books.

With so much that can go wrong, how SHOULD you store and display your books?

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Book Mania or I'll Eat Some Other Day

What have you done, and what would you do, short of commit a crime, to attain a certain book you can’t live without. I mean, you really don’t think that life would nearly be as wonderful if you don’t buy the book sitting on the desk, or up in the bookcase, or in a shaded … Read more

Little Did We Know!

What is it about this obscure writing duo called the Little sisters that made so many customers in the mystery book store where I worked willing to pay fairly large sums of cash for so-so reading copies of their titles? After providing a particularly thrilled recipient with a copy of Constance and Gwenyth Little’s BLACK … Read more

Hide in the Dark, An All Hallow’s Eve Mystery. Best 100 Mysteries of All Time

Hide in the Dark—Frances Noyes Hart–1929–Doubleday Doran–OOP–but inexpensive copies are abundantly available Ah, a book after my own heart! Practically everything I love is within this title. An old manor in Maryland named Lady Court with ghostly undertones, a group of Jazz Age friends called the March Hares (anything that alludes to Alice in Wonderland … Read more

Rediscovering A Childhood Favorite

My mother is the culprit behind my love of mysteries. Her Nancy Drews, Judy Boltons, and various other juvenile mysteries were handed down to me, and I read them voraciously. Naturally, Nancy Drew titles and plots lingered in my mind long after my childhood books had been sent on to another needy family member. Judy … Read more

Rare Book Descriptions, The Title Page

The bibliographic description is a method of cataloging rare books that helps librarians, archivists and collectors distinguish between different texts. In a descriptive bibliography, there are generally five main parts. The transcription of the title page is typically the first of these. The others include the formula, which gives information about the construction of the … Read more