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Articles - May 2009 Issue


Recent Auction Reports: The Market's Pulse - By Bruce McKinney Every day I get a calls from dealers for whom transactions have virtually stopped. Here is a picture of one category, the auctions, that slowed in the fall and have resumed, albeit at lower price levels, but at sell-though rates near to historic norms - 70% to 75%. To see this we are now providing, as a permanent feature, auction box scores because this is where book valuation is reestablishing its equilibrium today....

Recent Auction Reports: The Market's Pulse

- By Bruce McKinney

Every day I get a calls from dealers for whom transactions have virtually stopped. Here is a picture of one category, the auctions, that slowed in the fall and have resumed, albeit at lower price levels, but at sell-though rates near to historic norms - 70% to 75%. To see this we are now providing, as a permanent feature, auction box scores because this is where book valuation is reestablishing its equilibrium today....


Ebay Offers Buyers A New Dispute Resolution Process - By Michael Stillman By Michael Stillman Ebay, the largest online auction seller (and now significant fixed-price seller) announced some changes which may prove to be important in time. It...	Chasing Wisps Across the Internet - By Bruce McKinney By Bruce McKinney In a thousand places the drama of life has played itself out and the details disappeared. The famous and infamous have lived...
Amazon All Atwitter - Not So Gay Times for the Bookseller - By Michael Stillman By Michael Stillman Amazon.com found itself in the midst of a terrible imbroglio recently, one that must have covered just about every nightmarish subject for the...	Library Book Returned... 145 Years Later - By Michael Stillman By Michael Stillman We don't know whether Mike Dau read the story about the Iowa woman who spent several hours in jail over a six-month overdue...
Collecting Travels and Voyages in the Modern Era - By Bruce McKinney By Bruce McKinney In the aftermath of World War II a glow descended upon America. The nation was victorious and all things seemed possible. ...	To Costa Rica and Back, Again - By Karen Wright By Karen Wright We are back again after two months in the lovely country of Costa Rica. Three years ago, after our first trip, I...
One of the First Photographs of New York Sold at Auction - By Michael Stillman By Michael Stillman A remarkable early photograph (daguerreotype) of New York was sold at Sotheby's auction house in that very city on March 30, 2009, over...	Objects of Desire - By Bruce McKinney By Bruce McKinney The human mind is a fabulous and sometimes disordered mechanism. It recognizes the red and green of traffic lights, registers differences of...
In The News: World Digital Library Opens, ABAA Upgrades Site, Lincoln and Law Exhibitions - By Michael Stillman By Michael Stillman The World Digital Library opened for business on April 21. As the name suggests, there are no desks, stacks, or librarians whispering "shhhh..."...	Come Fly With Me: Volunteers Needed to Convert Aged Bird Migration Records to Database - By Michael Stillman By Michael Stillman A massive paper record of historic bird migrations is migrating to a computer database, and this is one case where even the greatest...
Thirteen Catalogues Reviewed This Month Thirteen new bookseller catalogues are reviewed in the latest issue of AE Monthly. James Cummins Bookseller celebrates his 100th catalogue and 30 years in the...	A 30th Anniversary Catalogue from James Cummins Bookseller By Michael Stillman James Cummins Bookseller hits two major milestones with the issuance of his latest catalogue. This represents the century mark for Cummins - Catalogue...
A Spring Miscellany from Austin's Antiquarian Books By Michael Stillman We have received our first catalogue from Austin's Antiquarian Books of Wilmington, Vermont: Spring Miscellany. Books, Manuscripts, Ephemera. It is, as it...	Primarily English Firsts from I.D. Edrich's "Study" By Michael Stillman I.D. Edrich of the U.K. has followed up with its catalogues from various rooms with The "Study" Catalogue of Mainly Modern Firsts. As...
Old Western Books from...Old West Books By Michael Stillman Old West Books of Colorado Springs has issued Catalog 24 of Rare, Out of Print Books on the American West. If the name,...	Broadsides and Broadsheets from the William Reese Company By Michael Stillman The William Reese Company has issued one of its occasional catalogues of American Broadsides and Broadsheets. These are single sheets, broadsides being printed...
Film, Photography, Literature and More from James Pepper Rare Books By Michael Stillman James Pepper Rare Books has issued their Catalogue 181. It includes much in the way of material related to stage and screen, literature,...	Books About Books and More from Oak Knoll By Michael Stillman Oak Knoll Books has issued a new catalogue in its long-running series on books about books. This is number 290, and if you've...
More Inexpensive Americana from David Lesser Antiquarian Books By Michael Stillman David M. Lesser Fine Antiquarian Books has issued their latest budget collection: Inexpensive Americana Part VIII. In keeping with the tough times,...	Selections from the Zamorano 80 from Randall House Rare Books By Michael Stillman Randall House Rare Books has issued a list entitled Zamorano 80. This is the ultimate collecting list of California. In 1945, the Zamorano...
Natural History from Raymond M. Sutton By Michael Stillman Raymond M. Sutton, Jr., has issued his Catalog No. 197 of Natural History with a Large Selection of Orchid Books. Actually, there is...	Photography from McLean Arts and Books By Michael Stillman McLean Arts and Books has issued a catalogue of Photography and Photographers, subtitled Early Photography, Collections and Surveys, Art Photography. This is a...
Books Exhibited in New York by Librairie Thomas-Scheler By Michael Stillman Librairie Thomas-Scheler printed a List of the Books Exhibited at the New York Antiquarian Bookfair. The French bookseller made the long journey to...	A Director's Report from the Arader Galleries By Michael Stillman We have received the March/April edition of the Arader Galleries' Director's Report. These reports update us on what is going on, and a...