Acid-free paper: In principle, papers which contain
no free acid and have a pH value of 7.0 or greater. In practice,
papermakers consider a paper having a pH value of 6.0 or greater
to be acid free. Such papers may be produced from cotton fibers,
rags, esparto, jute, chemical wood pulps, or virtually any other
fiber, with special precautions being taken during manufacture
to eliminate any active acid that might be present in the paper
pulp. However free of acid the paper may be immediately after
manufacture, the presence of residual chlorine from bleaching
operations, aluminum sulfate (alum) from sizing, or sulfur dioxide
in the atmosphere, may lead to the formation of hydrochloric
or sulfuric acid unless the paper has been buffered with a substance
capable of neutralizing acids.
Afterword: Closing remarks on the topic of the book
or the process of writing the book. This material can be written
by someone other than the author.
Appendix: Supplementary information at the end of a
book, which can include tables and statistical information.
ARC: "Advance reading copy." Consists of
the sheets of the uncorrected proof, usually bound in mass-market
or trade paperback glossy wrappers for distribution to reviewers
and bookstores prior to publication. Very rarely other book
formats are used. They are distinguished from a plain uncorrected
proof in that the wrappers are usually pictorial and glossy,
and more are produced. Not all books have ARCs or proofs, and
some have both, or more than one state of the ARC.
Bibliography: A list of books or articles cited as
resources by the author.
Binding: The back cover, spine (center panel which
connects the front and back cover to the pages and faces out
when the book is shelved), and front cover of a book. A binding
is what what holds a book together. Types of binding include
case binding, comb binding, perfect binding, saddle stitching,
spiral binding, and velo binding.
Blind tooling / stamping: Making a dark impression
in leather, by impressing either a hot finishing tool into it,
or a cold tool that has first been dabbed in printer's ink.
Board Books: Small, often square-shaped books intended
for infants and toddlers and consisting of a small number of
thick pages.
Body Copy: The majority of the text of the book, appearing
between the front and back matter.
BOMC: Book of the Month Club
Book Club Edition: There was a time when bookclub editions
were easily identified. They were smaller, looked cheap, lighter
in weight, and usually marked "Bookclub Edition" on
the dust jacket. Now there is often little apparent difference
between the two. It's quite common for bookclub editions to
use the original publishers' first-edition negatives or printing
plates, so book club editions can bear "First Edition"
on their copyright-pages. Some bookclub editions even have prices
on the dust jackets, though this is uncommon. Increasingly common
is the original edition with no price on the dust jacket. This
is said to enable bookstores to do their own pricing. It also
helps to hide bookclub editions.
If you find a circle, square, maple leaf, dot, or star blind-stamped
on the bottom right of the outside back cover, it's a Book
of the Month Club (BOMC) edition. The great majority, but
not all, BOMC books are so stamped. BOMC has been doing this
since 1948 or 1949. BOMC books published prior to that time
are difficult to distinguish from true first editions (as
are their more recent books).
Literary Guild shows no identification on the book, only
on the dust jacket. Literary Guild books were clearly marked
on both the book and the dustjacket as LG editions in early
years. Newer LG books, like newer BOMC books, are not explicitly
marked as such.
No book club edition is considered a first edition in "true"
collecting, but people are selling book club firsts, albeit
at reduced prices.
Bookplate: A sticker or label adhered to a book (usually
inside the front cover or on the front free end paper). Some
book owners use bookplates to identify themselves as the owner.
Bookplate: Bookplates, or 'ex-libris' as they are
often called (from the latin, meaning 'from the books of...')
can be small art graphics used by bibliophiles to identify the
property of their books. The practice of using bookplates is
over 500 years old. They were, at first, painted coats-of-arms
on rare manuscripts. With Gutenberg's invention of mobile type,
printed ex-libris pasted into books soon followed, as libraries
grew. The earliest known printed bookplate is thought to be
the one used by Hildebrand Brandenburg in Germany to mark the
books which, as a rich monk, he donated to the monastery of
Buxheim. Dürer, Cranach, and any of the sixteenth century
'Kleinmeistern' ('small masters', because of the small format
of their works) made ex-libris, generally woodcuts but also
copper-engravings, for their friends and customers. The custom
spread all over Europe and to the USA, where it reached its
peak in the 18th century. Many celebrities had ex-libris made
for their books, from George Washington to Charlie Chaplin,
and nearly all great artists at some time or nother, made bookplates,
including Paul Klee, Giacometti, Picasso, Dali, etc. As books
became cheaper in the 19th century, bookplates waned. There
was no longer any reason to have pride in one's books, and a
stolen book was no longer a serious loss. But the tradition
revived in the 1880s due to the phenomenon of collecting. People
realised that bookplates were both historically and artistically
interesting, and reflect the sociological history of their time.
Collectors' societies were founded first in Britain and Germany,
and spread to all Europe and the USA. Today there are about
30 collectors' societies around the world, even in Japan. They
buy and sell collections; also, collectors commission bookplates
from artists, with their name on them, partly stick them in
their books and partly exchange them with other collectors.
Modern ex-libris collections are in fact small-size art graphics
collections, and of great interest.
Buckram: A strong and expensive book cloth made from
cotton or linen, usually the former, and closely woven, occasionally
with a double warp. It is filled or coated and calendered to
give it a smooth finish which blocks well and is reasonably
durable. Originally, the term applied only to a starch-filled
fabric; today, however, it applies also to coated and impregnated
fabrics having a heavy base. The material used to fill the interstices
and/or cover the base fabric is usually pyroxylin, but it may
be starch, china clay, clay, or other non-fibrous material.
Cancel: A cancel is something that almost never occurs
anymore but has been quite common in the past. I'll use TOM
JONES as an example. It was re-issued in the first year of publication
without change of title pages, in a page-for-page but not a
line-for-line reprint. In the first edition there are errata
for the first five volumes. In the second edition the errata
are removed and the errors corrected. Within the Jerome Kern
copy of TOM JONES, there were "cancels" - corrected
pages had been inserted into the collation of the book. In other
words, there were sheets from two different printings represented
in the book. Since the number of pages was the same as it should
have been for a true first, the experts who had handled the
book overlooked the fact that second edition sheets had replaced
first edition sheets. A "cancel" represents a cancellation
of an error.
Canvassing Books: See Sample Books.
Chapter Books: A category of books aimed at children
ages 9-12. While chapter books often display one line drawing
per chapter, they primarily use text to tell a story.
Chip: An edge tear (usually triangular shaped) which
has resulted in the loss of a small portion of the dust jacket.
"Lightly chipped" usually refers to a dust jacket
with a few chips all smaller than 1/4 inch. "Chipped"
usually refers to dust jacket with a couple of chips as large
as 3/4 inch and several smaller chips.
Closed Tear: A tear in the dust jacket that resulted
in no loss of material. When held closed, the presense of the
tear should not be obvious at a glance.
Colophon: The first definition refers to a leaf at
the end of a book providing information on edition, printing
etc. The second is a publisher's ornamental device often located
on the copyright page.
Concept Book: A picture book for preschool children
that attempts to teach a basic concept. Many concept books display
illustrations or other art and contain only a few words per
page. Concept books frequently focus on introducing children
to subjects such as the alphabet, or colors, shapes, and sizes.
Copyright Page: A page toward the front of the book
which indicates that the book is protected by copyright, and
that permission must be obtained to reproduce all or part of
the book. Typically this page also includes cataloging data
for libraries.
Deckled Edge: When paper was made by hand, they used
a wire mesh "mold" which was dipped into a vat of
pulp and lifted out by hand with a thin layer of pulp on it
(supposedly the wire mold + pulp weighed about 70 lbs at this
point-- they must have been big strong guys!). The deckle was
a separate frame that sat on top of the wire and determined
the size of the sheet, by preventing the pulp from dribbling
off the sides. After shaking the mold to remove some of the
water and align the fibers, the vatman removed the deckle and
passed the mold to the "coucher" (pronounced "coocher")
who expertly flipped the wet sheet off the wire mold onto a
stack, without breaking or wrinkling the sheet, and placed a
sheet of felt between each layer (the roller at the end of the
wire section of a fourdrinier machine is still called the "couch
roll"). When he had 144 layers of paper, he passed the
stack to the "layman" who put it in a screw press
to press out the water. A three-man crew could make about 1000
sheets a day (followed by more steps for drying and sizing).
On machine-made paper, a jet of water cuts off the ragged edge
as the wet paper leaves the wire section of the machine, forming
an edge similar to a "deckle edge". It's also possible
to "fake it" on a separate machine.
Dedication: An author's statement of appreciation or
compliments to a specific person or group of people to whom
the book is dedicated.
Doublure: An ornamental inside lining of a book cover,
which takes the place of the regular pastedown and fly leaf.
It is usually of leather or (watered) silk, generally with a
leather hinge and is often very elaborately decorated. The typical
doublure consists of a silk fly leaf and a leather board covering,
but sometimes both board covering and fly leaf are of silk;
rarely, both are of leather. In a strict sense, however, the
term refers only to leather linings. The doublure was known
in Turkey at least as early as the 14th century, but the earliest
known European doublures are a binding of about 1550 in the
British Museum. Their use was revived in the reign of Louis
XIV (1643-1715), but they were not used very extensively until
about 1750, after which they became very popular. Doublures
have been used continuously since that time--more so in France,
where they have always been more popular than elsewhere. The
word itself is French, meaning "lining" or "doubling
of material." Also called "ornamental inside lining."
2. In a very general sense, an ornamental endpaper.
Early Readers/Easy Readers/Beginning Chapter Books:
These books are intended for kids ages 8-11 who are growing
out of picture books. The books typically run about 64 pages
and feature a substantial amount of illustration and controlled
vocabulary aimed to help children move on to chapter books.
Endpapers: The sheets of paper (two or more) which
come between the cover and the sewn sections. Part of the binding
construction, they comprise, at their most basic, a board paper,
also referred to as a pastedown (which is usually coloured and
which serves to counteract the warp of the boards caused by
the covering material) and a free fly leaf, which protects the
first or last pages of text.
EAN Barcode: This bar code is the ISBN number transferred
into machine-readable form. The electronic scanning lines printed
on the back cover or book jacket are encoded with information
about the book product, such as the title, publisher, and price.
The Everyman's Library Books: Founded in 1906
by London publisher Joseph Malaby Dent, the purpose of the Everyman's
collection was to make available literature that would appeal
"to every kind of reader." Now published by Knopf
in the United States and Random House UK abroad, Everyman's
has grown to include more than 500 titles, but retains this
original mission. The University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill purchased the archives of the J.M. Dent Co. (original publishers
of the Everyman Library Series) several years ago. It is divided
between the Rare Book Collection and the Manuscripts Department,
both in Wilson Library at UNC.
ex-libris: See Bookplate.
FE: First Edition.
First Edition: Discussion of book editions, printings
& states hinges on the printing technology used. From the
time of Gutenberg in the later half of the 1400s to the first
half of the 1800s the usual printing methods used moveable type;
individual letters, symbols and characters set up on racks to
form a mirror image of the desired text, and inked. Then paper
is laid on top and pressed so the image of the type is transferred
to the paper. Traditionally, an edition is all copies of a book
printed from one setting of the type so the first edition is
all copies printed from the first setting of type, with the
type being dispersed and reused for other books. Reprinting
would involve resetting the type from scratch which would allow
for the correction of typographical and editorial errors, revision
by the author or editor, the updating of information and expanding
the amount of material covered. If the changes and corrections
are substantive enough the publisher will describe a later printing
as a second, revised, corrected or expanded edition. It is also
possible to stop the printing process, reset a small section
(one miss-spelled word or perhaps an entire page) and then carry
on. That portion of the first printing/first edition before
the pause would be the first state, after the pause would be
the second state. A leaf or gathering of leaves might be reprinted
and inserted into the book, replacing the original leaf or gathering
even after the book was bound. Such inserted leaves are called
cancels. Later printings of fiction, poetry etc. would probably
not differ from the first except for correcting typographical
and grammatical errors.
Technological advances in the nineteenth century allowed
for printing from a larger (usually)metal plate which would
include the text of an entire page, leaf, gathering etc. This
plate could be melted down and the metal reused or it could
be stored and kept for later printings. Thus it is harder
to change the text and make corrections but deletion of text
(such as a date on the title-page) or the addition of text
to a blank section (such as "Third Printing" on
a copyright page) is still easy.
First Printing: For post 19th Century books there are
seldom editorial changes made after the book is published, so
the term "First Edition" really means "First
Printing". Any second printing and pre-publication printings
of a title would not be of interest to most "First Edition"
collectors. See First Edition
First Trade Edition:"First trade ed" means
there was a limited edition published first. Fro example, if
there was a privatly printed edition, the first time is was
commercially available would make it a first trade edition.
Ex: T. E. Lawrence "Seven Pillars of Wisdom", 1st
trade edition states on the copyright page 'Privately Printed
1926 First Published for General Circulation 1935.'
Flyleaf: The blank leaf (or leaves) between the end
papers and the printing at the beginning and the end of a book.
Folio: 1. A sheet of paper in one of the traditional
sizes, folded once to give two leaves. 2. A book made of such
sheets, i.e. the largest format possible in that particular
size.
Fore-edge painting: A scene painted on the fore edge
of a book, either with the edge solid so that the resultant
painting is visible with the book closed, or, in the more accepted
use of the term, with the edge fanned out so that the painting
is not visible with the book closed. When the painting is done
with the leaves fanned out, the edge is generally also gilded
or marbled in the usual manner, so that the closed book shows
no trace whatsoever of the painting. A double fore-edge painting
is one with two paintings, which can be viewed independently
by fanning the leaves first one way and then the other. A triple
fore-edge painting has a visible scene in addition, in which
case the edge is not gilded or marbled. The painting of fore
edges is very old, going back perhaps as early as the 10th century.
These earliest fore-edge paintings consisted of symbolical designs.
The art reached England in the 14th century, and among the early
fore-edge paintings, such as those executed by Thomas Berthelet
for King Henry VIII, consisted of treating the fore edge as
a solid panel for a heraldic or other motif in gold and colors.
The binder who originated the technique of painting a design
on the fanned out leaves is unknown, although Samuel Mearne
is thought to have employed one or more artists and binders
who did this kind of painting. The first known disappearing
painting dates from 1649; the art of fore-edge painting under
gold reached its pinnacle in England in the latter half of the
17th century.
Foreword: An introduction to a book, usually written
by someone other than the author of the book.
Foxing: A discoloration of the paper in a book, consisting
of light brown spots. The basic cause of foxing is the presence
of acid in paper manufactured from wood pulp. (Never live down-wind
from a pulp or pulp and paper mill.) The acid is used to break
down the wood fibres. Manufacturers of better pulp paper will
attempt to neutralize the acid but this can not be done 100%.
Also the acid in the paper will not be evenly distributed and
will work more on some fibres with the result that some parts
of the paper are more porous than others. These more porous
areas are more likely to absorb contaminants (dust, fungus,
chemicals, oils etc from the fingers of readers handling the
paper, etc.) which discolour these spots. Books that have been
kept in very clean conditions will not suffer foxing as much
as books that have been subject to constant bombardment by dust,
smoke etc. Humidity will also affect the process with more humid
air being capable of carrying more dust etc. to say nothing
of the fungus etc. that humidity promotes. This does not necessarily
diminish the value of any old book, although a dealer should
certainly be expected to mention this condition if offering
a book for sale.
FPT: "Freight Pass Through." This acronym,
found on some dust jackets, means that the price includes shipping.
The presence of this acronym is an indication that the book
is not a book club edition.
French Flaps: Trade paperback covers with inturned
"front flaps" and "back flaps", as if the
cover were covering boards, except it isn't. A bit of fancy
packaging ostentation.
Front Matter: All of the pages in a book that appear
before the body copy. Types of front matter include the title
page, copyright page, dedication, table of contents, foreword,
preface, acknowledgment, and introduction.
Frontispiece: An illustration presented before the
beginning of a book's text (usually before the title page).
Full gilt: A book having all three edges gilt, described
as a.e.g., for all edges gilt. A book, usually leather bound,
which is heavily tooled in gold on the spine, and with center
and corner tools on the covers.
Galleys: Back in the dark ages before MacIntosh, (but
following the darker ages of hot metal) printers used a process
of shooting negatives from positive film. The negatives were
then used to make plates to print the books. The positive film
was supplied by the book compositor (those people who typeset
books) and was known as "repro". In order to ensure
the fonts and other typographic elements were shown as they
would appear in final form, the compositors ran repro at every
stage of production (usually three stages -- galleys, pages,
and final pages).
Gilt: Also gild or gilded. to overlay with or as if
with a thin covering of gold.
Glossary: A list of terms and definitions particular
to the subject of the book.
Hardcover: Usually sewn and glued, harcover books
are then bound with cardboard covers that are reinforced with
a stiff cloth before being covered with a paper dust jacket.
Harlequin Romance Books: Today, Harlequin
Romance Books are paperbacks that are marketed primarily to
women. Early Harlequins (below #500) are very scarce and they
include Historical, Adventure, Non-Fiction, Sci-Fi, and Western
genres. It is not until about the 500th that they go strictly
Romance. Notable Authors in the first 500 include Ben Hecht,
Sam Merwin, Jr., James Hadley Chase, Harry Whittington, Edward
Ronns (Edward S. Aarons), Eric Von Stroheim, Day Keene, Johnson
McCulley, David Goodis, Edgar Wallace, Agatha Christie, and
John Russell Fearn.
Headcap: In leather bindings, a shaped and modelled
turn-in over the top and bottom of the spine.
Hi-Lo Books: These books combine a high interest level
with a text that is less challenging. Hi-Lo books are often
used to coax hesitant middle-graders into more active reading.
Illuminated: A manuscript or book embellished with
ornamental letters, scrolls, miniature and/or other designs,
usually in gold and red, but also in silver and other colors.
Illuminated binding: A binding which has extra colors
in its scheme of decoration, and especially a binding in which
a design was first blocked in blind and afterwards colored.
Originally a French innovation, this style was used in England
from about 1830 to 1860. Burnt sienna, carmine, gamboge, indigo,
sap green and ultramarine were the colors most often used
mainly because they were more lightfast. The color was mixed
with a suitable gum and applied to the cover; when it was
dry, gold leaf was laid on the areas to be gilded, and the
entire design was then impressed with the heated block, which
fixed both gold and colors, sharpening the edge of the latter.
ISBN: International Standard Book Number. A worldwide,
numbered identification system that provides a standard way
for publishers to number their products without duplication
by other publishers. "ISBN" also refers to ISBN numbers
themselves. The first part of the ISBN identifies the language
of publication ("0" for English), and the second part
identifies the publisher. The next string of digits in the ISBN
identifies the book product itself, and is followed by a digit
specifically calculated to ensure the integrity of the ISBN.
ISSN (International Standard Serial Number): A worldwide
numbering system for periodicals and other serially-produced
products.
Joint: The exterior juncture of the spine and covers
of a (usually) case-bound book. Although the term "joint"
is often used to indicate the internal juncture of the board
paper and fly leaf of a book, the more appropriate term here
is "hinge."
Laid In: Refers to a separate piece of paper, like
a note, envelope, or review slip, placed in the book without
any adhesive.
Laser Books: There were a total of 58 volumes
of Lasers published from 1975-1980; all have Kelly Freas covers.
According to Jon Warren's Official Paperback Price Guide, there
were 3 published each month, from Aug 75 to Feb 77. The last
three are by far hardest to find, having been distributed to
subscribers only. #9 by Aaron Wolfe ( a psuedonym of Dean R.
Koontz ), KW Jeter, and Timothy Powers are also generally harder
to find.
Laydown: A bookseller's term for a book that has been
shipped to resellers prior to publication, and is not to be
displayed or sold until the publication date.
Little Golden Books: A series of children's books
published by Whitman.
The Little Leather Library Books: The
Little Leather Library was founded around 1915 and sold millions
of volumes before ceasing operations in 1923. It was a significant
example of mass-marketing. Initially the books were sold through
Woolworth's, then by mail order. You could buy 30 of the little
volumes boxed for $2.98, C.O.D. The series was conceived by
Albert Boni, who sold his interest and then went on to start
the Modern Library. His partners in the venture, Harry Scherman
and Max Sackheim, used what they learned about mail-order selling
of books to start the Book-of-the-Month Club. Woolworth's sold
a million copies a year, and 35-40 million volumes were sold
by mail. They aren't too hard to find and aren't worth very
much--a couple of dollars a volume would be about right. A boxed
set of 30 volumes might sell from $50 to $100. A historically
significant venture in publishing, and so successful in its
brief heyday that the books have little value today.
LG: Literary Guild Book Club.
Library Binding: A more durable hardcover binding with
cloth reinforcement and often a different sewing method.
Mass Market Paperback: A smaller (4 and 3/16"
x 6 and 3/4") paperback book usually printed on low-grade
paper and released in high quantity at a lower price than a
trade paperback. The subject matter of these books typically
fit current popular market needs. In addition to bookstore placement,
these so-called "rack sized" books are often distributed
through drugstores, airports, and supermarkets.
McGuffy Readers: The McGuffey Readers were probably
the most significant series of American textbooks. They were
widely-used between 1830 and 1920 and some versions are still
in print today. For the most part, the ones with the greatest
collectible value are those which have copyright dates before
1879 when Van Antwerp Bragg published them in large quantities
over several decades. For these textbooks the name of the publisher
is helpful in verifying the vintage. For example, Henry Ford
had fond memories of these and fueled much of the interest in
the books in the 1910s and 1920s. I believe that he purchased
William Holmes McGuffey's schoolhouse and brought it to his
Dearborn, Michigan heritage park of historical buildings. The
most recent editions (still in print today) are by Van Nostrand
Rinehold and by Mott Media. These books tended to be used for
generations and received heavy use. It would sell for much more
in an antique store venue where aesthetics (how would this look
on an old table?) are more important than condition and content--the
most important factors for books collectors.
Middle Reader: Books geared for readers aged 9-11.
The Modern Library Books: The Modern
Library was published continuously from 1917 to 1970 (sewn bindings),
then from 1980 to 1985 or so (perfect bound - that is, glued),
then from 1990 to the present. Over the years they have appeared
in several bindings comprising at least 18 binding style variations.
Titles have been added and dropped over the years. By 1970 (which
ended the really classic period of the series) about 750 titles
had been published (1000 or so if you count different translations
of the same non-English piece, and different intro's and the
like). At any one time, the most titles in print was 396 regulars
and 102 giants (1970). There were also 21 illustrated titles
published in the middle 1940's, and a batch of paperbacks.
Morocco: Aname used to indicate leather binding. It
used to denote goat leather from Morocco, then later goat leather
from the Cape.
NAP: "No additional printings." Many publishers
do not explicitly identify the first printing of their first
editions (with a number line or with a copyright page statement
like "First Edition" or "First Printing"
or "First Impression"), but they do state later printings.
So FEs from these publishers can be identified if no additional
printings are listed on the copyright page. For example, you
might see a dealer listing a copy of the first printing of Thomas
Harris's "Red Dragon" (Putnam, 1981) with the notation
(NAP), because that was Putnam's system before 1985.
Novelty Book: Books with special built-in features
such as pop-ups, foldout pages, liftable flaps, or hidden sound
chips.
Octavo: A sheet of paper of any traditional size, folded
three times to make a section of eight leaves or 16 pages. Also
called 8vo or 8 deg.
Offset: 1. A printing process which involves the transferral
of the image from a litho stone or a plate to a rubber-covered
cylinder, which is then offset by pressure onto the paper. The
image area of the plate is receptive to ink, whereas the balance
of the plate is water receptive. 2. The inadvertent transfer
of (printing) ink from one printed sheet or illustration to
another sheet. Offsetting of this nature may occur during printing,
in the printing warehouse storage area, during folding of the
sheets, or during binding (pressing) before the ink is completely
dry. Offsetting from illustrative matter onto text matter is
probably more common than that from text sheet to text sheet.
Also frequently called "rub off" or set off. The result
of undried ink or excess ink accumulating on some part of the
printing press after the paper leaves the impression cylinder.
This ink is transferred to the paper at the second impression
and, if the registration is not absolutely accurate, the offset
will give a shaded edge effect to the print.
Parchment: Sheep or goatskin (with the hair removed)
that has been split, soaked, limed and dried under tension,
not tanned like leather.
PB: Paperback
PBO: Paperback original, a book that was first released
as a paperback (i.e., no previous hardcover edition.)
Photo-play Edition: A book that is illustrated with
still photographs from a motion picture. These editions were
most popular during the 1920's. A photo-play edition may or
may not be a first edition. Photo-play editions that are not
first editions often command premiums over other reprints.
Picture Book: Primarily aimed at children from preschool
to age 8, picture books display pictures or illustrations on
every page, telling the story through images that are accompanied
with a few lines of text. Most picture books are 24 or 32 pages.
Preface: Introductory section of a book, usually written
by the author. May contain information on why the book was written
or how to use the book.
Price Clipped: Most books have the price printed on
the dust jacket, usually the top right corner of the inside
flap. People often clip this off (diagonal cut) when giving
a book as a gift.
Quarto: A book in which the sheets have been folded
twice, the second fold at right angles to the first. The result
is often squarer than the upright rectangular characteristic
of the Folio , Octavo , and Duodecimo.
Quire: 1. One-twentieth of a ream of paper, or 25 sheets
(sometimes 24 sheets plus an outside sheet) in the case of a
500-sheet ream, or 24 sheets in the case of a 480-sheet ream.
2. A gathering (section), particularly when unfolded (i.e.,
printed but unfolded). A quire was originally a gathering of
4 sheets, forming 8 leaves or 16 pages after one folding.
Recto: The right-hand page of a book, usually with
an odd page number
Remainder Mark: A remainder mark is a line drawn by
a magic marker or some such thing across the top or bottom edge
of a book to identify the book as a remainder so that book doesn't
come back to the publisher from a bookseller as a return on
a full price. Ian Ellis, in BOOK FINDS (1996), states that such
marks knock 20% or more off the price of an otherwise "mint"
book.
The Roycrofters: o Roycroft was a handicraft
community founded in East Aurora, NY about 1895 by Elbert Hubbard.
He was a retired soap salesman who briefly met William Morris
and became enamored of Morris' Arts-and Crafts Kelmscott Press.
He started the Roycroft press in 1895 and it was very productive
until his wife and he perished on the Lusitania. At the time
there were over 500 'craftspeople' working in the village. Letter
to Garcia is the most famous with thousands of variant printings,
as is The Scrapbook. Numerous writers 'ghosted' his biographical
sketches.
Sample Books: Also "canvassing books." They
were used during the 19th & early 20th centuries for just
what you'd imagine: Salesmen would show them to potential customers.
Sometimes the books included not just a sample of the text &
illustrations but also showed binding options that the customer
could choose--cloth or leather in various colors, spine &
cover decoration, endpapers, edge-gilding, etc. And some of
these books also had the customer list or subscription forms
bound in. Apparently, the largest collection of these books
has been amassed by a man named Michael Zinman; there is a published
bibliography of his collection, entitled "Canvassing Books,
Sample Books, and Subscription Publishers' Ephemera 1833-1951
in the Collection of Michael Zinman." The April 1997 issue
of "Biblio" magazine has a short article on Zinman's
collection written by Nicholas Basbanes, who also wrote about
some of Zinman's other collecting interests & exploits in
his book "A Gentle Madness" (Holt, 1996).
Second Printing before publication: This indicates
that the publisher received more orders for the book than anticipated
and had to get it reprinted even before it was shipped. Any
second printing and pre-publication printings of a title would
not be of interest to most "First Edition' collectors.
Skiver: Sheep skin can be very thick, in which case
it can be split -- this leather is usually known as 'skiver',
and the lower half is usually stamped with a faked grain to
look like morocco.
Soiled: A book or dust jacket that is discolored by
the presence of a foreign substance such as dust or dirt. If
the contaminate has actually damaged the integrity of the book
this damage should be noted seperately. Damage due to water/moisture
should not be referred to as soiling (generally speaking).
Suede: A term taken from the French, "gants de
Suède" (Swedish gloves), and applied to a leather
finished on the flesh side by buffering so as to raise a velvet-like
nap. The typical suede leather is produced from the smaller
skins, such as calfskin, kidskin, lambskin and goatskin, although
cowhide has also been used. The nap is produced by buffing or
wheeling the surface on the flesh side, or the split side of
flesh splits; velvet suede, however, is buffed on the grain
side. A common criterion of good suede leather is that the fibers
of the nap should be of uniform length and tightly packed together,
in order to give a resilience to the nap so that it does not
readily shown fingermarks. c The firmness of the nap depends
upon the density and compactness of the fiber structure. Velvet
suede is finer than flesh suede and a younger animal, such as
a Slunk , produces an even finer suede. A principal concern
in making suede leather is to retain the fine nap and still
produce a soft leather.
Table of Contents: A listing of the topics covered
in the book as arranged by chapter and/or section, including
the corresponding page numbers.
Text block: The sections, sewn or unsewn, that make
up the text of the book.
T.E.G.: "Top edge gilt", meaning that the
top edge of the page block has been painted gold. One reason
is that it makes books easier to dust. Also "A.E.G",
which is "all edges gilt."
Tipped In: Lightly attached, by gum or paste, usually
at the inner edge, as opposed to bound in or sewn in.
Title page: The recto of the third or fourth leaf of
a book, on which is printed the complete title of the book,
with other information such as author, volume number, date,
patron, publisher's name, and place and date of publication.
Trade paperback: A book that may be returned to the
publisher for credit. (To save money on shipping and storage,
mass market paperbacks have the covers stripped off the paperback
and returned to the publisher, who credits the store for the
paperback as though it was returned.) Most of the time (but
not always) a trade paperback will be closer to the size of
a hardback than a mass market paperback.
Vellum: A thin sheet of specially prepared leather
used for writing, printing, or as a binding material; considered
superior in quality to parchment.
Verso: A left-hand page of a book, usually with an
even page number.
WAF: "With all faults."
YA Books: Young Adult (YA) Books are most often targeted
at readers ages 12-18.
Yapp edges: A style of binding featuring a cover (leather,
or other material, but customarily leather) that overlaps the
three edges of both upper and lower covers continuously. The
covers are always limp or semi-flexible, and are sometimes fitted
with a zipper, which was a later refinement. Yapp books, named
after the English bookseller of the second half of the 19th
century, William Yapp, always have round corners, and the endpapers
are frequently made from a "surface" paper, usually
black. The edges are sometimes gilt, frequently over red, or
are stained or otherwise colored. The Yapp style is especially
associated with books of devotion (almost exclusively today),
although a half century ago books of verse were sometimes bound
in somewhat similar covers.
