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    Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World
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    Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World
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    Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World
    Ebook256 pages4 hours

    Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World

    By Lawrence Goldstone and Nancy Goldstone

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Journey into the world of book collecting with the Goldstones-rediscover the joy of reading, laugh, and fall in love with books all over again.

    The idea that books had stories associated with them that had nothing to do with the stories inside them was new to us. We had always valued the history, the world of ideas contained between the covers of a book or, as in the case of The Night Visitor, some special personal significance. Now, for the first time, we began to appreciate that there was a history and a world of ideas embodied by the books themselves. Part travel story, part love story, and part memoir, Lawrence and Nancy Goldstone's Used and Rare provides a delightful love letter to book lovers everywhere.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateApr 1, 2010
    ISBN9780312207496
    Unavailable
    Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World
    Author

    Lawrence Goldstone

    Lawrence Goldstone is the author or co-author of more than a dozen books, and he has written for The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The New Republic, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. He and his wife, author Nancy Goldstone, live in Sagaponack, New York.

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    Reviews for Used and Rare

    4/5

    246 ratings21 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Fun explanation of how a person can get sucked in to collecting without even noticing it.
    • 4/5
      There are books that tell readers how to go about collecting rare books, but Lawrence and Nancy Goldstone's "Used and Rare: Travels in the Book World" shows you how to do it. The disadvantage is that there is no index at the end to help one later find specific information, but the advantage is that you can follow along as two complete novices find their way into the somewhat exclusive world of book collectors.How exclusive is it? The Goldstones tell us about about dealers who don't have signs on their doors, often because they operate their businesses out of their own homes, or who want to know how you found them, never mind that their numbers and addresses are in the phone book. The couple makes repeated visits to one bookshop and each time are denied access to the rare book room with one lame excuse or another. The authors name names, both those of the businesses and the people who work there. If names were changed to protect the guilty, we are not told.The Goldstones convey information while at the same telling interesting, often humorous, stories about their travels from their Connecticut home to shops in surrounding states. They describe book auctions, conversations with dealers, both the helpful and unhelpful ones, and answer questions, like how does one tell if a book is really a first edition, that other beginning collectors are going to ask.Unlike many collectors, the Goldstones are interested mainly in books they want to read or have read and want attractive copies on their shelves. They lack the resources to spend thousands of dollars on a single rare book, yet still want to build a collection that will be valuable to them. "The more we thought about it," they conclude, "the more we came back to our original view. You don't really need first editions at all. They are just affectations, excuses for dealers to run up the price on you, charge you a lot of money for something that doesn't read any better than any other edition."As enjoyable as "Used and Rare" is, it can be annoying at times, as when these two people seem to think with a single mind. We find the sentence, "'We have this in paperback, but these stories are terrific,' one of us commented to the other." These writers have the ability to repeat entire conversations word for word, but they can't remember which of them made that statement? I don't mind that the Goldstones never argue, but do they always want to buy the same books and are they always willing to pay the same price? One gets the impression that one of these two people isn't really necessary. Or maybe hiring the babysitter wasn't really necessary. One of them could have just stayed home.
    • 3/5
      A light and entertaining read about a young married couple venturing into the world of book collecting, in New England, New York and Chicago. Fun, and sometimes very funny.December, 2009
    • 5/5
      If you love books, you must read this. The Goldstones are lovers of books and they take you along as they discover, from scratch, the world of book collecting. You learn while they learn and the lessons are wonderful. Parts of this are hysterically funny. One of the first people they meet is from New Zealand and while I normally hate dialogue written in dialect, they have a Kiwi accent nailed and it's great fun. This is a small, one-seating read and when you get to the end you will love all used bookshops even more than you do now.
    • 5/5
      Enjoyed this enormously. Collecting books is an adventure.
    • 3/5
      This book took me a while to finish, but it was an interesting look inside the world of book collecting and the people who sell and collect them.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book. It was entertaining and it paralells my experience (up to a the point of escalatingly priced rare books) of the joys of used bookstores and the booksellers you find in them. This book was my first entry in the Books About Books genre and for a while, I know it will be my favorite genre.
    • 3/5
      A decent depiction about how one might grow into book-collecting.It's actually more of a collection of anecdotes than a coherent story, most of them educational about some particular aspect oc the book circuit - almost to the point of being suspiciously so. Competently written, but earns no bonus points for shining prose. Has a tendency to sink into tedious back-and-forth dialogue between the two protagonists that is probably sopposed to be charming banter, but really just feels embarasingly forced and phony.The book is ultimatly saved by the genuine love for the subject, the entertaining characters, and the loving decriptions of bookstores of every kind. It's a trifle, but and entertaining trifle.
    • 4/5
      Very engaging description of how ordinary people fall into book collection. I fault the book only in that it struck me at times as being too contrived in order to create the necessary expository opportunities. I mean, really, were they taking notes during these actual conversations? Also, while those who came in for criticism appeared to earn the notoriety, I shuddered to think someone may have lost his or her job because of one customer's reported bad experience.
    • 4/5
      I loved this book,it was the first book to really open my eyes to book collecting and how much it can be. This book really lit a fire in me, though I read this book some time ago I still find it inspirational to my thought on used and rare books today. I am also from Massachusetts and used to live out in the western part of the state so allot of the places talked about in the book I am familiar with.I am also a fan of the way this book was written, this kind of story telling really works for me. I like the informative kind reads as well, a real life book searching adventure.
    • 3/5
      A quick read. I liked it well enough, but found the constant repetitions of authors (especially Dickens) and/or books that I didn't care about to be annoying. The last fifty pages seemed to last longer than any other part of the book, and not in a good way. I was ready for it to be done before it actually was. I do like books on books, but Lewis Buzbee's "The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop" was much better than this.
    • 5/5
      I picked this up an amazing little booksellers in Minneapolis, MN while on tour. I have always enjoyed the 'Books about Books' genre and this volume made it clear that it is my favorite.Used and Rare chronicles the decent of two minor authors into the obsessive world of bibliophilia and back again. Well written, witty and informative I not only learned about book collecting's finer points that could take years to learn by making expensive mistakes, I got to know why I am the way I am when I check the heft of a volume, why I read books with all five senses and why I can't pass a bookstore with out going in...Enjoy this!
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. Even though I love reading - and I love books - the look and feel of nice copy has always pleased me - I never really thought much about book collectors or those people who buy the rare and first editions of books. The Goldstones offer such a fun and interesting look into the world of book colectors. This is a cozy book full of warm stories and interesting facts. The people they meet are described - quirks and all - but there is such a charming quality to all their experiences that makes for a wonderful read. I'll be hanging on to my copy of this book :)
    • 4/5
      I loved this book! But probably it helps that I love books and like me the authors love to search out a "find". The authors never identify which one is speaking, which I found a little confusing. When I started the book I pictured an elderly couple and that the book was written in the seventies. When they talked about getting a baby sitter I knew my assumption was wrong. I checked the back of the book (PB version). They are a young couple and it was written in '98! I'm glad to see the joys of book hunting aren't just appealing to oldies like me.There are some good suggestions for people that might want to find resource material for collecting or identifying first editions.The couple live in the Berkshires and the scenery was described with charm and fondness, including the book shops.I think the best part was the interesting book sellers this couple comes across. From used out-of-print book sellers to a dealer so high end it seems you can't get to see the books available for sale.They introduced a baby sitter that sounded like an interesting character, but then dropped her with one sentence. I would have liked a little more detail. Also the end of the book was rather abrupt. But in all, I'd recommend this as an engaging and entertaining book
    • 4/5
      My reading list has been far to heavy and serious of late, thanks to the fine SUNY system, so stumbling upon this small text in my even smaller local library was a real treat. 'Used and Rare' is a very specific sort of memoir focusing on the authors' accidental entrance int the world of book collecting and the significance it soon holds for them. The Goldstones beautifully characterize both the many shops they find themselves frequenting and the often colorful proprietors whom they come to befriend over the few years this story spans. The reader is carried along with them as they uncover the fine intricacies and peculiarities of book collecting, from First Editions to 'foxing', 'rubbing', and 'boarding', whatever that means. With every book they find, they reveal the particular place that text holds in their relationship and bring the reader closer to the narrators so that they almost become friends. One is thoughtfully engrossed in what is tucked in the next shelf and whether or not they will ever find that perfect copy of 'Gatsby'. Beyond just the merits of the memoir and its construction, I must say that I personally found this book in many ways enlightening. As a lover of books, as well as tales, this glimpse into how they are judged, valued, and brought together was quite fascinating. The Goldstones, in their own way, also recommended a slew of new authors I must dig up, though instead of Amazon or Waldens, perhaps I will poke around in that dark little shop the town over. You never know what treasures you might find! Peace.
    • 4/5
      About books, authors, bookstores, antiquarian book dealers and a delightful couple. Followed by two more: Slightly Chipped, and Warmly Inscribed.
    • 5/5
      This is the first book in a flurry about the Goldstones' passion for collecting books and their love for books in general. This particular volume traces their journey from being readers to being more serious collectors of books and first editions.The avid collector can easily identify with them as they succumb to the effects of bibliomania. This is a good read... laid back yet fully portraying the feeling of becoming immersed "in the hunt"!
    • 5/5
      A quick read. Describes the authors' decent into the world of book collecting. Not an authoritative book on the details of book collecting, but describes their journey. It did give me cause to pause and reflect on my book collection. I found it much more enjoyable and informative than their second book, "Slightly Chipped"
    • 4/5
      A journey of discovery about book collecting...the couple explored used bookstores in New England as they honed their tastes from good reading copies, to modern first editions, and then to the pricey leather-bound collector's editions. I learned something about what to look for in a collectible book while enjoying the highly readable stories of the eccentric people who love books.
    • 5/5
      A journey through the book collecting world. Filled with snobby book sellers and backwoodsmen. Learn how a simple quest of a birthday present turned into a life-long obsession.
    • 5/5
      One of the three fine Goldstone memoirs. I recommend each of them.