(no subject)
Apr. 9th, 2007 09:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hathycolOh my.
I went out today to my history lectures in the blazing sunshine. On the walk home from a very boring lecture in which I fell asleep, I noticed a second-hand book sale in the middle of Market Street. Well, I thought, I have a fiver in my pocket and some spare time and space in my bag. So I sauntered across, and had a quick flick. Nothing inspiring; some of the classics that I've always meant to read caught my eyes, but nothing I actually wanted to carry home, or have the time to read right now. I carry on, and I saw a beautiful old edition of Pepys' Memoirs and Diary. Well, I think. I do want to do that module next year, and it's a lovely book, so I picked it up thoughtfully and nearly fell over at the price. For a £1, it would be rude to say no. For a further £4, I acquire a hardback copy of Chretian de Troye's Arthurian Romances which I've always meant to read in terms of actually doing some source reading for my own fun, and a ratty paperback copy of Les Miserables which is also an attempt at historical fiction, a genre for which I have unending fondness.
I took the books home, left them on a pile in my desk, and continued my evening. I went shopping with Katie and aquired some cheap apple lattices and even cheaper posh pizza, make Curry Outta Jar for tea, laughed in the kitchen for a bit with Katie, went and got on with some reading for my tutorial tomorrow.
It's at about this time that Simon phoned me. I rambled on a bit about my day, and mentioned the books, and started flicking through them for the ages of them; for example, the Arthurian one is about forty years old.
I couldn't find a date on the Pepys' one, and it has a dustsheet covering a picture inside it, as well as a full classic frontpiece. The cover is an emerald green, with gold detail on the side, and a note that it's from 'The Chandos Library' embossed into the book. Finally, I got to the introduction.
Which was dated 1825. And I can't find any re-printing dates, or anything like that, only mentions of being a 'new edition' of the version that came out in the 1600s.
... I'm taking it to the Special Collections section of the library tomorrow. Whatever happens, it's an utterly beautiful book with only a little damage and still only cost me £1, so it's brilliant either way. And if it is that old, I'm going to hyperventilate, ask them if they can be sure about that, where I can go to get the minimul binding problems sorted, and then get it quitely valued. Because if it is the edition I think it is, it's worth about £500 if in good condition.
I actually probably wouldn't sell it, unless financial straits got too bad. (It's a possibility, next year.) It's a book I may well need for my course, anyway, and when you get down to it, it cost me less than the Penguin Paperback.
Pleasant surprise, though!
I went out today to my history lectures in the blazing sunshine. On the walk home from a very boring lecture in which I fell asleep, I noticed a second-hand book sale in the middle of Market Street. Well, I thought, I have a fiver in my pocket and some spare time and space in my bag. So I sauntered across, and had a quick flick. Nothing inspiring; some of the classics that I've always meant to read caught my eyes, but nothing I actually wanted to carry home, or have the time to read right now. I carry on, and I saw a beautiful old edition of Pepys' Memoirs and Diary. Well, I think. I do want to do that module next year, and it's a lovely book, so I picked it up thoughtfully and nearly fell over at the price. For a £1, it would be rude to say no. For a further £4, I acquire a hardback copy of Chretian de Troye's Arthurian Romances which I've always meant to read in terms of actually doing some source reading for my own fun, and a ratty paperback copy of Les Miserables which is also an attempt at historical fiction, a genre for which I have unending fondness.
I took the books home, left them on a pile in my desk, and continued my evening. I went shopping with Katie and aquired some cheap apple lattices and even cheaper posh pizza, make Curry Outta Jar for tea, laughed in the kitchen for a bit with Katie, went and got on with some reading for my tutorial tomorrow.
It's at about this time that Simon phoned me. I rambled on a bit about my day, and mentioned the books, and started flicking through them for the ages of them; for example, the Arthurian one is about forty years old.
I couldn't find a date on the Pepys' one, and it has a dustsheet covering a picture inside it, as well as a full classic frontpiece. The cover is an emerald green, with gold detail on the side, and a note that it's from 'The Chandos Library' embossed into the book. Finally, I got to the introduction.
Which was dated 1825. And I can't find any re-printing dates, or anything like that, only mentions of being a 'new edition' of the version that came out in the 1600s.
... I'm taking it to the Special Collections section of the library tomorrow. Whatever happens, it's an utterly beautiful book with only a little damage and still only cost me £1, so it's brilliant either way. And if it is that old, I'm going to hyperventilate, ask them if they can be sure about that, where I can go to get the minimul binding problems sorted, and then get it quitely valued. Because if it is the edition I think it is, it's worth about £500 if in good condition.
I actually probably wouldn't sell it, unless financial straits got too bad. (It's a possibility, next year.) It's a book I may well need for my course, anyway, and when you get down to it, it cost me less than the Penguin Paperback.
Pleasant surprise, though!
no subject
Date: 2007-04-09 09:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-10 09:16 am (UTC)(Incidentally, it was you talking about Les Mis a while ago that made me notice it and buy it...)
no subject
Date: 2007-04-09 10:09 pm (UTC)It's one of those things that the sensible-worried-about-money part of you says you really probably should sell, but every other part of you is like "OMG book!love, guard it with your life!"
no subject
Date: 2007-04-10 12:23 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-13 03:33 pm (UTC)*not a geek*
um, anyway, glad to see you're doing okay. Shame I didn't see you in the holidays but I gather you were up in Scotland before I was back from the Londoning. Meet up in Summer? Or perhaps I could visit you oop north.
xx