Rare Books in the Press: Good Girls, Bad Girls, and The Private Library

"As we have noted in several previous posts (see, e.g., here, here and here), some book collectors collect books not for their texts but for their bindings. To such collectors, the fame of the text's author or publisher or printer takes a back seat to the artistry that has been applied to a book's clothing. Baudelaire might make the hearts of some beat faster, but for collectors of bindings Bonet is more likely to be the focus."

"Naturally enough, collectors whose focus is bindings must necessarily collect books from centuries past, or fine press books, since most modern publishers don't generally issue hardbacks in decorative bindings (The Folio Society and similar publishers being very rare exceptions).Such art as is applied to modern hardbacks generally shows up not on bindings but on dustjackets. The exception to this general trend, of course, is paperbacks. As we saw in our series on PBOs, the cover art on paperbacks is often quite spectacular, and such art frequently is a major additional impetus for many book collectors to collect paperbacks."

Plutonian beauties, women from outer space, female survivors in urban jungles, satanistic feminism or the teen-age mafia: a very special collecting tip by L.D. Mitchell: "Good Girls, Bad Girls, and The Private Library"

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>>> Good Girls, Bad Girls, and The Private Library, by L.D. Mitchell (April 14, 2011)