Booksellers affiliated to ILAB are based in 37 countries worldwide, organised in 22 national associations. The Czech antiquarian bookseller’s association, Svaz Antikváru ČR, one of ILAB's smaller member associations, currently counts 14 members across the country.
ILAB congratulates Australian bookseller Douglas Stewart on his appointment as new President of the Australian and New Zealand booksellers association.
The endowment of the ILAB Breslauer Prize for Bibliography has recently been funded with a further generous donation of $25,000 from the B.H. Breslauer Foundation of New York — Submissions are currently being accepted for the 2022 prizes.
ILAB spoke to one of the newer members of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association, Anke Timmermann who jointly owns and runs the business Type & Forme with her partner Mark James: "...the printed book and manuscripts have lost none of their allure in the new millennium, and antiquarian books are arguably even better appreciated in recent years ... Social media, especially Instagram, have brought forth a new generation of bibliophiles..."
The Proper Title: In the wake of more high-profile book thefts, the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers is tackling head-on the sometimes thorny issue of provenance.
The Swedish Antiquarian Booksellers Association, Svenska Antikvariatföreningen alerted ILAB to the recently published bibliography: “Swedish Contributions to Classical Philology” by Per Rålamb.
At the annual meeting of ALAI on Tuesday, 21 May 2019, Mario Giupponi, bookseller from Riva del Garda in Northern Italy, was re-elected as president of the association.
A few years ago, as Sotheby's sold J. K. Rowling's handmade book, "The Tales of Beedle the Bard", one of the auctioneers displayed the book for the gathered crowd while wearing white gloves. Gloved hands turn the mundane act of touching a book into a ritual - and a photo op for media coverage of bookish events. While wearing gloves may have been de rigueur for rare books at one time, more and more special-collections librarians now favor clean, bare hands over cotton gloves.
About six months ago, I found that I was repeatedly discussing with a number of fellow booksellers, and more especially with a number of collectors on my mailing list, the apparent shift in collecting styles -- especially with regard to modern firsts -- that has taken place over the last 20 years or so. My main impression was that there has been a shift away from what I would call "in-depth" author collections toward the collecting of a relatively small number of "high spots" of modern literature.
The annual fall gathering for booklovers, the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair returns to the Hynes Convention Center in Boston's beautiful Back Bay for its 41st year, November 10-12, 2017. More than 120 dealers from the United States, Argentina, Australia, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, and Russia will exhibit and sell a vast selection of rare, collectible and antiquarian books, illuminated manuscripts, autographs, maps, atlases, modern first editions, photographs, and fine and decorative prints.
More than twenty bibliographies, biographies, library catalogues, catalogues of special collections, studies on bookbinding, fore-edge-paintings, map-engravers and on the history of the antiquarian book trade have already been submitted to the 16th ILAB Breslauer Prize for Bibliography. It is still possible to submit more bibliographies or books about books simply by sending a copy to the Prize Secretary Arnoud Gerits (Diemen, Netherlands). They may be written in any language of the world and must be published between 2009 and 2012. Have a look a the books which have already been submitted.
Arthur der Weduwen, PHD candidate at the University of St. Andrews in the UK, has just received the James D. Forbes Collecting Prize which has been awarded annually since its inauguration in 2015. The prize is named after the university's famous graduate and later professor (1833) and principal (1859), James David Forbes (1809 - 1868). Arthur der Weduwen has permitted ILAB to publish his report here.
After the completely unexpected death of Michael Park earlier this year, who had served as ABAC President since November of 2015, Robert Wright of Robert Wright Books has taken on the role of Interim President. Mr. Wright spoke to us about bookselling in his home country and where the trade is going.
