Comment by PaulHoule
7 months ago
Reminds me of that time I found a book at my Uni library that was in the rare books collection that I could only read in the reading room and then saw there were many copies on AMZN for 50 cents + shipping.
7 months ago
Reminds me of that time I found a book at my Uni library that was in the rare books collection that I could only read in the reading room and then saw there were many copies on AMZN for 50 cents + shipping.
When a librarian says a book is rare, they don't mean that the information inside is scarce. Rather, they mean that there are few surviving examples of that particular printing or edition of manufacture.
For instance, you can get a first edition copy of Trilby (which was basically the 1890's Twilight Saga) for a few hundred bucks or less as long as you're not picky about the condition.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trilby_(novel)
Next you'll wonder why people make such a big deal about the Mona Lisa when you can buy your own version at the Louvre gift shop for $25.
Was the university exaggerating the value, or did you pick up some valuable books for cheap?
If a work is older than 200 years and worth reading, then original editions are going to be valuable.
But it will also be out of copyright so the cost of getting a “new” copy is basically just the cost of printing.
This was a 1970s paperback by someone who attracted attention for his work on spiritual matters and sold a lot of books but didn't leave an organization behind so you can find his books at used bookstores.
https://www.amazon.com/Discovering-Secrets-Happiness-Intimat...
Not rare at all but some people might say it has some prurient interest (talks about his sexual misadjustment) so maybe they think it has to be limited access or maybe people will steal it or something. (The same library kept Steal this book in a restricted area of the stacks but let me check it out.)
Likely a different edition, or reproduction.
Do you think the librarians didn't know what was on Amazon?