With the coming of fall, or if you live in Australia the coming of spring, more dealers send out catalogues, shops remain open longer, shows and fairs throw open their doors and auctions pick up their pace. It is October, the perennially important month that often sets expectations for the final two months.
As we speak, antiquarians are gathering in Santa Fe for a two-day affair. On the second and third, the North Texas Book and Paper Show convenes in Fort Worth. Over the same two days, the Great Eastern U. S. Antique Book, Paper & Advertising Show in Allentown, Pennsylvania is running. Over the second weekend, the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair takes over one of the exhibition halls on the grounds of the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. The following weekend, two hundred miles north in Vancouver, Canadians and guests will participate in the Vancouver Antiquarian Book Fair. On Sunday, the 17th, the Pioneer Valley Book and Ephemera Fair in Northampton, Massachusetts affords bibliophiles the chance to see new material and old friends. On the 24th, the Golden Gate Park Book Fair offers northern Californians a day in the park and a chance to buy printed material. Over the 29th to the 31st, the ever-important Toronto International Antiquarian Book Fair gives eastern Canadians their chance to buy. Fairs have long been one of the best ways for dealers, institutions and collectors to look at material that simply is better understood in person. There is always much to see.
Of all the fairs the Seattle Fair is particularly important. While not an ABAA fair it attracts substantial ABAA support and a large public following.
The auction calendar is also full. Almost every day has at least one event. In total 56 events are in the queue. In the Internet age, auctions are proliferating, though the major houses continue to dominate the action. To look for material of interest run searches in the upcoming auctions search. Many, even most houses accept absentee and electronic bids. Within search results on our site, we always provide links to the applicable auction houses.
If viewing this article after October 5th, the Book Fairs and Events and Upcoming Auctions calendars will be displayed in a different way. Across the top of the page, the Upcoming Auctions link brings up the auction calendar [also accessible from the homepage] and the twenty-five most recent individual auction reports. Clicking next to the right of the auction reports will cycle you through the reports. Auction related links are located in the right column under Quick Links. On almost every page on the site there are Quick Link options related to the subject displayed to the left.
The Book Fairs link is listed across the main toolbar under "more" with Book Clubs, Events Calendar, Links and ISBD Search.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
