Rare Book Monthly Reviews - July - 2007 Issue

World's Fairs and Expositions from Marc Selvaggio

World's Fairs and Expositions from Marc Selvaggio

By Michael Stillman

This month we have our first review for Marc Selvaggio, Bookseller. The Berkeley, California, bookseller starts us out with an exciting collection of fair books, World's Fairs and Expositions, 1851-1940. Nothing can generate excitement like a world's fair, and Selvaggio has over 500 pamphlets and other pieces pertaining to a century's worth of them. Here is a chance to relive the thrills.

The most represented fairs are: 1851 London, 1876 Philadelphia, 1888 Barcelona, 1889 Paris, 1893 Chicago, 1901 Buffalo, 1904 St. Louis, 1915 San Francisco, 1929 Barcelona, 1933-...

More Historic Americana from David Lesser Antiquarian Books

More Historic Americana from David Lesser Antiquarian Books

By Michael Stillman

David M. Lesser Fine Antiquarian Books has issued their 98th catalogue of Rare Americana. Here are 124 new items pertaining to American history, primarily from colonial time...

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Africa Travel from Trophy Room Books

Africa Travel from Trophy Room Books

By Michael Stillman

We have just received a catalogue of Africa Travels, the latest from Trophy Room Books of Ellen and Jim Herring. It is one of the most extensive catalogues in this field we ...

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Literary Firsts, Crime, Rare Cinema, and Unusual Items from James Pepper Rare Books

Literary Firsts, Crime, Rare Cinema, and Unusual Items from James Pepper Rare Books

By Michael Stillman

James Pepper Rare Books has issued Catalogue 163: Literary First Editions, Mystery and Detective Fiction, Rare Cinema Material, and Unusual Items. Here are a few samples of...

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The Pacific Northwest from Wessel and Lieberman

The Pacific Northwest from Wessel and Lieberman

By Michael Stillman

From Wessel and Lieberman of Seattle comes their latest offering, Occasional List #6: Pacific Northwest, June 2007. This catalogue includes over 300 items pertaining to the...

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31 Varied and Unusual Items from John Michael Lang Fine Books

31 Varied and Unusual Items from John Michael Lang Fine Books

By Michael Stillman

John Michael Lang Fine Books has issued a brief but fascinating collection of eclectic works: Recent Acquisitions List 21. There are just 31 items offered, but you might fi...

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Law and Legal History from the Lawbook Exchange

Law and Legal History from the Lawbook Exchange

By Michael Stillman

The Lawbook Exchange has issued its Catalogue 48 of Recent Acquisitions. The Lawbook Exchange mixes scholarly legal treatises with law-related works more accessible to the g...

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California Promotional Items from Dawson's Book Shop

California Promotional Items from Dawson's Book Shop

By Michael Stillman

We recently received California Ephemera, Winter 2007 from Dawson's Book Shop. Winter 2007? Either we received this catalogue very late or very early. It doesn't matter. It...

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Book Collectors and Their Libraries from Oak Knoll Books

Book Collectors and Their Libraries from Oak Knoll Books

By Michael Stillman

Oak Knoll Books has published the third issue in its series of "Special catalogues," Book Collectors and Their Libraries. This is not the typical Oak Knoll thousand-item cat...

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Some Antiquarian Books from French Bookseller Librairie Thomas-Scheler

Some Antiquarian Books from French Bookseller Librairie Thomas-Scheler

By Michael Stillman

We have just received two catalogues from Librairie Thomas-Scheler, neatly strapped together, all the way across the ocean from France. As they are recent arrivals to Americ...

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Fine Atlases and Maps from Bernard J. Shapero Rare Books

Fine Atlases and Maps from Bernard J. Shapero Rare Books

By Michael Stillman

Bernard J. Shapero Rare Books has issued its second catalogue of fifty magnificent atlases and maps, Cartography II. The first was issued in Spring of 2006, and as fantasti...

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The Dutch East and West India Companies from Gert Jan Bestebreurtje

The Dutch East and West India Companies from Gert Jan Bestebreurtje

By Michael Stillman

The latest catalogue from Holland bookseller Gert Jan Bestereurtje Rare Books is entitled The Dutch East - and West - India Company. These trading companies effectively ran...

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Rare Book Monthly

  • 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. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
    Sotheby’s
    Book Week
    December 9-17, 2025
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
  • 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: Bram Stoker. Dracula. Westminster: Archibald Constable & Co., 1897.
    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…
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