BASIC INFORMATION FOR BOOK BUYERS AND SELLERS

You may be just looking for a "good book" to pass an afternoon and and long as the pages are all there, really not care much about the general condition of the book but many buyers are looking for much more.

Many buyers are wanting books with specific attributes such as a First Edition, a copy signed by the author, etc.and want to know many details about the book in general.

I have seen books listed with very little information regarding the condition which, as a buyer, left me with many questions.  The basic information needed in a good listing includes:  the edition (is it a first edition?  what printing?  does the book have a number line and what numbers are listed? (a full number line which tells you the book is a first printing shows the numbers 10 - 1, a second printing would show the numbers 10 - 2, and so forth)......is it a Book Club Edition?  This is often abbreviated as BCE........is there a printed price on the front dust jacket flap?  Has this corner been cut off? This is refered to as price clipped and a true collector generally will shy away from a price clipped book. (This is often done by book stores when they are marking a book down for clearance).  Take note though that BCE's are not made with a printed price on the book jacket.  Is there any writing on the book?  Scribble marks, a previous owner's name?  Are pages creased, soiled?  At times a book store will have books in inventory that they want to mark down and will make a mark, usually with a black marker, on the bottom end pages of a closed book, it will simply look like a small line........this is called a remainder mark and many serious collectors will shy away from this also but it does not distract from the book at all as a good reading copy.  The condition of the dust jacket is also imporatant to many buyers.........is it torn, marked on, creased?  A mistake I have made a couple of times when listing books is not checking the condition of the books binding closely enough......are the pages and the front and back covers well attached?  When laid flat on a table does the book seem to lean (sometimes referred to as "spine tilted")........I had a book that looked wonderful for a vintage copy, it was clean and had many of the better attributes BUT the binding was loose at the back of the book, which I had not noticed untill the book had already been sold! 

The moral of the story is the more information you give the more likely you will get the bids you want....a good book, in good condition will fetch a higher price when the buyers have this information!  List any faults the book has and your buyers will still feel more confident in buying from you, a person who is willing to give a good, honest description of what they are selling.  Keep in mind that there are many buyers who are not seeking perfection, just that "good book" to pass an afternoon.