tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264663316603909139.post8019595151338850547..comments2023-10-31T07:41:52.587-04:00Comments on Series Book Collecting: How are Antique Stores in Your Area?Jack Chttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03170087641289102283noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264663316603909139.post-66193704421811937772009-11-23T00:19:29.581-05:002009-11-23T00:19:29.581-05:00Before the Internet and eBay, the best way to get ...Before the Internet and eBay, the best way to get books was by advertising in local newspapers and national antique publications. I amassed thousands of books that way. <br /><br />Locally, I would drive all over northern Ohio to people's houses and buy vast collections of amazingly good stuff that was stowed away in attics.These collections were of hundreds of books, all series, and mostly in great shape.<br /><br />Nationally, I would also buy huge collection by mail. People would mail me collections of hundreds of books, sometimes arriving in many boxes, and I'd pay after seeing them, or in advance, depending on what we had agreed to. These books would come from all over the country.<br /><br />After eBay got going, this got harder to do because everybody who had a computer and books in the attic became a dealer. Also, I started having health problems which limited my traveling around. eBay did change 'everything' by making hard-to-get items easily accessible to everybody.<br /><br />There probably still are big collections in homes in your areas. I still get calls from ads placed years ago, and still buy some books that way. Advertise in your local newspapers for 'vintage Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, and similar kids books' and you may still get a lot of calls and some good buys.<br /><br />Of course, the best days were in the 1970s when I traveled a lot in the USA and Canada and there were series books galore everywhere for 50 cents or $1 a copy. I always owned trucks and would fill the beds up under the tonneau covers with purchases while on the road. It was especially fun in Canada where they had editions not seen here and some of them still not generally known about,<br /><br />The thirty-year cycle of collections being bought then gotten rid of because of aging and death is about to begin repeating itself again, so I think a lot of books will be available for those willing to go after them.<br /><br />It is definitely a 'hunt', and the really good bookhunter will surely be successful.<br /><br /><br />Mikestratomikerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07037554947654294112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264663316603909139.post-77519764616389994792009-11-22T18:05:53.871-05:002009-11-22T18:05:53.871-05:00I can say that the most satisfying finds are the o...I can say that the most satisfying finds are the ones found in person in a store, but those are few and far between for me nowadays. Admittedly, I seldom go to antique shops anymore. Back in the early to mid-1990s, antique shops were where I found my books.<br /><br />Now, I find that the inventory rarely changes, and they have few books except for ones that are not even children's books. The bookstores tend to price any children's books way too high. Another problem I have had for around eight years is that my collection has reached an advanced state, so it is very hard to find something that I need in a store.<br /><br />I really just have one event per year in which I buy books in person. That is the Friends of the Library booksale, which takes place at the OKC fairgrounds in late February. I always get a lot of books there. You can see some photos of what I got this year in my Facebook account.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mlsfriends.org/booksale.html" rel="nofollow">Three months and counting</a>! It is really the highpoint of my book collecting year. Library booksales are worth checking if you have any large ones in your area. My sale is one of the largest library sales in the U.S. with around 500,000 books each year.<br /><br />Aside from the library booksale, eBay is still the best place for me to find books, especially cheap ones. With careful searching, lots of bargains can be found.Jennifer Whitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10405593758228423001noreply@blogger.com