You can call first edition books as lasting treasures. That’s because they are associated with a high value when compared to others. The value associated with these books are rising along with time as well. Hence, every book collector should think about paying more attention towards collecting first edition books.
If you are still not convinced, let’s take a look at some of the reasons on why first edition books are sought after this much by people.
Scarcity of first edition books
Publishing a new book is a risk that is taken by an author. We often see how books that come to the market are bring panned by critics. In such a situation, the books never become successful. On the other hand, some of the printed books go unnoticed. Due to the same reason, all book publishers prefer to take appropriate measures to minimize the risk as much as possible. The best method available for them to minimize the risk is to print books in limited quantities. This is the main reason why you can only find a limited number of first edition books published out there. This fact is true for all the books that are being published.
When you take a look at the world of book collecting, you will figure out that scarcity is one of the factors that can make books increase their value. If it is difficult to locate a specific book, people would be willing to spend more time and money to purchase that book. A perfect example for such a book is Casino Royale by Ian Fleming. This book was initially published in the year 1953. However, only 4,728 copies of the book was published under the first edition.
After the book was released to the market, it received a lot of attention. That’s because the popular James Bond Series was made based on this book. As of now, only around 3,000 of the first edition books survive. A single copy of one such first copy edition of the book is around $30,000. This clearly indicates why the first edition books are so valuable and sought after.
Intent of the author is portrayed by first edition books
It is also important to keep in mind that the intent of an author is illustrated by first edition books. Authors usually tend to actively take part in the publication of first edition books. Therefore, the first edition books are usually showcasing the original intentions of an author.
For example, you can take a look at the book titled Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. The author played a major role behind the publication of this book. As a result, people tend to spend more money to go ahead and buy the first edition of the book. All the first edition books are hand touched by the author himself.
However, the complete opposite can become true in some of the instances. When you take a look at the book Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, you will be able to get a clear understanding about it. The very first edition of this book was published back in the year 1861. This book has a unique editing. At a later point of time, Dickens was urged to change the ending of this book. As a result, he published a new book with the altered ending on the following year. As of now, the rare book collectors are keen to purchase both books that were published in the year 1861 and 1862.
How can you identify first edition books?
Now you have a basic understanding about the factors that make first edition books so sought after. If you are interested in collecting first edition books, you need to be aware about the factors that you can use to identify them. This will not be an easy thing to do, especially when you are trying to figure out the first edition books that were published before the 1900s.
In general, you can take a look at the following factors and get a clear understanding about first edition books.
Contextual differences
You can find some prominent contextual differences in the first edition books and other books available. In the first edition books, you will be able to discover lots of typographical errors. The author will only notice them after the first edition is published. Hence, the author will make corrections to them and publish the new edition. If you can keep an eye on these errors, you can easily figure out the first edition books.
Materials used
In most of the instances, the first edition books are bound with the assistance of a different fabric. The later editions are usually printed in less expensive paper. However, you can find more premium binding in the first edition books.
Format of the books
You will also be able to analyze the format of a book and determine whether it belongs to the category of first edition books or not. For example, the first edition books might contain more pages or fewer pages when compared to the books that were published during later editions. On the other hand, the first edition books might not come along with an afterword, forward or any other ancillary materials, which were only introduced at a later stage.
These are the basic factors that you can use to determine first edition books available out there. Keep these facts in your mind and start hunting for the first edition books. Then you will be able to end up with getting your hands on the best first edition books. Along with that, you can think about getting those first edition books to your book collection. Then you can become the proud owner of some of the most sought after books available out there.
