Those are pretty books, aren't they? They're not old--not antique, anyway. They're specially-made sets for modern collectors. I have a collection of Arden Shakespeare paperbacks, but it's not the same thing.
Pretty much anything ever published that there's more than one of has been published again in an ornate, gilded set, especially if it's in the public domain. Jane Austen, famous poets, Charles Dickens. You can even get the Harry Potter hardcover boxed set in an actual box. (Hard to tell, but it's probably cardboard.) I didn't find anything like Dive's collections, though. I don't know where you order those. From the back of magazines, maybe?
You'll never believe how long it took me to write this little post. You get on the web and start looking for these collectors' sets, and you are down a rabbit hole. But I guess that's true of the web, whether you're searching for books or socks.
I'll just take a moment to remind you this is the final day of Read an Ebook Week on Smashwords. Camelot & Vine is 25% off, and you can find other specials from the home page, including free ebooks. If you prefer a paperback, or if you read on a Kindle, take advantage of the C&V birthday month special on Amazon.
Now if they could just infuse the covers of paperbacks with the smell of leather . . .
ReplyDeleteCamelot and Vine can hold its own among any of my other books, Petrea. I'm thrilled to own a copy.
ReplyDeleteYou can get these pimped volumes direct from the Folio Society (http://www.foliosociety.com/) or - like me - by haunting old bookshops. I have way too many stinky and foxed old leather volumes, too, and keep Aiden, my favourite bookbinder in wine with all the repair work I give him.
Happy reading!
I think paperbacks have a great scent of their own... the 'clean paper' smell is divine... btw those classics are gorgeous- my husband had a few of those in his collection... I am sure he would of gotten a kick out of yours, P... :-)
ReplyDeleteA good smell, Dina. I miss buying hardbacks, but these days they're so expensive one buys them as an investment, like Dive does.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link, Dive. I didn't know what search string to use.
I used to know of a bookbinder in Glendale. I wonder if he's still there.
We had some, too, KBF, when I was a kid.
Here they are: http://hhbookservices.com/
ReplyDeleteThey're very good.
When my grandmother passed away, it was amazing going through her garage which could easily have been the warehouse of any antique/vintage bookstore...
ReplyDeleteShe had been a librarian for 52 years...so you can imagine the books she had!!! But my favorites are my collection of children's books that she gave me as I was growing up...in particular...my set of Leo Politi books... all with personalized inscriptions!!!
That's an impressive collection, Dive. I like how C&V's purple spine makes it pop out of the shelf.
ReplyDeleteChieftess, what a treasure to have those books from your grandmother.
Chieftess, I would have loved going through all those books. Probably wouldn't have been able to get rid of any of them.
ReplyDeleteSusan, I understand Dive has so many books he has to make footstools and lawn furniture out of them.
There were waaaayy too many of them Petrea!!!
ReplyDeleteDive's library is a sight more elegant than mine!!!
My last comment got me to thinking... How many of us still have an elegant looking encyclopedia set in our libraries that's totally out dated and basically worthless??? When I married TheChief...I had a complete Encyclopedia Britannica set from 1933..and yes I did use these for school reports when I was growing up (and yes...they were completely outdated back then too...but then history is history!!!)...they went by the wayside because they were really tall and TheChief had a more manageable sized set that was already in the bookshelves!!!
ReplyDeleteWe still have John's old set, Chieftess. You know him so you'll believe me when I say he read the entire thing as a kid. I believe my brother has our old family World Book Set.
ReplyDeleteHad no idea Ovid's last name was Folio. That makes him Italian, no?
ReplyDeleteWhy is it I'm not surprised that you read the whole thing John???!!!!
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ReplyDeleteI always thought Ovid was Italian.
ReplyDeleteSee what I'm sayin, Chieftess.
Hiker, I'm not fooled. He moved the book as soon as he took the picture. Lovely, visual words. So cool that you remember them.
You were too fast for me. I meant to rewrite that to make clear it's Spenser I can't finish. C&V, as far as I've gotten, has lovely rhythm -- crisp and clever, and you can turn a phrase, my friend.
ReplyDeleteThe only problem with C&V is it left me wanting more!!!
ReplyDeleteThat's what I thought you meant! I'm glad you're reading it, thanks.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you don't mind, I'll re-post the Spenser words you posted:
I met a lady in the meads,
Full beautiful—a faery’s child,
Her hair was long, her foot was light, And her eyes were wild.
Beeg Kisses, Chieftess!!!
That's high praise coming from Hiker, who has an excellent literary training.
ReplyDeleteThere was very little to read where I grew up, so I got through all the encyclopedias in the local library. Nice of them to let me borrow one volume at a time. I can well believe John read them all - AND retained what he read.
That's high praise coming from Hiker, who has an excellent literary training.
ReplyDeleteThere was very little to read where I grew up, so I got through all the encyclopedias in the local library. Nice of them to let me borrow one volume at a time. I can well believe John read them all - AND retained what he read.
It's Keats, from La Belle Dame Sans Merci. http://www.bartleby.com/126/55.html
ReplyDeleteBut inspired by Spenser. And the poem inspired FSF.
Chieftess, I love those old Britannicas. I tend to collect them from intriguing years. My favourites are the 11th edition (1910-11 - the optimistic time just before the Great War) and the 14th (1929 - issued in euphoria a few weeks before the Great Depression). It's fun (and eye-opening) to dip into those and feel the mood of the time, knowing what was just around the corner for the world.
ReplyDeleteThe set at the bottom of the photo is my prized (and well used) New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Annoyingly, the shelf it's on houses 28 of its 29 volumes so one sits lonely on the shelf below. I need to have my bookcases custom made to fit.
Ah, but you can't bend back their covers and read one-handed the way you can with paperbacks.
ReplyDeleteThat's my problem exactly, Laura!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat an impressive set of books! But I would expect as much from Dive :-)
ReplyDeleteEveryone's comments on this are fascinating. All these book lovers....
Laura, now I know why all my hardbacks look so trashed.
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