The following two very large books were stolen from Edinburgh World Heritage Trusts Library from their former office at 5 Charlotte Square, Edinburgh between 18 November 2011 and 25 May 2012. 1. DRUMMOND RSA, James, 1879. Old Edinburgh. EDINBURGH: G.Waterston, Sons & Stewart. Reproduced facsimile from his original drawings of Edinburgh Old Town, now in the National Collection of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. First edition. No. 18 of 50 copies. 2. HOME, Bruce, J. (n.d.) Old houses in Edinburgh. EDINBURGH, W.J. Hay Publishers. Early drawings of the now destroyed buildings of the old town. If you have any information on either of these items, please contact David Hicks at Edinburgh World Heritage at 0131 220 7720 or davidhicks@ewht.org.uk. [more Books Stolen From Edinburgh World Heritage Trusts Library]
Blog posts by Susan Benne
Susan is the Executive Director of the ABAA. She collects material on Brooklyn as well as ephemera and vernacular photography. Susan is focused on making the book trade diverse and equitable.
The new edition of 'A Farewell to Arms', with original cover art (via NY Times) Ernest Hemingway famously told George Plimpton, in a 1958 interview with the Paris Review, that he had re-written the ending to A Farewell to Arms "39 times before I was satisfied." For Hemingway, it was all about "getting the words right." Now readers will have the chance to read all the alternate endings in a new edition of A Farewell to Arms, which will be released by Scribner this week. In addition to the alternate endings, of which there are closer to 47 than 39, this edition will also include early drafts of other passages from the novel and will bear the artwork from the original cover. The endings range in length, from a brief sentence to several paragraphs. One of the endings, No. 34 dubbed "the Fitzgerald ending", was suggested by Hemingway's good f... [more Hemingway's Alternate Endings to 'A Farewell to Arms' to be Published]
Jane Austen's Gold Ring, via Sotheby's Sotheby's London will be auctioning a ring that belonged to Jane Austen on July 10. The lovely gold and turquoise ring has remained in the Austen family and its provenance is substantiated by an accompanying note from Jane's sister-in-law, Eleanor Austen. The note was written to Jane's niece Caroline in November of 1863 and read: My dear Caroline, The enclosed ring once belonged to your Aunt Jane. It was given to me by your Aunt Cassandra as soon as she knew that I was engaged to your uncle. I bequeath it to you. God bless you! Austenites will be giddy over this piece, as it is very rare to come across any of Jane Austen's personal possessions (and extremely uncommon for something previously unknown to be 'discovered'Austen has had a longrunning rabid following). The most intriguing question regard... [more Jane Austen's Ring Up For Auction at Sotheby's]
This item was still reported missing as of June 12, 2019. The following item was reported stolen: (SHUSTER, Joe) (SIEGEL, Jerry). LOWTHER, George. The Adventures of Superman. New York: Random House, (1942). Octavo, original red cloth, original dust jacket. First edition of the first Superman novel, illustrated by the character's co-creator Joe Shuster, with four vibrant color plates and numerous black-and-white illustrations, in scarce dust jacket. With frontispiece, illustrated title page, nine full-page illustrations (four in color), and numerous in-text illustrations. Book fine. Light soiling and wear to extremities of bright, unrestored dust jacket with a small chip to spine tail. Near-fine condition. If you have any information regarding this item, please contact Bauman Rare Books at 212-751-0011 or brb@baumanrarebooks.com. [more Stolen: First Edition of 'The Adventures of Superman']
'Observations in Midwifery' Percival Willughby Perceival Willughby's Observations in Midwifery, a rare book circa 1670, gives a unique look at seventeenth century midwifery&and it's not pretty. Willuhgby had been working as an obstetrician for 40 years when his 600+ page manuscript was written. In the book he recorded 200 cases with the intent to "inform the ignorant common midwives with such wayes as I have used with good successe ... shewing the wayes how to deliver any difficult birth, bee it naturall, or, unnaturall". Willughby was disturbed by the often horrific practices of contemporary midwivessuch as removing babies before labor had even begun or the use of a hooked stick in place of forcepsand went into grisly detail about the cases he observed and took part in. There are only two known complete copies of the manuscript in exi... [more Yikes: Rare 17th Century Book on Midwifery Up for Auction]
Hunter S. Thompson In a nod to Independence Day, and the summertime, here's a gallery of some literary greats in their bathing suits. (At the moment I am wishing I was Hunter S. Thompson enjoying the beach rather than stewing in my apartment&) Enjoy the fireworks! [more Happy Fourth of July!]
English readers are the worst served in the world in terms of international literature, according to The Economist. Apparently only 3% of the total annual combined number of books published in America and Britain were translated from another language, with fiction only accounting for 1%. The same cannot be said for continental Europe, where in 2008 14% of books sold in France and 8% of book sold in Germany were translations. However the partiality for English translations is across the board: two out of three Eurupean translations are from English and they account for 40% of all novels published in France. Publishing specialists say that the scarcity of literature translation is "a cultural crisis" showing no signs of improvement. The Peirene Press is an independent publishing house in London that is trying to change that prognosis. Joini... [more Peirene Press Helps English Readers Missing Out on Foreign Literature]
Kurt Vonnegut offers his top eight tips for writing a short story in the following video. After the jump, see more writing tips from Henry Miller, George Orwell, Margaret Atwood, Neil Gaiman, and William Safire. Video and other lists via OpenCulture Henry Miller (from Henry Miller on Writing) 1. Work on one thing at a time until finished. 2. Start no more new books, add no more new material to “Black Spring.” 3. Don't be nervous. Work calmly, joyously, recklessly on whatever is in hand. 4. Work according to the program and not according to mood. Stop at the appointed time! 5. When you can't create you can work. 6. Cement a little every day, rather than add new fertilizers. 7. Keep human! See people; go places, drink if you feel like it. 8. Don't be a draught-horse! Work with pleasure only. 9. Discard the Program when you feel like it... [more Vonnegut and Other Great Authors Offer Writing Tips]
One of my favorite Magic Hat bottle caps [more "A classic Book is worth a Look"]
A UK first edition of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four has recently gone missing from a NY shop. The copy was in jacket and had distinctive markings that include staining to the boards and a chip from the jacket base. If you have any information on this item, please contact Jonathan Smalter at 585-265-9295 or yesterdays.muse@gmail.com. [more Missing: UK First Edition of 'Nineteen Eighty-Four']