Longtime ABAA member John J. DeMarco of Saratoga Springs, NY passed away on March 26, 2019. He was 70, and was being treated for cancer. His store, Lyrical Ballad — which DeMarco opened after graduating from college in 1971 and ran with his wife Janice — has been a fixture in Saratoga Springs for almost 50 years, and is “hog heaven for a book lover,” according to fellow ABAA member Kevin Mac Donnell. Saratoga Springs Mayor Meg Kelly paid tribute to DeMarco's resiliance through decades of economic ups and downs, saying “Lyrical Ballad outlived most of the big box stores and really was the foundation for much of the revitalization of Saratoga Springs. His store survived it all due to the strength of his personality.” DeMarco had a knack for uncovering some truly rare items over the years, such as a cache of Herman Melville material that included letters from Nathaniel Hawthorne and a first draft of Typee, that a local widow had found amid other material in her barn. Several friends and contemporaries remarked on his reputation for supporting every civic-improvement and artistic project in Saratoga Springs; his friend and fellow business owner Gordon Boyd said DeMarco "was just a priceless community leader and an example for all other business leaders." Several regional newspapers have published articles on DeMarco this week, and the Yaddo writers' colony also marked his passing with a tribute on their Facebook page. Schenectady Daily Gazette: “Longtime owner of Ly... [more In Memoriam: John J. DeMarco]

The following item has been reported stolen: Tractatus De Attentatis Et Innovatis, etc. Printed in Rome, in 1576, by Vincentium Accoltum. 16th century book in Latin, Folio. Treatise on Italian civil and ecclesiastical law. Collates: A - I, K - T, V, X, Y, Z, AA- II, KK - TT, VV, XX, YY, ZZ, AAa - EEc, a-h, i, k. Page numbering anomalies in index but catchwords match. Original vellum binding over 16th century pasteboard, end papers intact, spine worn and missing leather on top and bottom, missing ties, both boards loosely attached, text block with some browning, but mostly clean, some dog-ears at end. If you have any information on this item, please contact Paul Dessau at paul@nccn.net. [more Stolen: ‘Tractatus De Attentatis Et Innovatis…’]

It has been reported that Volume 4 of the following five volume set was missing during breakdown of the New York Fair and appears to have been stolen: Ernst, Max. Une Semaine de bonté, ou les sept éléments capitaux. Paris: Editions Jeanne Bucher, 1934. First edition. Blue printed wrappers. From the issue of 800 copies on Navarre paper, this is numbered Copy 61. The fourth volume from this set of five. Inscribed by Ernst to Gilbert Lély If you have any information on this item, please contact Tom Goldwasser at tom@goldwasserbooks.com. [more Stolen: Vol. 4 of Max Ernst’s ‘Une Semaine de bonté, ou les sept éléments capitaux’]

UPDATE: The books have been recovered. We received notice that the parish offices of Saint Dominic's Church in San Francisco were broken into and the church's Sacramental Records (series of leather-bound books) were stolen. Saint Dominic's Church is desperate to have the items returned and is offering a no questions asked reward to anyone who can facilitate the return of the items. If you are offered or have any information regarding these books, please contact Michael Rossi at michael@stdominics.org, or 415-567-7824, x108. [more Stolen in San Francisco: Sacramental Records of Saint Dominic’s Church]

The ABAA is accepting entries for the 2019 National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest, once again supported by the Jay I. Kislak Foundation, the generous underwriter of prizes for this contest. The National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest is open to all prizewinners of college book-collecting contests, whether or not first prize, as well as to interested students whose institutions do not offer formal contests. (More information can be found here.) All entries should be submitted at apply.abaa.org. All entries for the 2019 competition must be submitted by June 13, 2019. For more information on the contest, please visit contest.abaa.org. The National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest is jointly administered by the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America (ABAA), the Fellowship of American Bibliophilic Societies (FABS), the Grolier Club, and the Center for the Book and the Rare Books and Special Collections Division (the Library of Congress), with major and exclusive support for the Kislak Prize from the Jay I. Kislak Foundation. Meet the 2018 NCBCC winners... Don't miss any articles on The New Antiquarian blog! Subscribe to the ABAA email newsletter! * indicates required Email Address * Email Format html text #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; width:420px;} /* Add your own MailChimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HE... [more National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest 2019]

OSLER, William. AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED (ALS). Oxford, 28 December 1918. A brief but fine single-page AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED as "Wm. Osler" written about a year before his death and addressed to a frequent correspondent, a Miss Proctor. In part: "I hope you are keeping well. It is many years now since your old trouble. What an encouragement your case has been!" Single center fold, tiny edge nick, Near Fine. Osler created the first residency program for specialty training of physicians, and he was the first to bring medical students out of the lecture hall for bedside clinical training. He has frequently been described as the "Father of Modern Medicine." Osler's greatest influence on medicine was to insist that students learn from seeing and talking to patients and the establishment of the medical residency. The latter idea spread across the English-speaking world and remains in place today in most teaching hospitals. (#018641) If offered, please contact bookseller Charles Agvent: chagvent@ptd.net or 484.575.8825 [more Missing: ALS William Osler Letter]

The 59th annual New York International Antiquarian Book Fair takes places at the Park Avenue Armory, Marcy 7-10, 2019. Over 200 American and International dealers will be exhibiting. Below we present a preview of the fabulous books and related material our members will be bringing to the show. Special Collection Revolving Around Sendak's "Where The Wild Things Are" A collection including a fine 1st edition of "Where The Wild Things Are" -- inscribed by Maurice Sendak to Suzanne Glazer, formerly of Random House. Along with Sendak's book is a collection of original art, poems and letters to Suzanne Glazer by authors, illustrators and co-workers in response to Random House firing her. Offered by Enchanted Books, booth E11. Nineteenth Century Louis Vuitton Trade Card Paris: A. Alexandre , . Color lithograph printed on thin card in the shape of a travelling trunk, 3.5" x 5" (irregular) approx. Verso printed in black on white, repeating the address information in English for Louis Vuitton's Paris and London stores which are given in French on front. Recto with a bit of surface rubbing and some very faint crease lines; verso with scattered adhesions and very minor surface loss (likely from removal from album), unobtrusive. Overall, very good or better. Very good. The birth of an iconic brand. Founded in 1854, Louis Vuitton was a trailblazer from the start, designing his trianon canvas trunks to be not only lightweight and waterproof, but stackable. These innovations, however, led - ... [more NY Book Fair Preview]

In memory of long-time member George Robert Kane (Oct. 6, 1913–Nov. 28, 2009), the Northern California Chapter of the Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America announces the availability of an Educational Scholarship. In the interest of promoting professionalism and education relevant to the antiquarian book trade, persons currently working in or actively pursuing a career in the book trade are especially encouraged to apply. The Scholarship will pay tuition cost (to $1,500) for participation in a course of study offered by the following programs in the Summer/Fall of 2019: California Rare Book School (Los Angeles); Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar (Colorado Springs); Rare Book School (Charlottesville, Virginia, as well as several other locations). To apply for the NCC/ABAA Educational Scholarship, please provide the following: 1) A completed copy of the application form. 2) A personal statement or essay (no longer than two pages) in which you describe your past or current experience in the world of rare books, your goals for the future, and what you hope to gain from the studies afforded by this scholarship. 3) Letter of support written by a professional bookseller or rare book librarian. Please email the NCC Secretary, Alexander Akin, to obtain an application: akin.alex@gmail.com. All applications must be received by 5:00 p.m., Friday, May 3, 2019. The NCC/ABAA will notify scholarship applicants of its award decision via email by May 10, 2019. Each application must... [more 2019 George Robert Kane Memorial Scholarship]

Please contact Heather O'Donnell at Honey & Wax Booksellers if offered: 917-974-2420; heather@honeyandwaxbooks.com. Chaucer, Geoffrey; Saunders, John (editor); (artist); . Chaucer's Canterbury Tales; WITH: sixteen original painted miniatures after figures in the book. London: J.M. Dent & Co., 1894. Octavo, measuring 7 x 4.75 inches: xiv, , 487, ; 15 postcards measuring 5.5 x 3.5 each and an additional sheet of thick paper cut to the same size (16 total). Book: original full green cloth, spine lettered in gilt. Wood-engraved frontispiece and 22 full-page wood engravings of Chaucer's pilgrims, most graphed or annotated in pencil by Sandys, many hand-colored; woodcut headpieces and initials throughout text. Pencil notations regarding Chaucer manuscripts on front free endpaper; ink presentation inscription by the editor's son to Walter Crane, father-in-law of Winifred Sandys. Some rolling to spine, front hinge split, minor spotting to boards. Cards: original miniature paintings of Chaucer and his pilgrims on rectos; printed postcard instructions on versos of all items but one. Chaucer portrait labeled by the artist in black ink, Miller and Monk portraits labeled by the artist in pencil. Walter Crane's copy of The Canterbury Tales, inscribed to him by the son of the late editor, with annotations and hand-coloring by Crane's daughter-in-law, the miniaturist Winifred Sandys, accompanied by sixteen of her original miniatures in imitation of the Harleian and Ellesmere manuscripts of t... [more Missing in Transit from Brooklyn, NY to MD: Walter Crane’s copy of The Canterbury Tales]

Many people now collect J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books. In fact, the major book collectors of tomorrow will likely bond over their memories of midnight-release parties and argue the merits of Mary GrandPré versus Thomas Taylor's cover illustrations. My own book shelves host two complete sets (so far), one American (hardcover) and one British (paperback), and one set-in-progress (the illustrated editions). My children are lobbying for the addition of a set of the American paperbacks illustrated by Kazu Kibuishi, because the spines of each form an image of Hogwarts Castle when displayed in sequence (known as a "linked-spine binding" in the trade). Naturally, the hardcovers are no longer in great shape, having been read by every family member multiple times, but replacing them with pristine copies is stangely unappealing. It's in-part their hard-earned imperfections that make these books so beloved by us. 20th Anniversary Covers by Brian Selznick To mark the end of Harry Potter's 20th-anniversary celebrations, Scholastic released new paperback editions with covers by Caldecott Award-winning illustrator Brian Selznick (The Invention of Hugo Cabret) on June 26, 2018. Unlike the previous edition, which featured the linked-spine binding by Kazu Kibuishi, the Selznick covers form a mural when shelved in order face-out (see animation below). Another exciting aspect of this edition is the addition of a map of Hogwarts at the beginning of each book! The Harry Potter phenomen is cred... [more Collecting Harry Potter]