The appeal of natural history books and prints is twofold, as they are both of scientific and artistic interest. They present a snapshot in time of scientific understanding of the natural world and the meticulous, often boldly colored illustrations are spectacular. The video below provides a glimpse into the American Museum of Natural History's rare book collection. It was produced as a promotional piece for the museum's recently published book, Natural Histories: Extraordinary Rare Book Selections from the American Museum of Natural History Library, which sounds like a delightful book. The prints in the video are gorgeous, but Library Director Tom Baione makes a great point: you really need to see these illustrations in person to fully appreciate the detail and artistry that goes into each image. You can see this kind of material by visiting a special collections library or an ABAA book fair and see these fantastic items in person (the plus of coming to a book fair of course is that you have the option to take the item home with you!). On my recent visit to the New York Academy of Medicine's Library I was able to see a copy of Robert Hooke's Micrographia and I can attest that there's no comparison between seeing it in the video (or online) and in person; for instance, one can't appreciate the size of the inky dot Hooke magnifies and details. The importance of physicality can be difficult for some to comprehend, but once you are able to make a similar comparison you'll get it... [more American Museum of Natural History's Rare Book Collection]

The only confirmed photograph of the iceberg that sunk the Titanic will be offered at auction next month. The photo was taken by the captain of the S.S. Estonian two days before the infamous crash occurred. The caption in black ink reads, “Copyright. Blueberg taken by Captain W.F. Wood S. S. Estonian on 12/4/12 in Lat 41° 50 N Long 49° 50 W. Titanic struck 14/4/12 and sank in three hours.” ('Blueberg' refers to the tinting of the iceberg as a result of the sun's rays.) The photo measures 9.75” x 8” and is affixed to a 13” x11” mount. Photographs of icebergs in the vicinity of the collision have appeared over the years, but RR Auction, the firm offering the item, said that Titanic experts were able to confirm that this was the iceberg due to the noted position of the iceberg, the timetable of when the photograph was taken, and its correspondence to the sketches drawn by Titanic's crewman as well as a photo taken after the ship went down. The auction estimate is $8,000-$10,000. Over 400 items will be offered in the upcoming Titanic auction, including a painted cast bronze flag from a Titanic lifeboat; a deck chair from the rescue ship R.M.S. Carpathia; a letter written by Isidor Straus, the owner of Macy's department store and former U.S. Congressman, that references his intended voyage home to New York aboard the Titanic; and blank “On board RMS 'Titanic'” lettercard stationary. Bidding for the auction opens December 13 and ends December 16. ​Rare Titanic p... [more Photo of Iceberg That Sunk the Titanic Up for Auction]

I've been taking a fabulous course on rare books through NYU SCPS and the greatest part about it is that each session features a guest lecturer and/or a trip. We have visited the Morgan Library & Museum, Christie's auction house, a rare bookseller's store (thanks for having us, James Cummins Bookseller!), and the New York Academy of Medicine. One of the best aspects of living in NYC is that you are constantly discovering new places and things, whether they are new to the city or just new to you. The latter was the case for me when I 'discovered' the New York Academy of Medicine's Library. The Academy was founded in 1847 by a group of prominent physicians whose aim was to advance the art and science of medicine, maintain a public medical library, and promote public health and medical education. The NYAM's efforts led to the creation of the city's first sanitation and public health departments and over the years the Academy has become "the vanguard for urban health." The NYAM's library had already amassed more than 6,000 volumes when it was opened to the general public in 1878 (it was originally intended for fellows of the Academy). Over the years, the library's collection grew, largely through personal and institutional gifts, and historical texts became a central focus. Today, the library's holdings contain 32,000 rare volumes dating from the 15th through 18th centuries, as well as manuscripts, archives, and secondary reference materials about the history of medicine and the ... [more Rare Medical Texts & Manuscripts at NY Academy of Medicine]

The Atlantic recently featured a post on tintype photography and a short video about Harry Taylor, a modern professional photographer who uses the technique in his own work. I found the process interesting and the images striking, so I wanted to share a little of the history, and the video, with you. Tintype photography developed as an alternative to daguerreotypes and ambrotypes. The process was first described in France in 1853 and was patented three years later in both the U.S. and the U.K. by Hamilton Smith and William Kloen, respectively. The method produced a very underexposed image on a thin iron plate that is lacquered black or dark brown and then coated with collodion photographic emulsion (the wet plate collodion method was developed in 1851 and used collodion rather than egg white over glass photographic plates, which reduced the required exposure time to capture an image). In a negative image, the dark portions of the photographed subject appear lighter or more transparent and the “dark background gives the resulting image the appearance of a positive.” Click here to watch a short video that goes through the procedure from start to finish. The ability to use underexposed images meant that portraits could be produced much faster than before, which was a serious advantage over other contemporary photographic processes. In addition to shorter exposure time, tintypes did not need much time to dry after being taken and a photograph could be produced within minutes.... [more Tintype Photography: Then and Now]

This past weekend was the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair, which was held at the Hynes Convention Center. The Boston fair kicked off the ABAA's fair season, which includes our California show in February and New York show in April. Besides getting to see an abundance of fascinating and unique books, prints, maps, and ephemera, the fairs are the book world's opportunity to connect with friends and colleagues, and fair weekends always involve good books, food, drink, and conversation. This fair was no exception and a good time was had by all. Every ABAA fair also features lectures and presentations, and the Boston fair had some really interesting programs like "What's For Dinner", a presentation by Richard Gutman and Erin Williams that recounted the variety of factors that influenced cuisine in the 20th Century and an illustrated lecture by Martin Antonetti and Ron Patkus on "The Art of the Book in Wales." Attendees took advantage of the free appraisal program on Sunday afternoon, evidenced by the long line that persisted during the program's two hour slot. (It's worthwhile to note that every ABAA fair features an opportunity for attendees to have up to three books appraised on Sunday afternoon.) If you attended and had your books appraised, we'd love to hear from you about the experience. Thanks to all the exhibitors, attendees, and Commonwealth Promotion for another great fair! [more Boston Fair a Blast]

If you've been trying to read your little one Pride and Prejudice, Moby Dick or some other literary tome before bed, I'm sure you've reached the conundrum that yes, it does help put them to sleep, but it's not doing much more for them in terms of education. A new book series by twin brothers Jack and Holman Wang called Cozy Classics provides a wonderful solution to this problem. Cozy Classics is a board book series that presents classic literary tales through 12 child-friendly words paired with 12 needle-felted illustrations. From the Cozy Classics website: Cozy Classics uses a simple one word/one image format to help babies and toddlers build vocabulary and learn everyday concepts such as body parts, emotions, animals, relationships, actions, and opposites. However, Cozy Classics organizes everyday words in a more unique way: through story. By putting words in the context of a story, our books help children find further meaning through a growing sense of narrative. A brief synopsis of the stories is on the on the back of each book and there are extended summaries online so that parents can have a refresher and, as children get older, expand on the stories. The website also provides some choice quotations from each novel, which the Wang brothers hope will eventually lead to reading whole passages to the child and ultimately to the child reading the classic themselves. However, the creators make the important note that "there's no right or wrong way" to read these books, and p... [more Classic Literature for Babies]

The Whiting Writers' Awards are annual prizes given to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and plays. Sponsored by the Whiting Foundation, a charitable organization that supports writers and Humanities scholars, the intent of the award is to give burgeoning writers the opportunity to fully devote themselves to their craft for a full year. To this end, each writer is awarded $50,000. There are no applications. Rather, candidates are proposed by nominators from across the country. Award winners are chosen by an annual selection committee composed of recognized writers, literary scholars, and editors. Past recipients include David Foster Wallace, Tracy K. Smith, Jonathan Franzen, Amy Herzog, Colson Whitehead, and Jeffrey Eugenides, to name a few. Now to the exciting partthe winners! Below are brief biographies of the 2012 prizewinners (taken from the Whiting Writers' Award website). Ciaran Berry (Poetry): Dublin-born Ciaran Berry grew up in County Galway and County Donegal, but has spent the last fifteen years living, writing, and teaching in the United States. He is an Assistant Professor of English and Director of Creative Writing at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where he lives. He received his MFA from New York University and was awarded a New York Times Fellowship. His work has appeared inAGNI, The Threepenny Review, Ploughshares, The Missouri Review, and The New Republic. Mr. Berry's first full-length collection, The Sphere of Birds, won the Cr... [more New Writers to Look Out For: 2012 Whiting Award Winners]

Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, will direct and act in a film adaptation of George Orwell's classic Animal Farm. "By utilizing performance capture, a deeply talented and committed cast of actors will be able to explore and fully inhabit Orwell's fairy tale world where 'some animals are more equal than others.'" Performance capture is the method by which an actor's movements and expressions are electronically tracked and then translated to CGI. The film will be made by The Imaginarium, a London-based studio Serkis co-founded in 2009. The Imaginarium is devoted to the art of performance capture. This project sounds intriguingwhat do you think? Andy Serkis to Direct & Act in Adaptation of Animal Farm by George Orwell [more 'Animal Farm' Coming to a Theatre Near You]

Ken Kallin began collecting autographs, antique books, and other memorabilia in 1980 after an encounter with Bette Davis left him with five signed photographs of the star. Over the past three decades he has amassed 120,000 items and he will part with all but a few this coming Saturday when he puts his collection up for auction in order to aid his daughter. Kallin's daughter has a rare autoimmune disease called mixed connective tissue disorder, or MCTD, and, in addition to being in nearly constant physical distress, is also struggling financially. Her condition prevents her from working and her medical treatments are costly. Kallin's daughter and her husband also have two daughters to support. Of the auction, Kallin says, "It's for a higher purpose." Kallin's collection includes over 680 antique books; 7,300 modern books; 1,430 letters; more than 22,520 photos and 60,740 trading cards, all of which are autographed. He will also auction off movie posters, sheet music, sports memorabilia, and other collectibles. The collection has not been independently appraised but the auction house working with Kallin believes it could be worth up to $4.5 million. There are a few items Kallin will hold onto: two books by Bob Graham and one photo of Bette Davis. Kallin's collection will be auctioned this Saturday at 1pm by Jay Sugarman Auction Corp. Man sells giant autograph collection for ailing daughter [more Father Auctions Massive Collection to Aid Ailing Daughter]

In 1985, producer and director Ned Judge was asked to film Edward Abbey in Arches National Park, where Abbey had worked for two years in the 1950s as a seasonal ranger. The piece never aired, but Judge was kind enough to recently post the film essay and the story behind it on Vimeo. Both are included below. Ned Judge wrote: An eight minute film essay that I co-produced and directed with Ed Abbey in 1985. At the time I was working for a network magazine show. The executive producer took me to lunch one day. He told me that he was having trouble with his son who was 18. The son thought his dad was a corporate whore. He had told his father if he had any balls at all he'd put Ed Abbey on his show. That's why the EP was talking to me. Would I see if it was possible? I had an acquaintance who knew Ed and he passed the request along. Ed responded that he'd give it a try. He signed the contract and wrote a script. We met in Moab and went out to Arches National Park to shoot some practice sessions with a home video camera. We would review them at the motel in the evening. After a day or two, Ed was feeling pretty comfortable on camera so we scheduled the shoot. We were all happy with the way it went. But then we ran head-on into network reality. Roger Mudd, the show's host, was extremely negative about putting an “eco-terrorist” on the show. The executive producer caved (his son was right about him apparently). So this Abbey essay was put on the shelf and never aired. Abbey died 3... [more Edward Abbey in Arches National Park]