Robert Dagg was a collector from a young age, but he didn’t begin collecting books until college. Like many others, he decided to pursue selling and began working for other booksellers. Robert went out on his own in 1989 when he established Robert Dagg Rare Books. Robert Dagg Rare Books operates out of San Francisco, CA, and specializes in Modern First Editions and Mystery/Detective Fiction. ABAA Member since 1994. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on October 9, 2011 at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Bookseller Interviews
A few years ago, Michael Ginsberg embarked upon an archival journey for the ABAA. Recognizing the absence of member histories in the ABAA annals, Michael began conducting video interviews of members at our three annual fairs. The interviews cover members' personal histories as well as their involvement in the rare book trade. The ABAA extends many thanks to Michael, as well as Taylor Bowie, who has also conducted a number of interviews.
Robert Dagg was a collector from a young age, but he didn’t begin collecting books until college. Like many others, he decided to pursue selling and began working for other booksellers. Robert went out on his own in 1989 when he established Robert Dagg Rare Books. Robert Dagg Rare Books operates out of San Francisco, CA, and specializes in Modern First Editions and Mystery/Detective Fiction. ABAA Member since 1994. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on October 9, 2011 at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Philip McBlain began collecting books shortly after he started practicing law. He quickly realized that he enjoyed books and the book trade far more than law, and made a career change. Philip established McBlain Books in 1970. McBlain Books operates out of Hamden, CT, and specializes in Africa, African Americana, Asia and the Pacific, North Africa and the Middle East. ABAA Member since 1977. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
Nat DesMarais learned the book trade by working for a number of ABAA members. First at Dawson’s, and then later Heritage Book Shop, Nat started a business with Michael Sharpe, but now operates on his own. Having spent many years as an Associate member of the ABAA, Nat became a full member in 2008. Nat DesMarais Rare Books operates out of Portland, OR, and specializes in Californiana with an emphasis on the Sierra Nevada and the Mojave, Art of the American West, Voyages and Travels, and Fine Books in All Fields. ABAA Member since 2008. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Lloyd Currey got his start in the business as a young man working for William Wreden. It was during this employment that he learned and was exposed to all aspects of the book business. Lloyd quickly became a collector, and in 1968 he established himself on his own as a full time independent bookseller. L.W. Currey Inc. operates out of Elizabethtown, NY, and specializes in Autograph Letters and Manuscripts, Detective and Mystery Fiction, First Editions, American and English Literature, Periodicals, Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Utopian Literature. ABAA Member since 1973. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
John Westerberg came from a family of bibliophiles and his grandfather was a seller in the late 1800s. John established Yankee Peddler in 1970. He retired from the Association in 2014. ABAA Member since 1977. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
A lifelong bibliophile, John DeMarco was determined to have a career as a bookseller. He finally made the leap in 1971 after coming away from an auction with more books than he could reasonably store in his home and opened the Lyrical Ballad Bookstore. Lyrical Ballad Bookstore operated out of Saratoga Springs, NY, and specialized in Children’s Books, Horses, Illustrated Books, Literature, Sporting Books, Folklore, Dance, Music, and Art. ABAA Member from 1978-2019. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
George Houle began selling books in high school as a way to fund his college tuition. It wasn’t until years later after He earned a degree in Library Sciences and worked for a number of public libraries in California before he began cataloguing for Sotheby’s. George founded Houle Rare Books in 1976. Houle Rare Books & Autographs operates out of Los Angeles, CA, and specializes in First Editions, Historical Autographs, Literary Autographs, Performing Arts Autographs, Presidential Autographs, Vintage Photographs, Wide Range of Ephemera, and Zane Grey Rarities. ABAA Member since 1978. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on October 10, 2010 at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Frederick Baron passed the bar in 1983 but quickly realized that corporate law wasn’t for him and joined his father in the book trade. His father Howard was a lifelong collector and established High Ridge in the 1974. High Ridge Books, Inc. operates out of South Deerfield, MA, and specializes in 18th and 19th Century American Maps and Atlases, Americana, Color Plate Books, and New York City. ABAA Member since 1983. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
Eugene Vigil was a botanist and began his book business, Antiquariat Botanicum, as a second career in 1987. He was constantly collecting and selling books, even while teaching, working for the Department of Agriculture, and later the National Institute of Health. Antiquariat Botanicum operates out of Lynden, WA, and specializes in Botany, Gardening, Herbals, Mathematics, Medicine, Natural History, Science, Travel and Exploration. ABAA Member from 1999, Emeritus since 2022. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Eric Chaim Kline studied Jewish History and Philosophy and it was the desire to own the books he was reading that taught him how to scout and sell books. Before long, his side activities in the trade helped supplement his income while traveling through Germany researching his doctoral thesis. The book business lured him away from his studies and he established Eric Chaim Kline, Booksellers in 1984. Eric Chaim Kline, Bookseller operates out of Santa Monica, CA, and specializes in Architecture, Art, Bibles, Foreign Language Books, Judaica, Modernism, Olympic Games, and Photography. ABAA Member since 1989. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on October 10, 2010 at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Edward Pollack, a career lawyer, first began selling books in the 1960’s from a small shelf in an antique shop. The antiques eventually fell by the wayside and by 1985 he was a full-fledged bookseller. Edward T. Pollack operates out of Portland, ME, and specializes in Illustrated Books, Children’s Books, Books about Art, Artists & Photography, Prints & Drawings by 19th and 20th Century American and European Artists. ABAA Member since 1991. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 13, 2011 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
David Meeker’s love of books was born while in the Peace Corps in Africa and his only diversion was a book locker full of Hemingway. After collecting for years, and with his children heading to college, David decided to enter the trade as a seller. He established Nick Adams & Co. Rare Books in 1986. Nick Adams & Co. Rare Books operates out of Sacramento, CA, and specializes in Literature, Modern First Editions, Literary Autographs & Manuscripts, Detective Fiction, Hemingway, and Steinbeck. ABAA Member since 1991. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on October 12, 2008 at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.
Bernard Gordon founded The Book and Tackle Shop in 1953 while he was in college. The shop was a perfect expression of his passions: books, the academic study of the oceans, and the practical knowledge of the sea. An author of both academic tomes and children’s books, Bernard grew up with books and, while his career was in education, he was always involved in the antiquarian book trade. Sadly, Bernard passed away at the age of 80 in 2010. ABAA Member from 1978-2010. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 15, 2009 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
John D. Townsend started selling antiquarian books part-time in 1992 as Town’s End Books. It wasn’t until a few years later in 1996 that he entirely gave up the corporate life and joined the book trade full-time. Town’s End Books operates out of Deep River, CT, and specializes in Americana, High Points of Literature, Lakeside Classics, Nature & Natural History, Nautical Fiction, Nautical History, Rivers of America Series, and WPA Guide Series. ABAA Member since 2002. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 9, 2013 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.
Marc Selvaggio came to appreciate books at a young age as his father worked in the printing trade, exposing young Marc to typography and paper. Marc went on to a career in business writing, but he always held the idea of opening a bookstore in the back of his mind. In 1985 he and his wife Donnis purchased Schoyer’s Books and left their less enjoyable careers behind for a life in the antiquarian book trade. Marc Selvaggio, Bookseller operates out of Berkeley, CA, and specializes in California, Western Americana, Travel, History, Federal Writers' Project, Archival, Photographica, and the Unusual. ABAA Member since 1992. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 9, 2013 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.