The Fine Print

I got into an argument the other day about whether or not it is okay to write in a book. People do it all the time. Students mark up their textbooks, owners put their stamps and names in the opening pages of their books, and some people just enjoy marking up their favorite stories with reflections, reminders of important points, and even doodles and illustrations in the margins.

So what’s the big deal? To a serious book collector, marks of any sort are to be avoided.

Of course, there are those rare occasions when the markings are by some famous person, which makes the book that much more rare, or when the author signs and inscribes the book. Outside of these occasions, the absence of markings generally makes the volume more collectable and desirable. But why?

What’s in the Gazette?

One of the regular features of the Gazette is a column on the world of reading and collectible books called The Fine Print. TFP entries will be easy to find,marked by the cool key graphic above, and contributions will come from our staff and other residents of the Emerald City.. maybe you! Our inaugural column is authored by our own Maggie Brown– whose name those who have visited Emerald City Booksellers will be familiar with– and addresses the immortal question: What’s the big deal with first editions, anyway? Maggie.. take it away!

Hello world!

Welcome to the first blog-edition of the Emerald City Gazette!

The Gazette began life in 2005 as an e-mail missive designed for the citizens of Emerald City– Oops, I mean customers of Emerald City Booksellers. Our intent was to provide interesting articles for booklovers, sales notices, and to offer folks a forum to discuss anything and everything pertaining to the world of books.

Since 2005, we’ve discovered the same thing the rest of the world has– that blogging offers communities more flexibility, immediacy and opportunities for participation than most any other electronic venue.

So here we are!