Khamûl wrote:
I only have one EP title. I think it's a first "printing"...

No prizes for guessing which one that is.

I will say that, though their books may not be worth the cost (I would prefer Folio Society instead) there are some deign elements, referring to the contents itself, that I like of their Tolkien titles - the biggest one, is that their version of The Hobbit seems to be a 'modified version' of Houghton Mifflin's collector's edition (green slipcase, was also gold for the 50th anniversary).

insurrbution wrote:
I will say that, though their books may not be worth the cost (I would prefer Folio Society instead) there are some deign elements, referring to the contents itself, that I like of their Tolkien titles - the biggest one, is that their version of The Hobbit seems to be a 'modified version' of Houghton Mifflin's collector's edition (green slipcase, was also gold for the 50th anniversary).

That's interesting, don't own an EP Hobbit and I think it will remain that way

Trotter wrote:

insurrbution wrote:
I will say that, though their books may not be worth the cost (I would prefer Folio Society instead) there are some deign elements, referring to the contents itself, that I like of their Tolkien titles - the biggest one, is that their version of The Hobbit seems to be a 'modified version' of Houghton Mifflin's collector's edition (green slipcase, was also gold for the 50th anniversary).

That's interesting, don't own an EP Hobbit and I think it will remain that way

The normal EP Hobbit is all green inside. Feels like a 1970s Readers Digest Publication. The other volumes are fine, but The Hobbit is weird.

Looks like EP has brought Foster's A to Z back in print if y'all are interested.

https://www.eastonpress.com/all-catego ... to-middle-earth-1211.html

I have the core set (LOTR,Hobbit,Sil) myself but nothing else...if they ever brought back the UT and BOLT I & II set I'd probably buy that.

The David Day book is still available btw

Mr. Underhill wrote:

Looks like EP has brought Foster's A to Z back in print if y'all are interested.

https://www.eastonpress.com/all-catego ... to-middle-earth-1211.html

I have the core set (LOTR,Hobbit,Sil) myself but nothing else...if they ever brought back the UT and BOLT I & II set I'd probably buy that.

The David Day book is still available btw

Ahh, so the only collectible EP Tolkien has now been rendered not collectible...

There is more than one reason I stopped collecting EP, and this is one of them.

I briefly had a post up on reddit marveling that EP would work with David Day, but decided to take it down because there's enough negativity on the Internet. Glad to see this thread rise from the dead, vindicating my feelings on the matter.

As an aside: I rather fancied getting the Atlas of Middle Earth from EP, but since buying a revised paperback for $10 shipped as a "stopgap", the collector's urge seems to have miraculously subsided.

Even further aside: Why is it so common to see EP Tolkiens entombed in plastic when people post their shelfies? I get wanting to preserve your display copies, but that's what glass cases are for. As is, keeping EP books wrapped in junk plastic robs them of any aesthetic cachet as display pieces. /opinion

The only thing I'm left with is that people consider these investment vehicles. But is this a thing? Do people really make justifiably large profits from flipping EP books? I've only tracked the prices of a few select volumes, and they tend to sell below RRP even with the plastic on...

Caudimordax wrote:

The only thing I'm left with is that people consider these investment vehicles. But is this a thing? Do people really make justifiably large profits from flipping EP books? I've only tracked the prices of a few select volumes, and they tend to sell below RRP even with the plastic on...

Definitely people are treating these as "investments", I think. They see the asking prices on eBay (triple or more the list price) and rush out to buy the ones in print. Then when titles go out of print and some new EP collector comes along and really wants a complete set, the cycle continues.

A quick example - a brief search shows a 1992 Easton Atlas of Middle-earth for $75 on amazon.ca (which is a good deal, assuming the book is in good condition and it really is Easton Press). Then there are plenty of 2002 revised edition copies at $200 or so currently available. And, of course, lots listed for $400 and up.

I am sure, in a few months or years, EP will re-print the title again and more speculators will snap them up thinking they can quickly sell them for much more than the (most recently $147) list price.

Since EP does not sell internationally, the secondary market is the only place for non-US collectors to get them, thus an easy market for (usually reasonable) markup.

I think Urulókë has nailed it really. I will add that I found the EP forum on LibraryThing to be almost a cult, and I perceived that there was a lot of association (there) with EP products and "class". I found it really odd, because EP is basically the book arm of a gaudy junk collectables company. A vocal minority of them are incredibly defensive about EP and will simply buy the product because it is EP, rather than because it is good. The EP cult put me off EP as much as the failings of the product did (I'm looking at you Astroturfi).

I’ll be brutally honest.., I’ve always found the EP editions to be terribly ugly, (personal aesthetic opinion here), so I’ve never bothered much about them.