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By Berelach
Favourite collecting websites
8 Dec, 2015
2015-12-8 1:29:48 AM UTC
2015-12-8 1:29:48 AM UTC
Anyone care to list some of their favourite websites used for collecting (especially bibliographical information)?
Obviously TolkienBooks.net ... I also like The U.S. Tolkien Guide (http://tolkien.skwishmi.com/guide/pbset.html), TolkienLibrary.com and of course TolkienGuide.com!! :) Am I missing out on anything else really great out there?
Obviously TolkienBooks.net ... I also like The U.S. Tolkien Guide (http://tolkien.skwishmi.com/guide/pbset.html), TolkienLibrary.com and of course TolkienGuide.com!! :) Am I missing out on anything else really great out there?
Thanks Trotter... that is indeed a great site! I guess I'm more specifically wondering if there are any sites similar in style (lesser in scope of course) to TolkienBooks.net. For example... I've never been able to find any site with any decent amount of information about Canadian editions. I guess I just wish there was a 'TolkienBooks.net' for every country!
Berelach wrote:
Thanks Trotter... that is indeed a great site! I guess I'm more specifically wondering if there are any sites similar in style (lesser in scope of course) to TolkienBooks.net. For example... I've never been able to find any site with any decent amount of information about Canadian editions. I guess I just wish there was a 'TolkienBooks.net' for every country!
There aren't that many serious long-term Tolkien collectors, so you may need to jump in at the deep-end and make your own site!
Can't say I haven't been thinking about it! I always assumed (especially after the films) that there are very many serious long-term collectors out there... I guess I could be wrong.
Berelach wrote:
Can't say I haven't been thinking about it! I always assumed (especially after the films) that there are very many serious long-term collectors out there... I guess I could be wrong.
Honestly, I think once you disregard movie-related collectables, and people who are interested for a couple of years and then move onto something else, I think the number of "serious" Tolkien-oriented book collectors is actually fairly small. 99.9% people that like the books (a huge number, of course), aren't that interested in collecting them (beyond a nice copy or two and some "deluxe" editions, perhaps). Building large collections is such a long-term commitment that it is beyond the casual fan drawn in by the movies, and it also requires quite a bit of money, even just for postage (depending on where you live, of course).
I have been thinking about this very thing lately and have noticed that items are not selling on auction sites any more and the quantity of books has risen sharply since the last Hobbit movie was released.
I picked up a Deluxe Beowulf for €20 recently which is quite cheap I would think. The number of Deluxe editions starting to pop up online is increasing
now.
For a time it was a cool thing for some to collect but as you say they move on to other things.
I picked up a Deluxe Beowulf for €20 recently which is quite cheap I would think. The number of Deluxe editions starting to pop up online is increasing
now.
For a time it was a cool thing for some to collect but as you say they move on to other things.
I'll say what Stu always says in this regard: don't buy & collect books with thoughts of future profit (--unless of course you like that game!); collect because you like the author &/or because you like books. Think about book collecting like any other hobby; it costs money, most of which you shouldn't have any thoughts about getting back.
Having said this, books are pretty good investements in my opinion; they're just not easy to shift at a later date, quickly. I mean, what market would I be able to use to shift most of my Silmarillion collection? I bought these mutiple copies for very, very specific bibliographical reasons at the time; but now they aren't worth any more than any other standard 1977 copy. And 1977 copies of The Silmarillion are ten-a-penny in any condition on eBay. My signed editions are a different matter of course...
Still, it's a great time to be buying; prices are very low, as low as they were maybe 10-15 years ago. Sellers are still asking for high prices for reasonably rare items, and these aren't selling. As Stu says, which I agree with --there just aren't that many serious long-term Tolkien collectors out there.
BH
Having said this, books are pretty good investements in my opinion; they're just not easy to shift at a later date, quickly. I mean, what market would I be able to use to shift most of my Silmarillion collection? I bought these mutiple copies for very, very specific bibliographical reasons at the time; but now they aren't worth any more than any other standard 1977 copy. And 1977 copies of The Silmarillion are ten-a-penny in any condition on eBay. My signed editions are a different matter of course...
Still, it's a great time to be buying; prices are very low, as low as they were maybe 10-15 years ago. Sellers are still asking for high prices for reasonably rare items, and these aren't selling. As Stu says, which I agree with --there just aren't that many serious long-term Tolkien collectors out there.
BH
I started buying books in October 2014 and spent a good number of months immersing myself in the various websites trying to organize it all in my head. I think I now have a decent handle on most of the major items but it wasn't easy to track it all down and I have nowhere near the knowledge of most here. I am a cross-over collector that really lives in the world of statues and toys. I am not sure what gave me the bug, likely a google image search that turned up some wonderful looking libraries. I started with the basic deluxe editions and slowly put that set together to my satisfaction. I then added the 1997 LOTR Centenary and several of the black edition slipcases sets from HC, along with a few minor sets here and there whose design I quite liked. I am by no means a completist and have no real interest in the various text changes, etc. I just like the look and feel of quality books, an edition size and signature help but only because the two go hand in hand (a signed random common book would have little appeal to me).
All that said, I think I am pretty much down to a short list of pieces I'd like to acquire. I'm not sure I have the patience to put together a set of HOME hardbacks.
So as a newbie I would say the frustrating things are the lack of inventory offered at true auctions. Its the same overpriced thing listed again and again. Another annoyance is the lack of clarity on what editions or impressions are being offered. Finally, as noted there is a surprising lack of clear information online about these details. I think all of this makes the new collector lose interest rather quickly. I think many are likely happy with a colorful set of new HC deluxe editions and leave it at that. The poor handling of the 1997-2202 sets (different materials, case sizes) I know also turns some people off.
Chris
All that said, I think I am pretty much down to a short list of pieces I'd like to acquire. I'm not sure I have the patience to put together a set of HOME hardbacks.
So as a newbie I would say the frustrating things are the lack of inventory offered at true auctions. Its the same overpriced thing listed again and again. Another annoyance is the lack of clarity on what editions or impressions are being offered. Finally, as noted there is a surprising lack of clear information online about these details. I think all of this makes the new collector lose interest rather quickly. I think many are likely happy with a colorful set of new HC deluxe editions and leave it at that. The poor handling of the 1997-2202 sets (different materials, case sizes) I know also turns some people off.
Chris
Stu wrote:
There aren't that many serious long-term Tolkien collectors, so you may need to jump in at the deep-end and make your own site!
Ok!
www.TolkienBooks.US
It's my first website... please go easy on me!
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