A librarian told me my book finds were basically worthless until she showed me this one thing

I've been hitting thrift stores in the Denver area for years, grabbing any old sci-fi paperback that looked interesting, and last month a librarian at a sale pointed out I was ignoring books with library stamps or ex-library copies. She said those often have unique editions or signed plates inside that people actually hunt for, and now I check every pocket and flap. Anyone else ever passed over library discards that turned out to be hidden gems?

2 comments

2 Comments

wendyw7110d ago

Library stamps just drop the value for most collectors, not add to it.

angelacooper9d ago

But isn't provenance part of what makes a book interesting, @wendyw71? A library stamp tells a story about where that book lived before, even if it doesn't add cash value for the resale market. Some collectors actually hunt for those marks because they prove the book was well used and loved by a real institution.