As part of rare books week, and because Jane Austen died in July, 1817 (200 years ago!), The Library at The Dock is hosting a Jane Austen exhibition, and today, they had Professor Chris Browne give a presentation on collecting Jane Austen books. It's free to enter, and runs until the 23rd of July, 2017.
I had a vague idea that first editions of books were quite sought after - at least if Hollywood is anything to go by. I learned today that it's not just first editions that are valuable. For an author like Jane Austen, who has been published multiple times over the years, there are also other editions that are quite popular - some because the illustrator was particularly notable, some because the binding was incredible, some for other historic reasons.
Professor Browne doesn't own any first editions, and he had a slide showing the prices of some of them. First editions of Austen's most popular novels, Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, are almost never for sale, and so it's hard to say what they're really worth (he estimates about $200,000). I found it interesting that her books were originally published without her name, instead it said, "By a lady" where the author's name would normally go. Later, her books would be published with "The author of 'Pride and Prejudice'". The first edition of the French translation were the first books to actually list her name as the author, but Professor Browne says that the translation was terrible, and none of her irony or humour made it through. They read quite like Mills and Boon books (trashy romance novels). He said he doesn't have a copy himself, but would love one. I wonder if I can find a digitised version online.
Sadly, not all of her books sold at the time, and it's likely that those copies were pulped by the publisher.
The first edition of Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice were both split into three books. The reason for this is because lending libraries would often charge six pence per book, so if you split a book into three, you would triple your income. It wasn't until a few editions later that they were condensed into two books, and later still before they were published as one (by condensed, I don't mean that stuff was taken out, but rather they put more words per page, and re-organised the chapters. In the first two-book edition, chapter 12 is actually missing.).
It was pretty cool being surrounded by Jane-ites (the term given to Jane Austen fans, not Austenians (?)). I was really out of my league. My favourite book is Emma, and the only reason I read it is because I read that the movie Clueless was based on it. I've also read Pride and Prejudice, but have not read her other novels, nor her juvenilia, letters or biographies. Professor Browne mentioned there was a novel called Jane Austen in Australia, which also goes by Jane Austen, the Missing Years or something like that, but he said it's not great.
He showed photos of the various editions over time, and how different illustrators have interpreted her stories. He also had some of them on display, and the books themselves were a lot smaller than I had expected for a bound novel. Hardcover books these days seem to be quite large (which I find a bit annoying, to be honest, which is why I prefer paperback, even though they're not as pretty). There were also really pretty, and it did make me feel bad for my last comment in brackets.
My sister bought me a hardcover collection of the Millennium trilogy for Christmas, and each of the books is quite beautiful. However, I was so eager to read them that I stupidly decided to lug them around with me while we were travelling in Japan. I love the books, but given how fast I blaze through books, it's really not practical while travelling, which is why I decided I wanted a Kindle. I, too, used to dream of having a library in my home, but with the pain of packing books, and the need to dust them, that dream has moved aside in favour for reasons of practicality. Looking at the books today, I really felt the pull towards having a library again. One with a comfy sofa that I could curl up in. With a nice thick blanket over me, and a lamp next to me. Falling asleep with my arm splayed out to the ground, finger marking the page that I'm up to.
Not likely to happen, as we don't really have the space.
However, if you would like to begin your journey in collecting rare books, some things I learned from today:
- op shops and the like are your friend
- know what you are looking for. Some books may have been rebound. Professor Browne found a rebound copy of Sense and Sensability (I think?) for $5. Be prepared to poke around a bit.
- if this does become an obsession, be prepared to spend a lot of money.
- accept that there are some editions you will likely never get your hands on
- be patient
I quickly checked out the exhibition before leaving.
They had more of his books in display, as well as some interactive guides on her life.
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