Best Wishes

For the past year I've been working hard at collecting first editions of books. I think I can say that this endeavor, in some respects, has become a bit more than a hobby with me. I've not fallen into the obsessive form of bibliophilia yet (I don't steal books from libraries or bookstores, for example) but there is a kind of fever that can overwhelm a person who is in the collecting mode.

But used books are very cheap. And since most people no longer read books and few people want them in their homes anymore, I'm finding first editions everywhere . . . and most for a buck or two.

One of the reasons I've resisted purchasing a Kindle (though I'm sure I'll buy one this year) is because digital books don't have editions. Odd as it may sound, I have always read the flyleaf or copyright page of a book first. I study it closely. I enjoy finding out when the author was born, for example, and many times the dedication of a book reveals subtle nuances of relationship and form. And the numbers on the copyright page also reveal the edition . . . which in turn offers insights into how many "copies" of the book have been printed or perhaps will be printed. A low edition means that this reader is, indeed, holding something very special and "limited" in his hands.

With digital books, "print" is on demand, and there's no limit to the "first" edition. In fact, one could say that editions are all "first" since the "print" can be downloaded in a flash and there's no need to keep track of copies. Naturally, someone in the publishing firm is keeping track of copies, and the respective authors do, in fact, get paid a royalty on the download. (I know, as I receive a few pennies each month from the various Kindle copies of my books . . . but compared to print, the author's take is even less. One wonders why, in the future, authors will continue to write books at all if there's no money to be made and if all writing is created equal . . . the good, the bad, and the unreadable?)

I also enjoy first editions because, from time to time, I find the author's handwriting on the flyleaf or copyright page of the book. "Best Wishes" he might write, or she might scribble "All Best". Try finding that on a digital book! In fact, how can an author sign a digital book? Publishers are probably working on this, and maybe no one cares, but I still enjoy the unexpected discovery of finding handwritten connection with the author of the book. It's personal. There might even be some author DNA on the page. And if I go to a signing, I can meet the author and shake her hand.

Yeah, I'll get a Kindle soon. But I'm going to continue to stuff my house with volumes before there are no more "bookstores". The days are coming . . . and quickly. But until then, I know there's another first edition out there waiting for me to find it.