Find ANY Book Glossary of terms used by most
online book dealers.
This definition guide will help you when selling or buying books.
ARC - Advance Reader's Copy. A paperback edition of a book, put out
before the trade edition for publicity.
Association Copy - a book inscribed by the author to another famous
person. It can also mean a copy which has been owned or given (often
autographed) by a famous or important person who is not necessarily the author.
Autograph /Auto - the signature of an important or famous
person. Often they are accompanied by an endearment such as, "best wishes
from ...". Unless it is also an association copy a plain autograph is more
desirable than something like " To Tom, best wishes from ...".
BOMC/BCE - Book of the Month Club / Book Club Edition. A book
published by a book club. Remember that many books only occur in hardback as
book club editions, and that this does not denote a cheaply made book. Folio
Society, Easton Press, Franklin Press, etc. are all book clubs and they produce
beautiful and highly collectable works.
Boards - the stiff part of a books bindings, the front and back
covers.
Bookplates - preprinted art labels showing ownership. We do not feel
that good condition nice bookplates detract from desirability. Mailing address
labels do.
Chapbook - a small book, often in pamphlet size.
Chip, Chipped - a small piece of the dust jacket or paper binding
missing. Very common in comics and magazines formats.
Colophon - the last page of a book, stating the printing and type
information. In the past many publishers have used this page for copyright
information.
Dust Jacket (DJ) - the decorative paper covering or protective
wrap.
Ephemera - non-book items by or about (related to) an author.
Promotional items and other non-book items having relation to a book or it's
author.
Flyleaf - or free endpaper. The first loose page in a book, often a
decorative color or paper.
Fore-edge - the front edge of the book where it opens.
Foxed, Foxing - a chemical reaction (aging) that can cause spots on a
book's pages to brown. Foxing looks like an animal has run across the page with
dirty paws.
Half Title (bastard title) - a page, set before the title page, with only
the title of the book printed on it.
Headband - the small strip of cloth reinforcement at the top of the
spine.
Hinge (gutter) - where the binding meets with the flyleaf.
Hinged - when the hinge of the book begins to loosen or break
apart.
Filler copy - a book in good condition, but not the quality for
investment. Often called a reader copy they are good for reading or filling in a
spot in a collection until a better copy comes along.
First paperback edition (first paperback printing) - books issued after
the hardcover edition (or issued in a pulp or digest).
First edition thus - a book that may be (1) a collection of short
stories that have never before appeared together in book form; (2) a retitled
book by its original publisher or a new company; or (3) a reissue of the
original book text with new cover art.
First printing - the number of books originally printed. If these are
all sold out than the publisher will print a second printing, etc. All things
being equal later printings are worth much less than the first.
Lam lift (or peel) - refers to the clear film bonded to the color image
on many early paperbacks. When the book ages or are rubbed this lamination
begins to peel back at the edges.
Leaves - pages of the book.
Number line - a means of telling the edition. Most common is that which
occurs on the copyright page and reads "1234567890". The lowest number indicates
the edition.
OP / OOP - out of print
Paste-down - the paper covering glued to the boards on the inside of the
book, when opened it is on the left side; to the right is the flyleaf.
Point - a difference between different editions of the same book.
Price clip - when the printed price has been cut off the dust
jacket.
Proofs - an early stage in production. Changes have often been made to
the typescript, the manuscript has been typeset; but it is not the final version
of the book. Often proofs are bound in regular paper like a school report or
movie script.
Reader copy - a copy of the book in good condition but has no true
investment value. Often Hardbacks missing their dust jackets are called reader
copies. These are good solid books that you do not have to fear damaging by
reading. If you have a valuable book you should always try and pick up a reader
copy to use.
Remainder - a book which has been returned to the publisher unsold. Most
often marked on the edge to denote being returned.
Rolled - when the spine is out of alignment, leaning askew toward one
side or the other.
Signature - a gathering of pages.
Spine - the back edge of a book. It is the edge seen when the book is put
on a shelf.
State - an edition may have multiple states. What determines the states
are points (differences in the text or appearance of the book).
Sticker pull (SP) - discoloration or actual removal of cover color caused
by pulling off a price sticker.
Store stamp (SS) - these are stamps which give the name & address of a
store. Normally they will appear on endpapers or edges. Very common on used
paperbacks.
Strips (or stripped book) - when printed material has had all or part of
it's cover removed. This signifies that the work was reported unsold and
destroyed. It is not legal to sell these as the author & publisher's have
never been paid for them. They are legally stolen.
Tape repairs - when ever tape has been used to repair or reinforce part
of a book or dust jacket.
Trade edition - the trade edition is the standard edition of the book.
Often it is smaller than the 1st Edition.
Trade paperback - a trade paperback is a large size paperback.
Warping - the book is misshapen. This can occur from misbinding, poor
storage or handling and of course from water/sun damage. Another form of this is
called cocked which means that the book leans in a direction as
opposed to being bent or spun like a fan.
Wrappers - paper covers, as opposed to a board. dealer catalogues
usually describe paperbacks as "in wrappers".
Writing - may be on the covers, spine, or interior made by any stylis.
This may also refer to obliteration of the original cover price as well as
rewritten cover prices, owner's signatures (POS) and/or underling. You should
always accurately and thoroughly describe writing defects in any book. Also
remember that in some cases minutia benefits the value of a book as opposed to
lowering it.
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