We’ve recently been featured twice in the Fine Books
and Collections blog and I thought I would also include
one of these posts here. The first is a nice review
of our recent catalogue and the second is an interview with
us for the series
Bright
Young Things, which focuses on the next generation of booksellers.
Catalogue Review: Raptis Rare Books, #1
By Rebecca Rego Barry
Matthew
Raptis is a congenial young bookseller in Brattleboro, Vermont. I had
the pleasure of meeting him last year at a book fair. From his age and
his casual personality, you might not guess that his stock is
exceptional high points of modern literature. Some examples: a
$550,000 Great Gatsby (inscribed, in the elusive
jacket); a $45,000 signed first edition of Harry Potter and
the Philosopher’s Stone; a $27,500 Catcher in
the Rye, in an unrestored fine dust jacket; and a $25,000
signed first edition of To Kill a Mockingbird in a
very good dust jacket.
With full color illustrations and clear descriptions, this first
catalogue is delight to look at. There are 77 pages, brimming with
books, so this review is just the tip of the iceberg. I enjoyed seeing
some out-of-the-box titles like Ernest
Callenbach’sEcotopia ($1,500) and Leonard
Cohen’s Beautiful Losers ($1,250). A first
edition of Gregory Maguire’s 1995 book, Wicked: The
Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, is signed with
a line from the novel and a drawing of a witch ($650). Very cool!
The signed first edition of John Fowles’ The French
Lieutenant’s Woman ($950) is tempting (because I
love that novel) even if the jacket on the signed first edition
ofThe Magus is prettier ($2,000). A signed first
edition of Stephen King’s The Shining would
be a neat acquisition ($3,000).
A complete set of Dick Francis–forty volumes, all
signed–is impressive ($19,500), but for me not quite as enticing
as the John Updike collection of first editions of each of the four
Rabbit books ($2,750).
In the second half of the catalogue, there are sections on literature
and children’s books–neat to see a signed first edition
of The Outsiders there ($3,250)–as well as
photography, and a non-fiction section with many modern economic and
political titles. I couldn’t do it justice by naming a few here.
Take a look for yourself — there is so much to see! Download it
here:http://www.raptisrarebooks.com/catalogues.php
