Blog

Mockingbird celebrates 50 years

Mockingbird celebrates 50 years

By Adrienne Raptis | July 23, 2010
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As you may know, July 11th of this year heralded the 50th anniversary of the first publishing of To Kill a Mockingbird. People from all over the country are gathering in various places this summer to celebrate this iconic book and to discuss its impacts on culture and consciousness. To find out if there is…

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Jose Saramago, we will miss you.

Jose Saramago, we will miss you.

By Adrienne Raptis | June 27, 2010
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On June 18th the world lost a legend in the literary world. Portuguese-born Nobel-prize winner Jose Saramago died at the age of 87 and was mourned by over 20,000 people in Lisbon at his funeral last week. Saramago was born Jose de Sousa to a family of landless peasants. His father was nicknamed Saramago, which…

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Rational Exuberance – Collecting Economics Books

Rational Exuberance – Collecting Economics Books

By Adrienne Raptis | June 11, 2010
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One would be hard pressed to find someone who has not been affected by the recent economic downturn. History tells us that everything is indeed cyclical. The world has seen this whether it is the crash of 1929 or 1988. At the impetus of Arthur Schlesinger the great economist John Kenneth Galbraith published The Great…

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Collecting Modern Architecture Books

Collecting Modern Architecture Books

By Adrienne Raptis | May 25, 2010
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The Pritzker Prize for Architecture was recently awarded to Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa of the architectural firm SANAA. This international prize, which is awarded annually to a living architect for significant achievement, was established by the Pritzker family of Chicago, and is often referred to as “architecture’s Nobel” and “the profession’s highest honor,”. At…

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When You Reach Me in A Wrinkle In Time

When You Reach Me in A Wrinkle In Time

By Adrienne Raptis | April 30, 2010
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There are some books that you read in childhood that stay with you the rest of your life. I think for many people, A Wrinkle in Time, is definitely one of those books. I have talked with a number of people who have picked it up again as an adult as well and have loved…

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Spring is in the Air for Modern Literature

Spring is in the Air for Modern Literature

By Adrienne Raptis | April 12, 2010
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We just returned from the New York Antiquarian Book Fair. If you were there, you know what an amazing experience it is… dealers from all over the world with every kind of rare book imaginable. The whole fair is like candy for the eyes. Its like the most wonderful museum of book history. As a…

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Your library is your portrait

Your library is your portrait

By Adrienne Raptis | April 7, 2010
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Holbrook Jackson (who was a famous bibliophile) once said, ‘Your library is your portrait.’ I like this quote because the books one collects can tell others more about who you are than your physical appearance. Here are a few other quotes about libraries and some beautiful photos of some extraordinary libraries. Libraries are not made;…

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The Great Gatsby first edition…yes, we can judge a book by its cover.

The Great Gatsby first edition…yes, we can judge a book by its cover.

By Adrienne Raptis | March 29, 2010
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When collecting modern first editions, so much of the value of a book is actually held within that thin and sometimes fragile piece of paper called the dust jacket. Those who are new to book collecting, may think this is a strange thought… but any true collector is sure to desire that perfect (or as…

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A thousand words…

A thousand words…

By Adrienne Raptis | March 2, 2010
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In my humble opinion, Irving Penn was a masterful and innovative photographer. He captured the world in very different ways and gave us new ways of looking at ordinary things. His photography books have become quite desirable for collectors. Here I have highlighted some of his books as well as some of the photos that…

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Collecting Photography Books

Collecting Photography Books

By Adrienne Raptis | March 2, 2010
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I was going to write a few thoughts on collecting photography books, but I believe that Mike Johnston on photo.net summarized it extremely well. If you are new to collecting or to collecting photography books, this is a wonderful article to read and I have copied part of it here: Photography books are arguably one…

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