by Bob Welbaum

Created on: January 02, 2009

Book collecting long predates the printing press. Egyptian papyri and ancient Greek and Roman manuscripts were prized by medieval collectors. Thomas Jefferson amassed a large library in the formative years of this country.

If you find yourself being drawn to collecting books for the first time, here are some basic facts that can serve as a useful starting point.

Many people collect in the hopes of making money. While there are no guarantees and collecting categories can run hot and cold for no apparent reason, gathering information can mean having a better chance of your collection increasing in value. And unlike many contemporary collecting categories, such as Beanie Babies, if the books you select do not appreciate in value, you can still get much satisfaction from reading.

What makes a book collectible? One reason would be because the author becomes famous. Early editions of this author's work could then increase in value tremendously. Another reason is a book category enjoys a popular following. Such categories include art, science fiction, and fantasy. Categories can get very specialized. Certain books about Disney ("Disneyana") and the works of L. Frank Baum ("Baumiana" or "Oziana"), who also used several pen names, are very collectible in their respective circles. And don't overlook the Hollywood, sports, and music categories. Does your favorite team publish a yearbook? It's probably of interest to someone.

As in any business, publishing has its own unique terminology. An astute collector will know the basic terms, beginning with these:

- "First edition" means the first time an original manuscript appears in book form. This means only the initial print run, or "first printing," is considered the first edition, since many books have multiple print runs. By the way, the terms edition, printing, and impression can be used interchangeably.

- "Limited edition" means the print run is a specific number of copies.

- "Dust jacket" is a detachable cover to protect a hardbound binding. Usually made of paper, plain dust jackets first appeared in the mid-1800s. By the late 1800s, pictorial dust jackets were introduced to help with promotion. Today retaining the dust jacket is essential for realizing a book's full collectible value.

- "Copyright page" is on the reverse side of the title page, and usually includes the copyright year, publisher's name and address, and information about the print run.

The most collectible book is the first edition. Limited editions are also collected,

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