But is it more than that? How far do publishers go to ensure a book’s cover has that ‘pick me up and buy me’ appeal? Can new books really hold investment value? And does the modest paperback have a place in the art gallery?
Picture books
The books on display in museums and galleries are usually the dusty, untouchable, leather-bound sort. One of the major art installations of 2005 has temporarily dog-eared this trend with a charming and colourful display of hundreds of Penguin paperback pocketbooks.
Penguin’s iconic covers – the first paperbacks affordable to the masses, available at just six pence when they first hit the shelves – are currently adorning the walls of the V&A. From the simple bands of colour of the 1930s paperback to today’s fascinating graphic design process, the exhibition demonstrates how dust jackets and book covers capture the culture of their time – a case in point is The Great Gatsby collection, a spread of the story’s numerous covers from the 1950s to the present day.
In a nod to their seventy years of paperback publication, the Design Museum has short-listed Penguin for the 2005 European Design Award.
Judging a book
More new books are published today than ever before. Hence an influx of clever marketing tricks to attract the reader. In the battleground of the bookshop, the publisher’s weapon is the cover.
The bookshop has become almost colour coded: bubblegum cartoon colours for chic lit, gothic black with gold typeface for Cold war thrillers, horror and sci-fi.
This careful packaging is nothing new. Back in the 1970s the idea that sex sells was applied to paperbacks in the form of naked torsos and more, irrespective of the content – a fact which elicited much angry feedback from authors.
What is new for the noughties is the author’s photograph. For the bookshop customer who, having appreciated the cover and the enjoyed the blurb on the back, is looking for that deal clincher, the omnipresent author biography and mug shot could be it.
Start collecting
There’s big bucks to be made in books. But it’s not just the great classics which rake in the cash: children’s picture books are increasingly the object of collectors’ attentions.
Signed first editions of Roald Dahl’s much loved children’s classics owe much to the illustrations of Quentin Blake when it comes to market value. And rare copies of Alice in Wonderland go up in value significantly if the illustrator is a recognisable name.
Dust jackets are important too. Pre-war books with their wrappers can be worth thousands more than the same book without a wrapper. The wrapper of the James Bond 1st edition represents 95% of the book's value.
See opposite for more tips on collecting books.
70 Years of Penguin Design will be on display at the V&A until 13 November 2005. See www.vam.ac.uk for more.
Channel 4 is not responsible for the content of third party sites. Images courtesy of Penguin Books.
Collect books you like and are interested in. A hobby should provide pleasure as well as hold the possibility of financial gain.
Buy the earliest edition of a book you can find and afford.
Children’s titles are big collectibles. The trick is to identify an up and coming author while the print run is still small.
If you can get an author to sign your book, don’t ask him or her to personalise it. A signature and a date is the most desirable inscription to potential buyers.
Big names generally mean big bucks. First or limited editions or signed copies of books by Madonna, Ricky Gervais and Phillip Pullman have huge collectible status at the moment.
Books don’t have to be old to be worth something. In fact, age is by and large totally irrelevant! Relatively new books by first time authors on a limited print run can be worth much more. The trick is finding an author or series which will have a huge demand. Good examples of this phenomenon are Tom Clancy's Hunt for Red October and Sue Grafton's "A" is for Alibi.
Don't haggle with a knowledgeable and experienced dealer; you need his or her goodwill and expertise far too much.
More expert advice on book collecting:
www.abebooks.com
www.hay-on-wyebooks.com
www.rarebooksociety.org
