Arizona State University have announced the acquisition of the Robert Lawler Collection of English Renaissance texts, including significant works by Milton, Chaucer, Raleigh and Swift. The sale was made by Alcuin Books & Autographs, LLC., which had acquired the collection from Arizona businessman and book collector Robert A. Lawler. Discussing the collection, Richard Murian, owner of Alcuin Books described it thus: "Besides the 1550 Chaucer, there were also the 1598, 1602, and 1687 editions which according to Professor Richard Neuhauser (editor of the forthcoming 4-volume Chaucer Encyclopedia) adds greatly to the significance of the collection since in some cases it includes Chaucer apocryphal material that has never been recorded as existing in a single copy. The 1527 remarkable Polychronicon was a superb copy as were the Fabian Chronicle (1559), the Grafton Chronicles (1572), as well as three 17th Century editions of Milton including a beautiful copy of the first illustrated Milton (1688). Other important copies were the Beaumont and Fletcher, First Edition (second impression), Ben Jonson's Workes (1680), Sir Walter Raleigh's The Historie of the World (1628) and a very rare Italian edition of Plutarch (1568)." Commenting on the importance of the acquisition, ASU Librarian Jim O'Donnell said “Books like those in the Lawler collection give scholars and students a precious opportunity to see and touch and even smell the past. We can think better about the past and thus about... [more ASU Libraries Acquire Robert Lawler Collection]

Full Members Jennifer Johnson, The Book Shop, LLC Jen Johnson is the co-owner of The Book Shop, LLC in Covina, California, along with her husband Brad, a member of the ABAA Board of Governors. The Johnson's are celebrating their 10th anniversary of ownership of The Book Shop, a bricks-and-mortar store that has been serving Southern California for more than 35 years. Specialties of The Book Shop include California and the West, archives and ephemera, and heavy metal music. Jen is a native of Nebraska and a graduate of Pepperdine University. She is a former newspaper reporter and public relations executive. She became an associate member of the ABAA in 2010, serves as the co-chair of the Southern California Book Fair Planning Committee and was recently selected to receive a scholarship as the ABAA's representative to the 2016 ILAB Congress in Budapest, Hungary. Her favorite part of the book trade is the research and discovery that comes with working with archives. Duane Stevens, Wiggins Fine Books Curiosity about his mother's ancestors, led Duane Stevens into bookselling. He began acquiring books, maps, and other documentation related to the family's coming to New York in the 1640's, migration to Canada and their return. He grew up in Houlton, Maine, a border town where his grandparents had settled. After founding Wiggins Fine Books in 2007, he began doing book fairs that have since become his focus. Stevens look forward to making his ABAA book fair debut in Boston later this y... [more New ABAA Members]

To mark World Book and Copyright Day, April 23, ABAA booksellers had four “Pop-Up” book fairs around the country, donating the profits to UNESCO. We have reports and pictures from some of the organizers below. (Perhaps they will inspire other booksellers to get involved next year.) Chicago Greetings, Booksellers: I want you to know what happened at the pop-up bookfair the Midwest Chapter organized in Chicago in celebration of World Book and Copyright Day. Read on if interested! Our hard work and effort paid off, and we raised $800 for UNESCO. The venue was beautiful, and everyone seemed busy chatting, buying books from each other, and selling to librarians, Caxton Club members, and retail buyers. Parking kind of sucked for customers, but hey, this is Chicago. Quality fixings for sandwiches from a northwest-side European Deli were provided for dealers and attendees, as well as coffee and fresh baked pastries. Beer and wine was made available for a small donation to UNESCO. The Caxton Club contributed toward the cost of the food. While we had just over 100 visitors to our event, the quality of attendee was outstanding. Not only were there some new onlookers who may have been exposed to rare books for the first time, I met a number of librarians from Indiana, Wisconsin and the Chicago area that were new to me. Also, local folks that had only browsed my inventory at previous events became customers. Some entirely new book-buyers showed up and made off with some goods (after p... [more Pop-Up Book Fairs Raise Funds for UNESCO]

The classic Pauline Baynes' map poster of Middle Earth hung on many bedroom walls in the 1970s. Last year, a map annotated with the edits and instructions from J.R.R. Tolkien to Pauline Baynes while she worked on the illustrated map have come to light, revealing a host of interesting facts about Tolkien's vision and inspiration for Middle Earth. The newly discovered map with annotations by Baynes (blue ink) and Tolkien (green ink). (Source: Blackwell's Rare Books) Baynes was a frequent illustrator of Tolkien's books in the 1950s and '60s, but the map was perhaps their biggest collaboration. Blackwell's Rare Books in London sold a number of items created or owned by Baynes, and a map with annotations by both Baynes and Tolkien was found tucked into the artist's copy of The Lord of the Rings. Entries in Baynes' diary and letters between the two allowed Blackwell's to document the process of collaboration on the map, shedding new light on both an iconic picture and Tolkien's inspiration for Middle Earth. Read more on the discover at the Guardian newspaper... Letters and notes exchanged between Tolkien & Baynes while the later worked on the Middle Earth map. (Source: Blackwell's Rare Books) The classic map of Tolkien's Middle Earth by Pauline Baynes. Today, it has been announced that the map has been purchased by the Bodleian Library in Oxford, who own the largest collection of Tolkien papers in the world. The annotations are notable because Tolkien added places not mentioned in ... [more Bodleian Acquires Unique Map of Middle Earth]

“The book was a vehicle to connect a family.” –Henry Roth For more than 35 years, Lawrence Fox has served as the ABAA's legal counsel and also as one of our members' good customers. Larry is known for his collection of the writings of Edgar Allan Poe and American literature. His copy of Henry Roth's Call it Sleep—a first edition, first state with first state dustwrapper—is “among the finest, brightest and most crisp copies of this scarce book.” In recognition of his many years of service with the ABAA, Larry has donated the copy to the Association's charitable entities with proceeds from the sale going to the Elisabeth Woodburn and Benevolent Funds. George Lowry and his team at Swann will offer the book for sale, without commission to the Funds, on May 18, 2016. But it gets better. Larry was Roth's personal friend and Trustee of the Henry Roth Literary Properties Trust and this copy is inscribed to Larry Fox: “In awe at his incredible assiduity”. The book chronicles the story of David Shearl, a child immigrant growing up in the slums of early 1900s Brooklyn. It beautifully captures the pain and honesty of families amidst a background of Jewish life and community. We at the ABAA are so excited to have these long friendships come together to benefit something so deeply important to us and to Larry: creating knowledge, learning, and opportunity through education and aiding booksellers in times of need. View the auction, spread the word, and bid, bid, BID! [more Save the Date: Swann to auction Call it Sleep to Benefit ABAA Charities on May 18th]

Cheryl Needle, an antiquarian bookseller from Pepperell, MA, died in January. Born in 1948, she is survived by children and grandchildren, her partner of 25+ years, Frank Infante, her former husband and sometime business partner, Matthew Needle of Newburyport, MA, and her many friends and colleagues in the trade. Although she was not a member of the ABAA, she had all the qualities one looks for in a great antiquarian dealer: a fine eye for unusual material, reasonable prices, the highest ethical standards, and on top of that, she was friendly, decent, and caring. Greg Gibson of Ten Pound Island Books remembered Cheryl in his Bookman's Log blog. Below are excerpts from that, followed by contributions by some of her other friends and admirers. Greg Gibson: A veteran of more than four decades as a used book dealer, Cheryl was an active participant in what many regard as the final phase of the Golden Age of book selling in New England. Good material was available and cheap, and giants like Benny Tighe and Sam Murray still roamed the earth. Attics groaned with rare books, and an adroit dealer could hop from country auction to country auction the way, it is said, that squirrels were able to travel by tree from the east coast to the Mississippi without once touching the ground. We did our business by postcard and telephone, and we waited eagerly for each week's issue of AB Magazine – not just for the treasures on offer there, but for the information it imparted and the sense of co... [more In Memoriam: Cheryl Needle (1948-2016)]

In 1941, Knopf published Theodore Roethke's first collection of poetry, Open House, in a hand-numbered edition of 1000 copies. The book was lavishly praised and launched Roethke's brilliant career, which led to a Pulitzer Prize (The Waking, 1954) and two National Book Awards (Words for the Wind, 1959, and The Far Field, 1965). The Theodore Roethke Museum in Saginaw, Michigan, has decided to mark the 75th anniversary of Open House's publication with an "online census" to attempt to track down every surviving hand-numbered copy of Open House, and collate the stories of the various volumes and their collectors. OPEN HOUSE - A Volume of Poetry (Limited Edition) New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Fine in Near Fine dust jacket. 1941. First Edition; First Printing. Hardcover. A very nice copy of this rare Roethke title in a dustjacket with some soiling on the front cover and a small chip at the head of the spine. This is copy # 605 out of the limited edition of only 1,000 books. (Offered by William F. Hale Books) The museum vice-president, Mike Kolleth, told Fine Books & Collections the goal of the project is "to ignite conversation about Roethke's poetry." ABAA-member Jett Whitehead, whose speciality is modern poetry, assisted the museum in launching the project. When asked for comments about the project, Whitehead said: "For several years I've been rewarded with opportunities to work with various organizations regarding book related projects and exhibits. Some of the most fun and rewardin... [more Calling All Theodore Roethke Fans]

The ABAA has recently approved several new members, all of whom have successfully proven themselves to be, in the words of the ABAA Guarantee, "established, knowledgeable, and of excellent reputation." These new members were sponsored by existing members, and have undergone a rigorous screening process. We welcome the newest members of the ABAA. Full Members Charles Bartman of Charles G. Bartman, Bookseller, Louisville, KY Michael Fagan of Michael Fagan Fine Art & Rare Books, Newton, MA James Gray of James Gray Bookseller, Princeton, MA Heather O'Donnell of Honey & Wax Booksellers, Brooklyn, NY --Heather O'Donnell got her start in rare books in the stacks of the Beinecke Library, where she was a curatorial assistant during her grad school years at Yale. After three years in the Princeton Society of Fellows, she left academia to pursue the rare book trade full-time, working in the New York gallery of Bauman Rare Books. In the fall of 2011, Heather launched Honey & Wax Booksellers in Brooklyn, specializing in literature and the lively arts. She is a graduate of the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar and Rare Book School, a member of the Grolier Club, and the founder of the annual Brooklyn Holiday Book Fair, now in its fourth year. Marco Panella of Auger Down Books, Brattleboro, VT --Marco Panella is a bookseller based in southern Vermont. He specializes in music, scholarly non-fiction and books on the arts. A longtime bibliophile, he studied history and photography at Brown Univ... [more New Members]

By Jeff Weber, with contributions by Merle Bobzien, Ryan Parks, Paul Naiditch. With deep appreciation to Elizabeth Krown Spellman. Franklin Victor Spellman was born August 15, 1945 in Stamford, Connecticut, moving to the Bronx, New York, at 8 years. He is named in honor of Franklin Roosevelt and his middle name was in celebration of V-J day. Although Jewish, he was born in a Catholic hospital where the nuns prevailed upon his mother to give him a middle name of Victor. He was not a fan of Roosevelt, but Franklin did love his name. He has an older brother Douglas Spellman, and a younger sister, Jill Polan. Frank married Elizabeth, née Krown, March 15, 1969, the Ides of March, they were married close to 47 years. Frank got his start in bookselling at Pageant Book Co., NYC, at 13 years of age, working on weekends, holidays, and summer vacation. As a child he loved science fiction, fantasy and horror literature. He wrote and produced with some schoolmates stories in these same fields. He even corresponded with the founder of Arkham House, August Derleth (1909-1971). He fostered friendships with several well-known writers in the genres of science fiction and fantasy literature. He started collecting Lord Dunsany (something he continued collecting throughout his life), took his Bachelor's degree in History and English Literature at City College of New York, then continued at CUNY and earned his Master's degree in English Literature. In 1970 Frank moved to Los Angeles, matriculatin... [more Franklin Victor Spellman (1945-2015)]

For 27 years, the Colorado Antiquarian Books Seminar (CABS) has provided a training ground for rare book collectors, dealers, and librarians to meet and share their knowledge. Even experienced book dealers attend to keep abreast of the latest scholarship and learn from their peers. ABAA associate-member Zoe Abrams attended this year, and reports on her experience. On the first day of the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar, Terry Belanger stood solemnly in front of our class and commanded us to “follow the rulebook with supine acquiescence.” We were feverishly scribbling collational formulae in our notebooks as he added, “The fact that it is ridiculous is totally irrelevant.” The group let out a communal chuckle and went on copying the ever-expanding equations projected on the wall. Terry was referring specifically to the Ur-text of bibliography by Fredson Bowers, a rulebook every cataloguer knows and loves to bemoan; but the general idea of “following the rules” served us well throughout the week. The CABS faculty, all authorities on books and bookselling, gave us many rules to work and live by, including: hone in on and own your specialty, find your voice, and identify your ideal customer. Inherent in these directions is the notion that bookselling is an individualistic endeavor; every bookseller has her own way of doing things that may not work for the next guy. Some rules, however, apply across the board, regardless of personal modus operandi: be patient, don't ... [more Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar: Review]