Latest news with #RareBooks
The Sun
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Classic Books are booming but it's the famous authors' cache not the literature that are the money spinners
Classic literature is enjoying a sudden surge, but it's the value of the books rather than the words in them that is generating a sales boom. Pawnbrokers are reporting a massive climb in the number of books it is offered for sale or for their owners to take out temporary loans. 3 Harry Potter books are making magic returns with £10,000-plus for mint condition first editions but classics from Enid Blyton and Fyodor Dostoevsky are also big money-spinners, says James Constantinou, owner of the Prestige Pawn chain. 'We're seeing a major shift with a 300% increase in book submissions this year,' adds James, star of the hit Channel 4 TV show Posh Pawn. 'Books are now being treated like art, jewellery or watches – rare, cultural items that hold and grow in value and people are starting to realise how much hidden value they've got at home.' A flawless first edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which was part of an original US print run, recently secured a £10,000 loan, while translation of works by Dostoevsky and Paul Dirac have been valued at around £4,000. 'These editions, printed in the UK with gold-inlaid spines, are significantly more valuable than their US counterparts. In one case, a customer pawned these classics to fund the purchase of an original Russian translation.' said James. 'Books are resilient, long-term investments - with loan valued climbing by 5-7% annually - and that goes for everything from classic literature to children's book,s with a first edition of The Wind in the Willows selling for £32,400, and rare Enid Blyton books fetching up to £1,000. 'Last year, we were getting five book submissions a week but that has tripled and there is a real feeling that people are becoming more aware of their value so it is worth checking out your bookshelves for any family heirloom first editions that could be worth a small fortune.' Rare Harry Potter books have good resale value but they are eclipsed by a first edition of Odyssey by James Joyce printed on handmade paper which was sold for £275,000 while first edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby have been valued at £245,000. 3 3
SBS Australia
02-06-2025
- General
- SBS Australia
Rare books exhibition sheds light on long history of Chinese migrants in Australia
Rare books exhibition sheds light on long history of Chinese migrants in Australia Published 2 June 2025, 6:54 am A set of rare Chinese to English phrasebooks have been put on display at Victoria's State Library. The books were produced in 1862 during the state's gold rush; a time of massive Chinese migration to Australia and particularly Victoria.
