Bookfinder has released a list of "the top 10 most sought-after out-of-print books in America in 2008." The only "celebrity' book on the list is Madonna's photo book Sex (quickly sold sold, then tanked, now desired again). I'm kind of amazed at some of the others, and especially at the last two, which suggest a continuing market for high-quality books about craft.
What books would you like most to see republished? One of my childhood favorites was D'Aulaires' Book of Norse Myths, which was out of print for decades and finally republished. This was published by New York Review Books, which specializes in bringing out-of-print classics back into publciation. There's a brisk business republishing great books. Another great publisher in this area is Hard Case Crime, which republishes old classic hardboiled detective novels alongside new novels in the same style. They also commission new, slightly slutty paintings for all their covers. I discovered the just-deceased Donald Westlake through Hard Case Crime.
New York Review Books publishes classic fiction, nonfiction, and children's books. Hard Case Crime publishes old and new hardboiled fiction. What books would you like to see back in print? Can you imagine a publisher that would specialize in a particular area of reprinting? How would you go about it? Questions for thought and possible repsonse.
It’s a Beeping Problem
2 months ago
There are a couple of books I have been trying to hunt down at libraries and used bookstores for the past couple of years: "Whompyjawed" by Mitch Cullin,"A Crack Up At The Race Riots" by Harmony Korine, and Henri-Pierre Roche's "Jules et Jim" (a comprehension of the French language would probably be helpful in actually enjoying this one). Cullin's more recent novels have garnered popular and critical acclaim; one is being made into a film with some big-name actors, so perhaps there will be more of an interest in republishing earlier works such as "Whompyjawed." I can't imagine what kind of publishing house would be interested in republishing "Crack Up," as the book would most likely only appeal to fans of Korine's cult films. It probably isn't very good, anyway -- I guess I'm just curious to see how ridiculous it is. It also holds a certain charm precisely BECAUSE it is out-of-print and so hard for me to track down.
ReplyDeleteThe Book Finder article proposes that the "magic of ebooks" could potentially solve the problem of out-of-print books, but I don't imagine that I will change my anti-ebook stance, regardless of how ubiquitous they may become in the next few years. My reasons are simple, and possibly stupid: I like browsing bookstores and libraries. I like the way books smell and feel, and there's a certain sense of security I feel when I weigh down my purse with a couple every time I leave the house. I feel a sense of intimacy when I'm holding a book in my hand -- and a disconnect when I'm reading words on a screen. I dislike living in an increasingly high-tech world. My eyesight already sucks. I think I would prefer for a book like "A Crack Up At The Race Riots" to stay out-of-print rather than served up to me in ebook form. When I do finally get my hands on a copy, it will be incredibly satisfying -- much more satisfying than if I was reading it off a screen. I realize that this may be beside the point; the book will be the same book regardless of what form it's in. I guess I envision reading as a kind of experience, which I feel the ebook threatens to pervert.