Sir Walter Scott at the Austin Book, Paper, & Photo Show

Hello again, gentle readers; I'd like to take this opportunity to apologize to Larry McMurtry for the awful pun on his "Walter Benjamin at the Dairy Queen," but I simply couldn't resist. How often does one get the chance to use a title like that?


I went to the Austin BP&P Show this afternoon, arriving in the last hour of the last day of the show, just in time, it seems, to stumble upon a really good deal. I'd like to thank Chuck Whiting for telling me about it, because I was otherwise oblivious to the occurrence this event, and hindsight being all that they say it is, I would have regretted not attending.


I don't usually collect Sir Walter Scott's works, but the book was so beautiful, I was unable to ignore it. The seller was, surprisingly, the Austin Public Library Bookstore. Their blog, Recycled Reads, can be found here.

Before today, I hadn't realized that the APL even had a bookstore, let alone one that boasted rare and antiquarian titles among its inventory; I would have thought that the library would have put such books in its special collections room, but it appears that I was blessedly mistaken. I think that I shall be paying them a visit quite soon. Their prices were quite reasonable.


And of course, all the monies collected by the store benefits the APL, a noble cause to be sure.


Without further ado, here are the pictures of my new treasure:

Front Cover

Spine Detail

Seller's Detail Card

Ephemera From Past Sellers: An Antique Advertisement

Penciled Inscriptions

Title Page

I couldn't be happier with this find. And I suspect that the APL Book Store will soon become one of my favorite haunts.


Until next time, I wish you, my readers, all the best in your book collecting endeavors. Cheers!