Cancelled – the 2020 Chelsea Rare Book Fair (Chelsea Book Fair photo).
There is still almost half of the year left, but it may not be too soon to ask, will there be any more live book fairs in 2020? The last of the major fairs this year was held at the beginning of March, the ABAA fair in New York. It just got in under the wire, and even so, a few attendees returned home with an unwelcome guest, Covid 19. All fairs since then and through the summer have been cancelled. Is there still a chance we will see another before the New Year rings in?
Much planning and arranging is needed to put on a fair, so it does not lend itself to last minute decisions. No one wants to do all that work, plus put up money for a venue, if the whole thing may need to be cancelled at the last minute. Still, many events are operating in that manner. For example, various professional sports are tentatively restarting, with the possibility they will have to be shut down again. Baseball has restarted, without fans, but with half the players on one team, the Miami Marlins, coming down with the virus, the Marlins have had to cancel a week's worth of games. This happens to a few more teams and it's hard to imagine they can get in a full schedule. Besides which, their model wouldn't work for book fairs anyway. What would be the point of a book fair if no one could attend?
What about school? School districts and colleges everywhere are wrestling with this one. For the most part, decisions still haven't been made, and they need to reopen if they are going to do so long before the end of the year. They haven't made decisions yet on whether to reopen in August and September.
College sports also offer a thorny problem. Will fall sports go on? Football is the notable one here as for many colleges, football is an important source of revenue. Can teams play sports if the schools themselves are closed, with all classes being held online? Should they play if fans can't attend? For most, there is not much of a revenue opportunity other than fans attending games in person, unlike professional sports that can still make money though televised games.
So where does that leave book fairs? Our guess is that they are done. The time needed to prepare for a major fair is too long. Perhaps small, local ones will still be possible if conditions improve, but not likely for the bigger ones. Confirmation of that just came from an announcement a few days ago from the ABA concerning the Chelsea Rare Book fair for 2020. It was scheduled for November 6-7. In a statement, the organizers said, “Following much deliberation, we made the decision based on the current and projected COVID19 travel restrictions for our international booksellers as well as social distancing measures which continue to alter the way we would traditionally hold book fairs.” No decision has been made yet whether to hold an online fair in its stead.
It should be noted that some 2020 fairs have not been cancelled as of yet, including the late October, early November ABAA fair in Boston.
Perhaps the real question now is what will happen in 2021. The ABAA fairs in New York and California come early in the year. When will a decision have to be made with these? There seems to be no sign of a let up in the pandemic anytime soon and even optimistic estimates put off the arrival of a vaccine to early 2021. You might want to make reservations for New York, but I wouldn't do so unless they are fully refundable.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
![<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a74d9ff-42dd-46a1-8bb2-b636c4cec796.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.")
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
