As happens every summer Book Fairs spring to life as dealers come together at interesting times in interesting places to attract a book buying audience, swap inventory and catch up with comrades and collectors. June kicks off the summer sojourns. There are five events in England and four in the United States. Here is some encouragement for attending.
I asked Julian MacKenzie of Bernard J. Shapero of London for a perspective on the importance of book fairs for the book collector -
"With the dwindling away of book shops in major population centres, book fairs provide the best opportunity for collectors and would-be collectors to view and handle rare books. A book is after all an object and its appeal partly resides in its look, feel, and not least, its scent. Also, this gathering together of dealers enables the collector to compare offerings, prices, and style of various companies which can help select those booksellers with whom a collector feels most comfortable.
There are drawbacks to fairs but overall book fairs are a wonderful celebration of the book and a unique opportunity for like-minded people to join together."
Clare Van Norman of Wantagh Books in upstate New York, who is participating in the Cooperstown Antiquarian Book Fair, offered -
"The logic of the book fair is to provide concentration and exception: a concentration of booksellers offering difficult to describe and sometimes exceptional material. Both the highly experienced and the neophyte collector find appealing material, the dealer meets new customers and the field goes home renewed. Book fairs are the life blood of the field."
John Kuenzig of Topsfield, Massachusetts and a book dealer for almost ten years is active on the show circuit and participating in the Cooperstown fair for the first time. He explained the power of fairs this way.
"You can't buy what you don't know exists. You go to fairs to learn and sometimes find something perfect to buy."
Jim Presgraves of Bookworm & Silverfish, a veteran of 490 fairs since 1975, had this to say of the Cooperstown Fair specifically and book fairs in general-
"It's a very friendly event with easy access and good attendance. Expect anything, even everything. Dealers participate to sell, shop, learn, and/or talk. Collectors come for many of the same reasons and of course for the possibility of a great buy."
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. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
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>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.")
