Reference Books Can Help Set Value - Zoschak class earns a following in the trade
- by Susan Halas
"Finally, if the book in question has no history, at least as far as we're able to determine (recognizing that extremely few books have absolutely no market history), then questions on importance to society and an estimate of desirability are in order.
"If we've arrived at this juncture, then the market segment interested in the purchase of the item is perhaps quite narrow or the book is quite rare. But either way, with an item not currently available, one is still able to establish the value by making a professional judgment given all that has been just described.
Zoschak's next class is tentatively set for May 2011. The exact date will be announced through bookseller listservs.
About Vic Zoschak
Zoschak came to bookselling after a long career in the Coast Guard. In the mid-1980s he became an avid book collector with a specialty in the works of Charles Dickens. He started his rare book business 1989 with his Dickens stock as his base inventory, then teetered between a second career in bookselling or teaching English. Bookselling won out, and the rest, as they say, is history.
He specializes in "anything in English" from a 1535 edition of Homer to contemporary Science Fiction. He's open "by chance or by appointment" at his shop in Alameda. "When your average book price starts at $125 you don't want to focus on walk-in traffic." Active in a variety of bookselling professional groups, he is a board member of the ABAA and also a member of ILAB and IOBA.
Zoschak is a fan of Peter Howard, the well known Berkeley, California, bookseller, who has had a large influence on him. One other lesson he learned from Howard has been to 'pay it forward'.
"Peter has done me a wealth of courtesies over the years, for which he rarely asked for 'payback'. As such, I try to do the same. When a young bookseller inquires of me about 'payback' for a professional courtesy, I say, thinking of Peter's example, 'Pay it forward.'"
---------------- AE contributor Susan Halas can be reached at halas@hawaii.rr.com
She notes that a number of free handouts written by Vic Zoschak are available. They include: a basic reference book list, glossary, further reading, and an essay on evaluating a books for commercial value. If you would like to receive a copy of this material as pdfs send her an email with the word HAND-OUTS in the subject line.
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…
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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.
![<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.")
