Mr. Henry de Halsalle's Treasure Trove in Bookland (Werner Laurie,
10s. 6d.) is designed to make its readers collect books as an investment for monetary profit and contains many anecdotes of lucky fmds in the Caledonian Market and else- where. The first half of the book is a sketchy survey of book- collecting in the past, and this leads up to a somewhat more detailed account of the craze for first editions of modern authors. Mr. de Halsalle quotes a good many prices, but he does not emphasize sufficiently the influence of fashion in this branch of collecting and the extreme insecurity of the market in recent publications. Still, we would not disparage any device by which people may be induced to buy books by young authors, even if they are only speculating on a rise that may be transient. Mr. de Halsalle nods when he says that the Earl Spencer who sold the Althorp library had spent £100,000 on it, for the library was formed by his ancestor. And he will shock many of his readers when he describes Treasure Island as " a tedious yarn."
Previous page
