This year’s Book Bazaar at the Greenbrier County Public Library is offering collectors a chance at some unusual books, including two 19th-century volumes and a book bound in wood. The book sale is scheduled from noon to 6 p.m. Friday, Aug. 1, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 2, at 152 Robert W. McCormick Drive in downtown Lewisburg.
What made five books stand out, among all the other donated books, to sale manager Donna Kellison? “Sometimes it is an unusual binding that catches my eye, such as the small book that was bound in wood,” she said. “Others have interesting titles that attract me.”
The book bound in wood is one of 3,000 copies of In the Eastern Palace, copyrighted in 1917. The subtitle is intriguing: Being the True Story of Kolynos on the World’s Frontier. Author William F. Mannix furthers the mystery of just what Kolynos might be when he writes, “It has unlocked the doors of palaces and the smiles of the fairest women.” Kolynos was – drumroll here – a brand of toothpaste and tooth powder. This book is being offered at $100.
The other books have unique qualities, too. The 1880 songbook needs no explanation other than its title – The Glee Club, for Mixed Voices: A Choice collection of Glees, Quartets, Duets, Trios, Quintets, etc., for Singing Societies, Glee Clubs [just in case the potential reader missed the previous two mentions of Glee], Concert Room or Home Circle. Authors E.H. Bailey and C.A. White proudly proclaim that their work contains the “latest, best and most popular compositions.” Song titles include, “Drink to Me Only,” “The Wolf is on the Hill,” “The Contents of the Will,” and a seven-page version of the nursery rhyme “Jack and Jill.” It’s being offered for $15.
Another 19th century offering is The Art of Healing, by Samuel Hahnemann, translated from German by C. Wesselhoeft and copyrighted in 1875. This work comes with a bookmark printed with the title. This rebound book is priced at $100.
The other numbered edition is the 1924 The Book of the Ranks and Dignities of British Society: Chiefly Intended for the Instruction of Young Persons. Finally, readers can find out the difference between a duke and a marquis, with 24 colored engravings to show what the well-dressed peerage wears. The cover says the book is “lately attributed in the press to Charles Lamb,” and the first 12 pages are taken up with a discussion of whether said Charles Lamb did indeed write the book. This book is offered at $10.
A signed copy of Mary Anne Among 10, 000 Islands: Cruising in the Finnish Archipelago, published in 1938, is priced at $100.
Aside from these specially priced books, on Friday, hardcovers sell for $2 each, and paperbacks for $1 each. Saturday shoppers can buy books for $4 a bag. (The bags are supplied by the library.)
Proceeds from the sale, conducted by the Friends of the Greenbrier County Public Library, support library activities, services and programs. The Friends group began in 1979 as an organization dedicated to promoting awareness of services provided by public libraries.
More information is available by calling the library at 304-647-7568.