eBay Pulse and More Prices

The first printing Old Clock with dust jacket is currently the most-watched book in the Children's Book category and the sixth most-watched book in the entire Books category on eBay according to the eBay Pulse. It will probably soon be the most-watched book in the Books category.

I decided to view some of the other books that are listed in the eBay Pulse for the Books category.

Ronald Reagan Signed 1st Easton Press Item #170232293427

The above listing has given me my laugh for the day. The listing ends with the following comment:

"Note that this is so rare, it has not been available on eBay for several months. Don't miss this opportunity now!"

It is so rare that it has not been available in several months?! Goodness, imagine having to wait that long! That really is RARE! It may even qualify for SUPER-DUPER RARE.

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Now, back to series books:

Nancy Drew The Clue of the Tapping Heels 1st Edition DJ Item #320269043283

This book was purchased at $625.00, which is too high, especially considering the condition of the dust jacket.

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Nancy Drew Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk 1st EDITION Item #320269208664

At $750.00, this one is even worse. Yes, the jacket is pretty nice, but the price is extreme.

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BroKen LocKeT NaNcy Drew TRUE First 1st Dreamy Item #140244180231

This book closed at $1,725.00, which is an extreme price for this first printing with dust jacket. I feel that the only first printing Nancy Drew books with dust jackets that under any circumstance are worth more than $1,000.00 are the first nine titles. In my experience, it is considerably easier to find #10 and up than it is to find the first nine titles in first printing dust jackets.

In the past, I have sold extra copies of most all of #10 and up in first printing dust jackets. I know I've had an extra of each of #10 through 15 in first printing jackets, and I'm not sure offhand about #16. I have had extras of #17 and 18 for certain. I have had two extras of the somewhat elusive #22. I have had multiple extras of #19, 20, 21, and 23. I have extras of #24-38 and multiple extras of most of the tweeds, #30-38. Once again, I'm discussing first printing books with first printing dust jackets. #10 and up are all findable. It is the first nine that are SUPER-DUPER difficult (I rather like the sound of that).

As to the first nine titles, certain first printing dust jackets are easier to find than the others. #6 is the easiest since the first five printings all had the identical dust jacket. #8 is next since the first three printings had the identical dust jacket. #9 is in third place since the first two printings had the identical dust jacket. In all three cases, a person could buy one of the other early printings with a dust jacket that matches the points for the first printing and mate it to a first printing book. This is how I managed to get all three of these first printing books in first printing dust jackets, and it cost me a lot less than it otherwise would have.

#7 is probably the next most scarce dust jacket followed by #5. I feel like #2, 3 and 4 are about the same in scarcity. #1 is the most scarce.

The scarcity of the first nine first printing books is a bit different than that of the jackets. In some ways, #9 is the most difficult first printing book to acquire simply because it quite difficult to get inexperienced sellers to correctly answer the questions needed to determine whether a book is the first printing. It is because the first printing book is identical to the fourth printing book except for the "This Isn't All!" page in which "This Isn't All!" is within a box for the first printing and not within a box for the fourth printing. Sellers have trouble understanding that "within a box" means that the print is within a rectangle that is drawn around it. Some of them think that the ones that have the text in a box-like shape on the page without anything drawn around it are actually "within a box."

I don't feel that the first printing books for #2-5 and 8 are all that elusive. They are difficult to acquire, but since I have had extras of most of them, they aren't that bad. I do find that #6 is a bit harder and probably #7 as well. I have some doubt as to how scarce #7 actually is. I have seen it up for sale a bit too often. #1 is about as hard to get as #9, except that it is a lot easier to ask inexperienced sellers the necessary questions.

If after reading this you feel that you need a Farah's Guide, David Farah sells them on eBay.