Billie Bradley at Twin Lakes

After not reading any Billie Bradley books since May, I resumed reading the fifth book, Billie Bradley at Twin Lakes. On page two, Billie's age is given as fifteen. I always appreciate it when specific ages are given.

In this book, Billie and her friends spend their summer vacation in a cabin at Twin Lakes, accompanied by their old grammar school teacher, Miss Martha Beggs, as chaperone. Miss Beggs is quite a good sport to agree to spend several months away from her home with the girls on short notice. The boys also journey to Twin Lakes and share a second cabin.

Near the beginning of the story, the young people meet an eccentric artist, Myra Bossenet, who has red hair and is missing some of her work. The boys find the pictures for her and receive a reward of two hundred dollars. Billie feels sorry for Myra Bossenet and wishes she could help her.

The young people reach Twin Lakes where they meet a girl named Huldah who is abused by her guardian, a man named Jerry. What kind of a name is Huldah? Anyway, Huldah is very unhappy, likes to draw, and has red hair. Hmm... I'm not anywhere near finished with the book yet, but I have this idea that there just might be a connection between Myra Bossenet and Huldah.

The book has this interesting description on page 57:

One immense big living room with a great open fireplace, rough-hewed, picturesque and almost comfortable furniture, consisting of a settee, three low, broad-seating chairs, and one quaint little table, whose three legs sprawled out in such a comfortable manner that one was reminded of a sleek well-fed Persian kitten.

A table described as being like a Persian kitten? Interesting.

The food in the kitchen is described as follows on page 59:

And there was milk too, two big delicious quarts of it, fresh dairy butter, eggs, and, wonder of wonders, a fresh-killed chicken all plucked and ready for roasting!

I am by no means a vegetarian, but descriptions like that make me want to become one. Seriously, the author could have described the chicken as "fresh-plucked" rather than as "fresh-killed" and plucked. Let's leave killing out of it. We don't need to be graphic about how the food was obtained. Thanks.

On page 63, we get another graphic description of the chicken:

Dinner was over—the bones of the poor fowl had been stripped till not a shred of meat clung to them.

Thanks for reminding me.

Fortunately, Teddy has not been called "Uncle Teddy" in a while, so I am liking him just a tiny bit more. Billie does call him "Granddad" on page 115, unfortunately, but she can be forgiven since she is mocking him for giving out too much advice. However, I wish both she and Teddy would refrain from making Teddy sound like he is Billie's daddy. Both Billie and Teddy might need some therapy.

So far this book has been an enjoyable read.

What if a package gets lost?

In my last post, I quoted eBay's new policy on insurance:

The insurance option creates the perception that buyers need to purchase shipping insurance as a protection on eBay, an experience they're not accustomed to on other ecommerce sites. In fact, sellers have always been responsible for their items until they arrive safely in their customers' hands. That's why shipping insurance will no longer be included in the purchase flow as either an option or requirement for buyers.

I then made the following statements:

Many sellers are upset about this. The sellers that are upset are the ones who think that they are not responsible when the buyer does not receive the merchandise. If you are one of those people, consider this: When you buy from Amazon and do not receive the item, do you expect Amazon to reply, "We are not responsible for items not received. Once the item leaves our warehouse, we cannot guarantee delivery. Speak to the carrier about the whereabouts of the item."? Or, do you expect Amazon to send another one at their expense? I am sure that most people would expect Amazon to send another.

This issue is getting debated at length on various message boards. No seller wants to refund a buyer's money when a package goes missing, and most sellers would always wonder whether the buyer did receive the package. This is why a seller should always use delivery confirmation.

On a side note, I am surprised at how many of my sellers still do not use PayPal shipping or delivery confirmation. With PayPal shipping, delivery confirmation is free for priority mail and much cheaper than at the post office for other services. All a seller needs is a digital scale so that the package can be weighed. Digital scales can be bought inexpensively on eBay, or at a higher price on Amazon. I bought mine on Amazon because eBay sellers normally send items like scales in bad packaging causing them to get damaged. I buy all new items anywhere other than eBay, even if I have to pay more.

To go back to delivery confirmation, it will save sellers from most scams, but it is not foolproof. I once received a neighbor's package that had delivery confirmation. If I had not given it to my neighbor, the recipient would not have received it, but the delivery confirmation would have shown it as delivered. Another time, I found a package stuck in my mailbox hours after the mail arrived. I checked the delivery confirmation online and found that it had been delivered seven hours before, but not to me. It was not a cheap purchase, either. I'm lucky my neighbor was honest enough to put it in my mailbox.

I do feel that a seller is responsible for a package until the buyer receives it (per my Amazon analogy above). I'm sure my opinion is not popular among many people reading this blog, but it is reality.

Consider this: What if you have a buyer who does not receive a package from you, and you decide not to refund the buyer's money because you are not responsible? How do you think your buyer will feel?

I can tell you exactly how your buyer will feel. A couple of years ago, I had a package go missing from a seller with whom I had had multiple previous successful transactions. Around four weeks had passed, and I had not left the seller any feedback because I did not have my purchase. This was an international transaction, so four weeks was not too long to wait.

The seller sent me a message requesting that I leave feedback and wondering if anything was wrong with my purchase. I replied, saying that I had not received the package yet, which is why I had not left feedback. The seller did apologize and hoped I would still receive my package. The seller did not offer a refund, and I did not request one. I never did receive the books.

How do I feel? I will never purchase from that seller again. I do not believe it was her fault, but she should have refunded my money. I can understand why she did not offer, since international postage is quite expensive. The problem is that I have a lingering bad feeling about her and that transaction, so I have passed on her auctions ever since that time. Think for a moment if you feel that you are not responsible. What if a package does go missing? Do you want to risk losing a customer?

I agree that when a seller packs well, then it is not the seller's fault when a package goes missing. But how does a buyer know that the seller packed well? All the buyer knows is that a purchase was made and not received. The buyer will blame the seller instead of someone else.

Should a seller refund a buyer when a package goes missing? Yes, yes, and yes. A seller never knows when a buyer may have friends who would later make purchases. It is also true that all a buyer has to do is file a PayPal claim to get their money refunded, but do you really want your buyers to do that? With the direction that eBay is going, a seller has no room to allow a buyer to file a claim when the seller can settle the problem directly. Nobody wants a black mark on their record, besides the fact that the buyer will have a bad feeling about the seller.

eBay's Fall Round of Changes

I am not that compelled to write this post since the changes do not bother me, but I have been very critical of eBay in the last year, so to be fair I need to point out that these changes are not that bad. Some of them are actually good. Of course you would hardly know that from the way some people are complaining on various message boards.

What is happening is that eBay went too far last year, and now eBay is pulling back some with regards to the DSRs. The problem is that eBay yanked me around too much last year with reduced search visibility and glaring red marks in my seller dashboard. Go to this post to see what my seller dashboard looked like in the fall. I am the same person and the same seller I was in the fall. My feedback is always positive, yet eBay had labeled me as a failure.

It sounds like eBay has now fixed it so that people like me who are casual sellers will no longer have that happen to them. Unfortunately, eBay damaged my morale last year by doing that to me, and my books are now listed elsewhere. I doubt that I will ever go back to eBay full-time since I now have my booth set up at Bonanzle. For people like me, these new changes are too little, too late.

I am not going to go through everything since the information is readily available for everyone to read. Here is the link straight from the source:

Seller Update: Overview

The above link was provided in a message that told me, "The great news for you--based on your track record of consistently delivering great service to your customers, you are on track to be invited to the PowerSeller program, get Top-rated status and earn the highest discounts and rewards starting in October."

So I already know without clicking on the link that I qualify as a "top-rated seller," which is eBay's highest rating that can be bestowed on a seller. Apparently eBay will use this rating for both power sellers and casual sellers who achieve high DSR ratings. It is interesting how I was a failure in the fall and now I am top-rated. EBay is just a tad inconsistent.

The changes to the power seller program seem to be the ones that have the most people upset. Read the above link if you want to know about them.

The other part that bothers some people is that eBay will no longer allow sellers to charge for optional insurance. Insurance must be already included in the charges or not charged at all. This is what eBay says about it:

The insurance option creates the perception that buyers need to purchase shipping insurance as a protection on eBay, an experience they're not accustomed to on other ecommerce sites. In fact, sellers have always been responsible for their items until they arrive safely in their customers' hands. That's why shipping insurance will no longer be included in the purchase flow as either an option or requirement for buyers.

A lot of sellers are upset about this. The sellers that are upset are the ones who think that they are not responsible when the buyer does not receive the merchandise. If you are one of those people, consider this: When you buy from Amazon and do not receive the item, do you expect Amazon to reply, "We are not responsible for items not received. Once the item leaves our warehouse, we cannot guarantee delivery. Speak to the carrier about the whereabouts of the item."? Or, do you expect Amazon to send another one at their expense? I am sure that most people would expect Amazon to send another.

I have always felt that way. The seller is always responsible, and insurance is never necessary. As a seller, I feel that my buyers waste their money when they pay for insurance for a low cost book. Why pay $1.75 to insure a $5.00 book? I have never had a package go missing. Knock on wood. It will happen eventually, but so far I have probably mailed out several thousand packages and have had none disappear. I have had one that was severely damaged. The buyer reported that the post office tried to bend the box in half, and the result was not good.

I do have a concern, but my concern is as a buyer. I am concerned that all of those slipshod sellers who feel they are not responsible when they pack badly and the items disappear will require insurance on everything including inexpensive items. I would hate to be charged $1.75 to insure all packages. I fear that it will happen.

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I decided to add this part after this post was published. I have now read about how eBay is computing the DSRs. The DSRs left for a seller from multiple purchases by a single buyer will all count towards a seller's DSR rating. This means that if a seller has all good DSRs, but one buyer purchases five items and leaves ones, that buyer's DSRs do count five times as ones. This is not good. A single buyer could completely destroy a seller. I still do not care since I am not planning to sell much on eBay ever again. If eBay wants to destroy the rest of its sellers, they can go for it. Whatever.

Betty Gordon/Ruth Fielding Poll Results

Here are the results to the Betty Gordon/Ruth Fielding poll:

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Do you like Betty Gordon or Ruth Fielding better?

Betty Gordon (have read only Betty Gordon) - 0 votes - 0%

Betty Gordon (have read both series) - 8 votes - 33.3%

Ruth Fielding (have read only Ruth Fielding) - 13 votes - 54.2%

Ruth Fielding (have read both series) - 3 votes - 12.5%

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Since the Betty Gordan and Ruth Fielding series were cross-promoted and are generally collected by the same group of people, this poll's purpose was to determine whether people prefer one series over the other.

I can draw several conclusions. First, more people collect Ruth Fielding than Betty Gordon. This is probably because the Ruth Fielding books are much easier to find and because Mildred Wirt Benson wrote some of the Ruth Fielding books, making them popular among Nancy Drew collectors.

Second, most people have only read the Ruth Fielding books, probably for the above reasons.

Third, of the 11 respondents who have read both series, 72.7% like Betty Gordon better and 27.3% like Ruth Fielding better. What this means to me is that the Betty Gordon series probably is a little better overall than the Ruth Fielding series since people seem to prefer it when they have read both series.

I have read both series, and I like the Betty Gordon series better. I do have to admit, though, that the last five to ten Ruth Fielding books are about as good as the Betty Gordon series. The reason I do not like the Ruth Fielding series better is because the first half of the Ruth Fielding series is kind of bland. Those books are worth reading in order to get the full story of the Ruth Fielding series, but they are a bit boring at times.

Judy Bolton Poll Results

Here are the Judy Bolton poll results:

Which part of the Judy Bolton series do you like the best? You may select multiple answers.

#1-10 The early titles - 27 votes - 60%

#11-17 Engagement and marriage - 16 votes - 41%

#18-21 The Roberta books - 12 votes - 30%

#22-29 Sleuthing w/Holly and others - 7 votes - 17%

#30-38 The later titles - 6 votes - 15%

Since the poll allowed respondents to select more than one choice, the percents reflect the percent of respondents who selected that choice.

Follow-up to Low Prices for First Printings on eBay

My post on this topic brought forth quite a few comments, which are always appreciated. In my last comment, I stated that I regretted that I had not made my point more clear.

In the original post, I stated, "eBay is no longer a good auction venue for this type of item. Books like this last one are better off in an auction house such as PBA Galleries. eBay is now a great place to find bargains. Most of the books fall far short of value."

First, I am not referring to all books. Books with a low value, such as the third Connie Blair book, may bring a higher price on eBay than on another venue such as Bonanzle and may be easier to sell. Second, PBA Galleries only works so long as the minimum price is not set at an outrageous amount, like five to ten times more than the true value. The problem with some of the first printing Nancy Drew books that were listed at PBA Galleries in December is that the prices placed on them were so extreme that the books did not sell.

My point concerns the specific types of books that I mentioned in my post—early first printing Nancy Drew books with dust jackets. Early first printing Nancy Drew books with dust jackets are desired by hundreds of collectors and hold their values over the years. The values do fluctuate slightly, but the books will always be valuable, particularly the first printing dust jackets for the first three Nancy Drew books, which are worth thousands of dollars.

When I wrote my post, I failed to point out the most important observation of all. And Frank, I give you credit for making that observation in your message about Bungalow Mystery which made me go back and verify the winning bidders of all three auctions.

All three books were purchased by two different people for the purpose of resale.

Does that not prove that the books sold for well under their true values? We will be seeing these books for sale again.

So, I repeat my point again, but I make it more specific. eBay is no longer a good venue for selling high value books unless the seller starts the opening bid at what the books are truly worth. Second, the seller must know what he or she has or the books will not attain their true values. Third, eBay is now the best place on the internet for purchasing valuable books to resell either on eBay or on other venues. Frank also observed that the prices would be even lower if the resellers were not bidding against each other. This is true.

For the three auctions that I mentioned, the second highest bidder was also a reseller in at least two of the three cases. The final bid prices of the books were driven by resellers and not by people who actually wanted them. The books would be selling for next to nothing except that the resellers are buying nearly everything good on eBay and are bidding against each other.

eBay's CEO, John Donahoe, lamented in the past that eBay was like a flea market and that its image needed to change. At least from my perspective with regards to series books, Donahoe's changes have made eBay into a flea market. The selection of series books is more like a flea market than ever before and the prices realized are like flea market prices.

A big announcement is coming tomorrow, and the changes could affect sellers of antiques and collectibles in a negative fashion. One of the rumored changes is that Best Match is going to be tweaked to favor new items. If this rumor is true, then the prices for old Nancy Drew books will go down even more because newbie buyers probably use the default Best Match, and those buyers will not easily find the old books.

Overall, eBay is still great—but not in the way it once was. It is now the place to get bargains and then sell those bargains elsewhere for a nice profit.

A Review of Ransom of the Seven Ships

Note: I have kept this review free of plot spoilers, and I mention only general information about the game.

The 20th Nancy Drew game, Ransom of the Seven Ships, was released last week. I finished playing the game in the last few days. I always use online hints, tips, and spoilers to solve the harder puzzles so that I do not get frustrated. The games are difficult and time-consuming, and I do not wish to spend weeks playing them.

Each game tells a story, and I enjoy the comments made by the other characters when Nancy questions them. I enjoy searching for missing objects. I am good at some of the puzzles, especially the sliding and mathematical ones. I do not like the puzzles that involve lots of research and decoding, since those take a lot longer and are tiresome to me.

Ransom of the Seven Ships is loosely based on the Nancy Drew book, The Broken Anchor. The early Nancy Drew games are strongly based on certain Nancy Drew books and tend to have the same titles as the books. The more recent Nancy Drew games are just loosely based on books and tend not to have the same titles as the books.

Each Nancy Drew game mentions characters and settings from previous games, so all of the games are tied together. This also makes playing the games fun.

Her Interactive changes each game up a bit from the previous ones, so all of the games are a different experience. Ransom of the Seven Ships has far fewer characters than the other games, since Nancy is stranded on a deserted island. While I missed having as many interesting conversations with other characters, I loved the exploration part of the game, which I feel was about the best of any of the games. As Nancy, we get to explore on foot, on the trails, by sailboat, underwater, and by climbing.

Some of the puzzles were especially annoying in this game, and I cheated on them. I did cheat a bit more in this game than I usually do. The most annoying part of the game was when I, as Nancy, had to compete in a coconut throw with a monkey. Unfortunately, one cannot use spoilers on a task that is based on accuracy and time. It was very hard. I thought that the coconut throw was far more difficult than it needed to be. In the past, similar tasks from previous games were rigged so that when the player does it enough times that it gets slightly easier so that the player can advance. I had to have played that coconut throw at least 50 times. It was highly annoying.

The end of the game was enjoyable, and much better than one of the recent games. Even though the game annoyed me at times, I enjoyed it.

Low Prices for First Printings on eBay

TRUE FIRST EDITION of very 1st Nancy Drew book, 1st Ed Item #160345733650

This auction was for the 1930A-1 printing of the first Nancy Drew book, The Secret of the Old Clock. The auction closed at $112.50. While the book had some stains and wear, all four glossy illustrations were present, and the book should have closed at a higher price.

I recently sold a copy of the first printing of Old Clock. See this listing. While my copy did not have the stains inside the book, it did have a faded spine. It is hard to say which book was in better condition since they had different flaws. I sold my book for $275.00.

The seller could have gotten more than $112.50 for the book.

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Here is another:

NANCY DREW Brass Bound Trunk w/Dust Jacket Probable 1st Item #290327685320

This auction was for the very first printing of Brass Bound Trunk in dust jacket. The auction closed at $51.99, which was a nice bargain for the buyer. Check out this third printing of Brass Bound Trunk in dust jacket that I sold for $85.00. If I can sell a third printing for $85.00, then the first printing should have sold for above that amount.

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This next auction is a perfect example of why eBay is no longer the best venue to sell valuable books.

NANCY DREW #3 the bungalow mystery 1932 printing in DJ Item #250452608674


The book sold at $338.00, which appears to be a good price for a thick blue Nancy Drew book with a dust jacket and glossy internal illustrations. But look:


The front flap lists only the first three Nancy Drew titles, which means that the dust jacket is the 1930A-1 first printing dust jacket. The first printing dust jackets of the first three Nancy Drew books are extremely scarce, even rare, and extremely difficult to acquire. The book is not the first printing book, so the book and jacket are mismatched by several years. Most of the value in the first printing is in the jacket, and it is not very hard to get a first printing book of Bungalow Mystery to go with the jacket. The jacket is nearly impossible to find and comes up for sale probably only once every five years.

This dust jacket is easily worth 10 times more than the winning bid price of $338.00. Sadly, I did not click on this auction while it was running, or I would have bid on it. (No, I would not have bid thousands of dollars on it, so I probably would have lost. I generally am not willing to pay above $500 for a book.) Even though the seller's title did not accurately describe what the auction contained, the book would have bought a much better price years ago on eBay when it was easier to find items.

eBay is no longer a good auction venue for this type of item. Books like this last one are better off in an auction house such as PBA Galleries. EBay is now a great place to find bargains. Most of the books fall far short of value.