We were joined at our first stop by the friendly members of the Book Club of Washington, and our host David Brewster introduced us to Folio, which just moved into a beautiful space above the Pike Place Market. Intended as a hub for book-related activity, this is comes across as a perfect combination of a public library and a special collections library. The inventory is curated & rotated; the books are of interest to both readers and collectors; and the space is open enough for a variety of events centered around reading, writing, and book arts.
WHIRLWIND TOUR OF SEATTLE
Salt Creative • November 7, 2024
As our final big outing of 2018, the CBA went on a booksellers’ tour of Seattle. In brief, the itinerary was:
- Folio: The Seattle Athenaeum
- Michael Maslan Vintage Posters & Photographs
- Arundel Books
- Fairlook Antiques
- Collins Books
Michael Maslan, one of the premier dealers of vintage posters and photographs welcomed us into his amazingly over-stocked shop. It’s one of those stores where you literally need to ask the proprietor what you’re looking for, and he’ll come up with something for you. Mike shared his knowledge of ephemera with us, and everyone went away from there a little smarter than before!
Our next stop was Arundel Books, where Phil Bevis greeted us with champagne–surely a sneaky sales technique, but it might have worked because quite a few of us left there with full bags. Arudel’s storefront is apparently just the beginning of their domain, as they have a warehouse full of books that they can pull from on request. The staff was friendly & knowledgeable, the store was clean, and the books were wonderful to explore.
Our last stop downtown was the hidden treasure known as Fairlook Antiques, owned by Michael Fairley. This is a great store for browsing, as tens of thousands–well, probably hundreds of thousands–of photographs and other paper items are accessible for diving into. It’s a store that combines a relentless organizational effort against overwhelming chaos–sometimes it’s very easy to find what you’re looking for, and sometimes you get to experience wonderful serendipity.
Bill Wolfe of Collins Books welcomed us into his domain of unusual books. This was especially generous considering he is busy organizing the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair, which is coming up in a couple of months. As an online bookseller, the home of Collins Books is more of a maze-like warehouse than a retail environment, and it was just fun to wander around the various rooms, trying to discover all the different shelves. Bill was excited to have a checkout line for the very first time!
Seattle is a city that loves books, and it is also a friendly, intelligent, and welcoming city. Our group of tourists, which included some ABAA members, the former owner of the nation’s largest independent bookstore, a young man who only recently decided to take the plunge and call himself a bookseller, and a variety of other booksellers & ephemera dealers, were welcomed everywhere. Thank you, Seattle, for a fantastic trip!
A few of the exhibitors at the Rose City Book & Paper Fair send out catalogs before the fair. Here’s a handful: Anthology Booksellers. “Rose City Book Fair 2018 Selected Titles” — A short catalog of books we will be featuring at this year’s book fair. Browsers’ Bookstore. “Catalog for 2018 Rose City Book & Paper Fair” We have assembled nice collections of Robert Frost and Maxim Gorky books from several purchases. Also, a few interesting association copies of Tom Wolfe (signed by Ken Kesey & Ken Babbs), Carlos Castaneda (inscribed to his “moneyman”), James Blish (inscribed to Damon Knight), and an important African American piece (see Crummell in the nonfiction.) Note the condition (or very existence) of the jackets on the sci-fi/fantasy books by Hall, Heinlein, and Owen. There’s an assortment of titles related to Socialism at the end of the list. Chaparral Books & Montgomery Rare Books. Arthur H. Clark Catalog Vol 2 Volume 2 of 3 catalogs of original, source material; signed letters, Western Journals and historical ephemera by significant authors of history, Western Americana and their publisher: The Arthur H. Clark Company. Crooked House Books. “Rose City Book Fair Preview” — This year, we are separating our preview into two separate lists. This week we will show you some books, and next week we will show you some ephemera, photographs, periodicals, scrapbooks and albums that will be coming with us to the fair. We have loads of new paper items and I can’t wait to show them to you! So, here is a preview of the books. We have quite a bit of literature this year, and we will bring some interesting and unusual books by and about women. The list is a little over 30 titles, but we will of course be bringing a selection of pretty and quirky books in all price ranges. Crooked House Books. Ephemera Preview . Cultural Images. LIST 18-3 PNW — Highlights include a vintage photo album containing 50 images, including Native Americans, by Benjamin A. Gifford; an original sketch done in 1900 of a Portland brewery; an agreement between Chinese Contractors and an Astoria, OR cannery to supply Chinese workers for the packing season; nine RPPCs of a whaling station in Washington; a bond agreement with Portland saloon owners in 1866 that required them to “keep a quiet and orderly house” and to not “permit or suffer any female to be employed in or about such house” or “permit or suffer any illegal practices or conduct in or about such house”. Several books are included, including the Catalogue of the Fifth Exhibition of the Portland Architectural Club (June, 1913); a book of editorial cartoons by a cartoonist of the Morning Oregonian (Portland, 1931); and an AIA remembrance album with 20 original photographs documenting a tour of Simpson Logging Company’s operations as part of their annual convention (Seattle, 1953). And, of course, a few odds & ends, including early 20th century promotional booklets and miscellaneous documents. Pyewacket Books. Rose City List — Please enjoy this list of some of the offerings Pyewacket Books will be bringing to the Rose City Book and Paper Fair, June 15-16, 2018. We’ve got occult and esoterica, LGBTQI materials, human sexuality and history of sex work. We have tarot cards, photobooks – everything from astrology to bondage, fine bindings to zines. We’re located in booth 29 and would love to see you! Zephyr Books. “A to Z” — This catalogue encompasses artist’s books, automobile travel, illustrated books, Americana, photographs, and more.