Comics, Pulps, and Paperbacks: Why such a discrepancy in values? 25 25

[Surfing Alien]

43 minutes ago, Bookery said:

Bantam DJ on an Infantry Journal title.

That's not one you see often

[Bookery]

4 hours ago, Surfing Alien said:

That's not one you see often

The dust-jacketed edition is a far more exciting read, because it has an exclamation mark.

[Randall Dowling]

Forgive this non-sequitur, but I was just so excited to get this in the mail today.  It's only from 1982 but it's probably the most important science fiction novel that I've ever read.  I first read it in 1986 and it left such an impression that I still routinely think of passages in the text that are fundamental truths in life.  For me, this is one Heinlein's absolute best (and that's saying something given the rest of his work).  This copy is as pristine as they come and is, of course, a first edition, first print.  If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend it!  

 

[Surfing Alien]

3 hours ago, Randall Dowling said:

Forgive this non-sequitur, but I was just so excited to get this in the mail today.  It's only from 1982 but it's probably the most important science fiction novel that I've ever read.  I first read it in 1986 and it left such an impression that I still routinely think of passages in the text that are fundamental truths in life.  For me, this is one Heinlein's absolute best (and that's saying something given the rest of his work).  This copy is as pristine as they come and is, of course, a first edition, first print.  If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend it!  

 

Not really a non-sequitur since moonpool asked for dust jackets without specification 

I still have my original copy, bought & read when it first came out. I loved it but I'm pretty sure it was the last of his books that I loved. Number of the Beast was the one before it and I remember being somewhat dissapointed with that one, I bought and read Job and Cat Who Walks Through Walls after and they didn't do much for me, I recall them being pretty rambly. I haven't read any of the posthumous books so can't comment. Every word from 1939 to the 1970's I loved.

This here was not my favorite novel of his, although still a great read, but one of my favorite dust jackets.

Edited June 20, 2020 by Surfing Alien

[OtherEric]

7 hours ago, Randall Dowling said:

Forgive this non-sequitur, but I was just so excited to get this in the mail today.  It's only from 1982 but it's probably the most important science fiction novel that I've ever read.  I first read it in 1986 and it left such an impression that I still routinely think of passages in the text that are fundamental truths in life.  For me, this is one Heinlein's absolute best (and that's saying something given the rest of his work).  This copy is as pristine as they come and is, of course, a first edition, first print.  If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend it!  

 

Not my favorite of Heinlein's, but far from my least favorite either.  Glad you got a copy you're happy with, I think mine is a book club edition.

Given that it's a loose sequel to GULF, you need to track down the magazines where that story originally appeared next...

 

[OtherEric]

5 hours ago, Surfing Alien said:

Not really a non-sequitur since moonpool asked for dust jackets without specification 

I still have my original copy, bought & read when it first came out. I loved it but I'm pretty sure it was the last of his books that I loved. Number of the Beast was the one before it and I remember being somewhat dissapointed with that one, I bought and read Job and Cat Who Walks Through Walls after and they didn't do much for me, I recall them being pretty rambly. I haven't read any of the posthumous books so can't comment. Every word from 1939 to the 1970's I loved.

This here was not my favorite novel of his, although still a great read, but one of my favorite dust jackets.

That's a nice Cartier cover, but I'll take Rogers version.  Agreed that it's not my favorite either, and to be very generous some elements haven't held up well at all.  But considering it's his first full length novel it's spectacularly well done and compelling reading.

[Surfing Alien]

Rogers work is Astounding for sure! Taking it full circle back to paperbacks, here are a couple of Heinlein 1st pb's from Signet with wonderful Meltzoff covers. I don't recall if I've posted them before but these pristine unread copies are from my original collection, gives you an idea of what kind of condition the majority of that collection was in (and making me sad thinking about what I let go ) They're so glossy it's hard to photo them without glare.

 

[Westy Steve]

What’s the backstory of that “ original collection”?

Edited June 21, 2020 by Westy Steve

[OtherEric]

5 hours ago, Surfing Alien said:

Rogers work is Astounding for sure! Taking it full circle back to paperbacks, here are a couple of Heinlein 1st pb's from Signet with wonderful Meltzoff covers. I don't recall if I've posted them before but these pristine unread copies are from my original collection, gives you an idea of what kind of condition the majority of that collection was in (and making me sad thinking about what I let go ) They're so glossy it's hard to photo them without glare.

 

Nice.  Here's the original pulp publication of part one of "If This Goes On...", the main story in "Revolt in 2100".  It's somewhat unusual in just how heavily it was revised for book publication, unlike most (but not quite all) of Heinlein's works.  This was Heinlein's first cover story as well.

I've also got the first appearance of "The Green Hills of Earth" in the Saturday Evening Post, but I don't have a picture of that handy.  Having a SF story appear in one of the "slick" magazines was a major development at the time.

Edited June 21, 2020 by OtherEric

[Surfing Alien]

7 hours ago, Westy Steve said:

What’s the backstory of that “ original collection”?

It's expressed in these pages a while back, but long story short, it was the books I bought haunting physical bookshops in the 80's & 90's, which I sold 95% of in the mid 90's.

[Surfing Alien]

5 hours ago, OtherEric said:

Nice.  Here's the original pulp publication of part one of "If This Goes On...", the main story in "Revolt in 2100".  It's somewhat unusual in just how heavily it was revised for book publication, unlike most (but not quite all) of Heinlein's works.  This was Heinlein's first cover story as well.

I've also got the first appearance of "The Green Hills of Earth" in the Saturday Evening Post, but I don't have a picture of that handy.  Having a SF story appear in one of the "slick" magazines was a major development at the time.

Great stuff. I've got to pick up the rest of the Heinlein Astoundings. 

I believe his appearances in the slicks were a first for anyone in the hard sci fi world, correct?

[OtherEric]

10 minutes ago, Surfing Alien said:

Great stuff. I've got to pick up the rest of the Heinlein Astoundings. 

I believe his appearances in the slicks were a first for anyone in the hard sci fi world, correct?

As far as I know, yes.  I'm pretty sure there are earlier stories in the slicks that we would now label science fiction, and I'm fairly certain there were writers who had some stories in the SF magazines also showing up in the slicks but it was very much a milestone when Heinlein, an author who had previously mostly been published in the SF pulps, broke out from the SF pulps into the slick magazines.

Edited June 22, 2020 by OtherEric

[Randall Dowling]

10 minutes ago, Surfing Alien said:

Great stuff. I've got to pick up the rest of the Heinlein Astoundings. 

I believe his appearances in the slicks were a first for anyone in the hard sci fi world, correct?

 

1 minute ago, OtherEric said:

As far as I know, yes.  I'm pretty sure there are earlier stories in the slicks that we would now label science fiction, and I'm fairly certain there were writers who had some stories in the SF magazines also showing up in the slicks but it was very much a milestone when Heinlein, an author who had previously mostly been published in the SF pulps, broke out from the SF pulps into the slick magazines.

When you guys are talking about "hard sci fi" you're not including Verne or Wells, correct?  Curious what the distinction is.  Also between pulps and slicks.  Apologies in advance for my ignorance.

[OtherEric]

5 minutes ago, Randall Dowling said:

 

When you guys are talking about "hard sci fi" you're not including Verne or Wells, correct?  Curious what the distinction is.  Also between pulps and slicks.  Apologies in advance for my ignorance.

Generally hard SF is separate from Space Opera... it's stories where, to greater or lesser degree, the science, while speculative and frequently wrong in retrospect, generally develops from what is currently (at the time of writing) the best model.  Or, if you prefer, in this context it's stuff that was published in the SF specific pulps (rather than, say, Blue Book or Argosy, which frequently included SF stories). It's one of those "I know it when I see it" concepts a lot of the time.  Verne or Wells, while they wrote what we now consider science fiction, predated the term and are generally somewhat in their own category along with a few other writers.  Just don't ask what to call the category because an agreed upon term doesn't come to mind right now.

Slicks and pulps is much easier, at least.  At the most basic level, it's down to the paper the magazines were printed on; pulps on pulp paper and slicks on slick- or at least higher quality- paper.  Slicks were decidedly the more respectable, and better paying, market, with The Saturday Evening Post and Collier's being the first two examples that come to mind because they're the ones I have examples of.  The Slicks were also, in most cases, more general interest, with a much more diverse readership.  The line between the two was not quite as sharp as it is sometimes made out to be... Blue Book is sometimes described as a slick printed on pulp.  But the line was particularly sharp when it came to genre fiction, and Science Fiction in particular.  It was a massively big deal for a writer who had made their reputation in the SF pulps to break into the slicks, and for the slicks to recognize that SF was something that would be of interest beyond the dedicated pulp market.

Until fairly recently there was a very real critical disconnect, with a lot of critics claiming certain works couldn't be SF because they were actually good, or by 'good' writers.  I recall at least some discussion in 1984 (I was in junior high) about the book 1984, with some people still trying to say it's wasn't SF because it was critically respected. 

Hope that clears things up at least a little!

[The-Collector]

On 6/21/2020 at 4:34 AM, Randall Dowling said:

Forgive this non-sequitur, but I was just so excited to get this in the mail today.  It's only from 1982 but it's probably the most important science fiction novel that I've ever read.  I first read it in 1986 and it left such an impression that I still routinely think of passages in the text that are fundamental truths in life.  For me, this is one Heinlein's absolute best (and that's saying something given the rest of his work).  This copy is as pristine as they come and is, of course, a first edition, first print.  If you haven't read this book, I highly recommend it!  

 

With a coll Richard Powers cover to boot. Great stuff. 

[Westy Steve]

My first Lion.  I like the taboo subject matter...Wouldn’t mind finding similar subject matter from the same (innocent) era. First one I’ve seen covering this topic from this era.

Paid a premium to get one in this condition though it still has issues (I think I overpaid)...I wish we had a “please grade my” thread for books.  I’m guessing something like VG+ despite the subtle reading crease.  I know these Lions are more fragile than other paper backs from the same era.

Edited June 23, 2020 by Westy Steve

[Surfing Alien]

13 hours ago, Westy Steve said:

My first Lion.  I like the taboo subject matter...Wouldn’t mind finding similar subject matter from the same (innocent) era. First one I’ve seen covering this topic from this era.

Paid a premium to get one in this condition though it still has issues (I think I overpaid)...I wish we had a “please grade my” thread for books.  I’m guessing something like VG+ despite the subtle reading crease.  I know these Lions are more fragile than other paper backs from the same era.

Never seen that one before. I'd say you're in the right ballpark with the grade.

[Westy Steve]

24 minutes ago, Surfing Alien said:

Never seen that one before. I'd say you're in the right ballpark with the grade.

Wow.  I feel like I should be wearing a graduation cap and gown.     Thanks for confirming the grade.

 

I’m starting to gravitate toward the higher grades now that some of the initial urgency of starting a collection has passed. But I’m also noticing that higher grades are a heck of a lot more challenging.  I feel like I’m seeing less of them for sale than I did just a few months ago.   In higher grade material  seems to be going for higher prices. Like there is some kind a flight to quality right now. Still, that’s part of the fun I guess. Trying to find them anyway.

Edited June 23, 2020 by Westy Steve

[OtherEric]

30 minutes ago, Westy Steve said:

Wow.  I feel like I should be wearing a graduation cap and gown.     Thanks for confirming the grade.

 

I’m starting to gravitate toward the higher grades now that some of the initial urgency of starting a collection has passed. But I’m also noticing that higher grades are a heck of a lot more challenging.  I feel like I’m seeing less of them for sale than I did just a few months ago.   In higher grade material  seems to be going for higher prices. Like there is some kind a flight to quality right now. Still, that’s part of the fun I guess. Trying to find them anyway.

I think a lot of people, not just the group on the forums, is starting to look more at vintage paperbacks and magazines as a lot of comics are flying out of range.  I THINK the order of events is roughly a lot of the old pulp collectors passed away in the past 20 years or so, so a lot of material you normally couldn't find hit the market.  Making things both more available and more affordable.  At least some of us jumped on that- I got some books that I never would have been able to afford.  But that dump of material is rapidly drying up, and through things like these boards a lot more people are now aware of the material.  So yeah, it's getting tougher to find stuff.

[Surfing Alien]

48 minutes ago, Westy Steve said:

Wow.  I feel like I should be wearing a graduation cap and gown.     Thanks for confirming the grade.

 

I’m starting to gravitate toward the higher grades now that some of the initial urgency of starting a collection has passed. But I’m also noticing that higher grades are a heck of a lot more challenging.  I feel like I’m seeing less of them for sale than I did just a few months ago.   In higher grade material  seems to be going for higher prices. Like there is some kind a flight to quality right now. Still, that’s part of the fun I guess. Trying to find them anyway.

The gentleman who sold the MMM for a strong price that I remarked about a few pages back on here, commented in his most recent auctions that he is at the end of his collection sales, he's been running these sales for 110 weeks! - It was a heck of a vintage pb collection and he received a lot of interest on the scarce & rare stuff. I bought a few books from him but most of it went past my "probably too limited" comfort zone. I wondered at first if it was shilling but he seems an up and up old time collector who just got a lot of followers by listing good stuff consistently every week

There are several active groups on FB with thousands of members and I have to say sales have been pretty steady on feebay for my undercopies  and un-focused books i've been listing. There's also almost always a surge at the end of any auction i'm tracking of something I'd like to snag so there's steady demand. Thankfully the hobby is still scattered enough that I find more bargains than I can afford to buy though, and that's a good thing