Show and Tell Friday

Kelli's blog hosts Show and Tell Friday every week. Click to see more: http://kellishouse.blogspot.com/



My show and tell this week is my collection of antique and "antique-looking" books. Since I love to read, I have acquired quite a collection of books over the years -- hardback, paperback, softback, illustrated-in-full-color -- you name it, I've got at least one. When we discovered a couple of used books stores not far from our house, I found my favorite kind -- antique books. The ones above are my purchases from those stores. Not all of them are practical. I made the mistake of reading the pink Anna Karenina and the spine cracked, but the pages are the perfect kind of distressed, the type is the perfect size, and, most of all, the covers are beautiful with ornate gold filigree. They probably don't count as "true" antiques, but they are definitely replicas of the original first editions. I think most of them are about fifty years old.
Now this book is a true antique. My friend gave this to me for my high school graduation. The cover is beautiful and all the pages are in excellent condition. This is one my of favorite books, for the story and the book itself!
These are my "antique-looking" books. They are new reproductions made to look old.
These two are gifts from Christmas. The Pilgrim's Progress is the size of a family Bible and contains many beautiful color illustrations.

And this is my complete Jane Austen collection. It is really large, too, but I love the original illustrations and the elegant look.

So this is collection of books. I hope to add to it every year. What would I like to find next? An antique Ben-Hur, any Dickens work, and War and Peace.