I bought an old copy of "Darwin's Journal of researches" aka "The Voyage of the Beagle for a student as a graduation gift.
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I bought an old copy of "Darwin's Journal of researches" aka "The Voyage of the Beagle" for a student as a graduation gift. (It was not that expensive! But it's a popular book with many copies)
When it arrives I discover many of the pages are looped. (Because I WAS going to read it again first before I gave it to them)
So... do I take a letter opener to these or let the kid do it?
Hmmm.
there was a game for Atari 8-bit called Quest Of The Space Beagle. it's extremely difficult to get past the first stage of shooting alien space ships, so i have no idea what else happens in it.
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there was a game for Atari 8-bit called Quest Of The Space Beagle. it's extremely difficult to get past the first stage of shooting alien space ships, so i have no idea what else happens in it.
The parallels are staggering here. LOL.
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I bought an old copy of "Darwin's Journal of researches" aka "The Voyage of the Beagle" for a student as a graduation gift. (It was not that expensive! But it's a popular book with many copies)
When it arrives I discover many of the pages are looped. (Because I WAS going to read it again first before I gave it to them)
So... do I take a letter opener to these or let the kid do it?
Hmmm.
@futurebird My library's circulating copy of The Variation of Animals Under Domestication was uncut. It's not any more.
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F myrmepropagandist shared this topic
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I bought an old copy of "Darwin's Journal of researches" aka "The Voyage of the Beagle" for a student as a graduation gift. (It was not that expensive! But it's a popular book with many copies)
When it arrives I discover many of the pages are looped. (Because I WAS going to read it again first before I gave it to them)
So... do I take a letter opener to these or let the kid do it?
Hmmm.
@futurebird Ooh, I'd say leave the experience of cutting the pages to the kid-- you don't get the opportunity too often!
I think I only encountered that once-- it was a new book from some niche French publisher in the 1980s. Might have been Sartre.
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I'm not a rare books person I read them. Since part of the bit about the ants is looped that one has to go... I'll leave the ones in the front since it's a neat detail about old books.
@futurebird in some places books were sold with uncut pages even in the 20th century; there's a bit in Calvino's If On A Winter's Night A Traveler about cutting the pages as you read.
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@futurebird in some places books were sold with uncut pages even in the 20th century; there's a bit in Calvino's If On A Winter's Night A Traveler about cutting the pages as you read.
OK but this book has some pages cut but not others. I think they just did a bad job trimming it. It's quarter bound, but not exactly a "fine binding" by any stretch. It *is* from the 1890s though! Which is exciting.
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@futurebird Ooh, I'd say leave the experience of cutting the pages to the kid-- you don't get the opportunity too often!
I think I only encountered that once-- it was a new book from some niche French publisher in the 1980s. Might have been Sartre.
@mattmcirvin
I ran into some accidentally uncut pages once. I think the corner on one sheet had gotten folded so the blades missed it.
@futurebird -
@futurebird in some places books were sold with uncut pages even in the 20th century; there's a bit in Calvino's If On A Winter's Night A Traveler about cutting the pages as you read.
In high school; I once spent a few hours opening the pages of an early-20th century English set of the works of Voltaire.
Apparently, I was the only one who had bothered to read his "Philosophical Dictionary".
In fairness to everyone else, it is very long.
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@mattmcirvin
I ran into some accidentally uncut pages once. I think the corner on one sheet had gotten folded so the blades missed it.
@futurebird@kelson @futurebird I was reminded of the bit in "The Great Gatsby" where Nick encounters one of the guests at Gatsby's party marveling at the effort he went to to stock his library with books, but noting that he didn't bother to take the illusion *too* far--"didn't cut the pages".
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I bought an old copy of "Darwin's Journal of researches" aka "The Voyage of the Beagle" for a student as a graduation gift. (It was not that expensive! But it's a popular book with many copies)
When it arrives I discover many of the pages are looped. (Because I WAS going to read it again first before I gave it to them)
So... do I take a letter opener to these or let the kid do it?
Hmmm.
@futurebird I believe our conservators use the corner of an index card for smoother edges.
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@futurebird I believe our conservators use the corner of an index card for smoother edges.
A nice touch for a historical drama might be some person reading a book published by their rival who they loath and conspicuously ripping open the pages without much care.
(although I don't think book people would find this funny, and thanks for the tip.)
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I bought an old copy of "Darwin's Journal of researches" aka "The Voyage of the Beagle" for a student as a graduation gift. (It was not that expensive! But it's a popular book with many copies)
When it arrives I discover many of the pages are looped. (Because I WAS going to read it again first before I gave it to them)
So... do I take a letter opener to these or let the kid do it?
Hmmm.
It’s a good-looking book. I decided to leave the pages uncut for the student to open.
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It’s a good-looking book. I decided to leave the pages uncut for the student to open.
I would totally leave it. Part of the character!
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I would totally leave it. Part of the character!
OK but I want to read it and one of the looped pages is about when Darwin first saw an army ant colony. Do you see my problem. The discipline this is requiring of me?
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It’s a good-looking book. I decided to leave the pages uncut for the student to open.
Every book tells a story. You can read what is in the book, but you can also read the book itself, as an object.
This book was published in 1896 by Appleton in NYC. It used to be that having your book "published" meant sheets were printed, local bookshops and binders would then cut and bind the books for customers. Appleton was making this process more industrial. The book has a wild mix of features: a gilded top edge, but also uncut-pages, a fake headband, but real leather quarter binding.
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Every book tells a story. You can read what is in the book, but you can also read the book itself, as an object.
This book was published in 1896 by Appleton in NYC. It used to be that having your book "published" meant sheets were printed, local bookshops and binders would then cut and bind the books for customers. Appleton was making this process more industrial. The book has a wild mix of features: a gilded top edge, but also uncut-pages, a fake headband, but real leather quarter binding.
The binding looks so dark it almost looks like it was exposed to fire. This is possible but I think it's just sun damage. This book sat on a shelf for a LONG time untouched in some pretty library that probably made someone feel very smart and erudite. I will write a dedication in it, re-read it (I have a digital version so I'm not really missing anything) and give it away.
I hope the kid writes in it too.
This book needs love. If it had been read more the spine might be less cracked.
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The binding looks so dark it almost looks like it was exposed to fire. This is possible but I think it's just sun damage. This book sat on a shelf for a LONG time untouched in some pretty library that probably made someone feel very smart and erudite. I will write a dedication in it, re-read it (I have a digital version so I'm not really missing anything) and give it away.
I hope the kid writes in it too.
This book needs love. If it had been read more the spine might be less cracked.
If a book is well known and popular it's often not hard to buy and old copy like this and bring it back to life.
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Every book tells a story. You can read what is in the book, but you can also read the book itself, as an object.
This book was published in 1896 by Appleton in NYC. It used to be that having your book "published" meant sheets were printed, local bookshops and binders would then cut and bind the books for customers. Appleton was making this process more industrial. The book has a wild mix of features: a gilded top edge, but also uncut-pages, a fake headband, but real leather quarter binding.
@futurebird Definitely! I'm reading these vintage romance novels right now, and one is missing the cover and has a lot of dog-eared pages, like the book you're talking about. The pages are also yellowed. It's a translation from French of a book from the 1800s, if I'm not mistaken; it was probably even more scandalous back then!
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If a book is well known and popular it's often not hard to buy and old copy like this and bring it back to life.
This book is called "researches" but it's really just a young Darwin goggling at every creature he sees and getting excited by nature over and over. It's delightful to read even after all these years. You can practically see him bouncing up and down with excitement gushing about each more strange and unexpected adaptation he encounters.
It's not dry AT ALL.
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It’s a good-looking book. I decided to leave the pages uncut for the student to open.
@futurebird It's beautiful
They're gonna love it so much !
When I was a teenager I found a 19th century edition of Victor Hugo's Toilers of the Sea at a flee market, a beautiful tall red leather-bound book including the author's illustrations. It was the same price as a new paperback edition of the novel and way more exhilarating to read (if less practical). Still one of the most cherished books in my personal bookshelves to this day.
