Found a 1920s book of poems in a box of junk at a yard sale last weekend

I was driving through a small town in Vermont and saw a yard sale sign. The box was full of old paperbacks and cookbooks, but this one leather book was at the bottom. The spine was gone and the pages were loose, but the marbled endpapers were still bright. I paid two dollars for it. When I got home, I saw it was a book of love poems from 1923, printed by a small press that's not around anymore. The sewing was totally shot, but the paper is in good shape for its age. I'm thinking of doing a full rebind to save it. Has anyone here worked on a project like this from that time period? I'm not sure if I should try to match the old style or do something new.

3 comments

3 Comments

tara62314d ago

That 1923 book is a piece of history exactly as you found it. A full rebind destroys its story. The broken spine and loose pages show its life, and putting it in a new cover turns it into a fake. You could make a simple, sturdy box to keep it safe instead. Why not just handle it carefully and enjoy it as a worn object from the past?

jenny_coleman14d agoMost Upvoted

Guess we found the book police lol. Just let people enjoy their stuff.

ross.felix1d ago

Ever check if the author's family might want it back? Some small press stuff was basically self-published.