How ThriftBooks Does Throwback Thursday: With Vintage Books, of Course!

#TBT at ThriftBooks Will Never Make Your Eyes Glaze Over

Photos from the past can be fun to reminisce about, but there's a limit to how many times 70s patchwork baby clothes and 80s mall bangs are amusing, so we thought it would be fun to share a few Rare & Collectible Books. (If you didn't know about this side of ThriftBooks, now you do!) Our inventory includes rare books, first editions, signed copies, signed first editions, and out-of-print titles that will pique your curiosity, entertain, and maybe even inspire you.

Our Warehouse Doubles as an Unofficial Literary Museum

Rare and Collectible books, in general, aren't necessarily rare, but first editions tend to be because there either weren't a lot of copies printed, or there were, but few have survived, and even fewer are still in pristine condition. (Keep those dust covers on!) Being rare doesn't automatically make a book collectible, but these certainly are.

Bambi, a Little Golden Book

1948 was 70(!) years ago, and Walt Disney's Bambi is still a childhood bookshelf staple that has sold a bazillion* copies, but it's extremely rare to find a first edition in the exceptional condition that this one is since children's books tend to be handled by, well, children. (*An estimate, of course, but there are asteroids named after Bambi and Thumper, so that gives you some idea!)

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Holden Caulfield's cynical adolescence just keeps on resonating with generation after generation, which has made The Catcher in the Rye a classic and landed it on numerous banned book lists. It was printed 10 times the year it was published (1951).

Signed First Editions are the Crème De La Crème of Vintage Books

The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers

Obviously, ThriftBooks is all about getting books into your hands for bargain prices, but there are exceptions, such as this incredibly rare first edition copy of The Member of the Wedding that's worth every penny of its $1200 price. (The story of Frankie Addams has become a book-to-screen three times!)

Eloise in Paris Signed by Illustrator Hilary Knight

A first edition published in 1957, Eloise in Paris is the quirky and amusing sequel to the original Eloise that's beloved by both grownups and kids thanks to Hilary Knight's whimsical pen and ink illustrations that make the story come to life on the book's black, white, and pink pages.

Tar Baby by Toni Morrison

Toni Morrison's fourth novel is a classic and everything you'd expect from a Nobel Prize AND Pulitzer Prize–winning author who's a living literary legend, so a signed first edition is kind of a big deal. If you haven't read Tar Baby or any of Morrison's other books, do it!

The Velvet Room by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

There are so many good books out there that it's hard to choose sometimes (which is why we try to make it so you don't have to), but Zilpha Keatley Snyder's 1965 novel was a Junior Library Guild selection for a very good reason!

And There are Many, Many More Where These Came From!

The books listed above are just a tiny sample of all of the collectible goodness waiting for you in our Rare & Collectible books, so definitely take a look when you have a few minutes and do a search for your favorite authors or titles to see what comes up!

Read more by Beth Clark