Q: My grandfather would like to know the edition of this paticular book he has from 1895 from you publishing company. Discourses of Epictetus

Any other additional information would be greatly appreciated.

A: This book is part of the Vademecum Series and was published in 1895.

As with all of the 109 titles in this series, it is a reprint and does not have a designated edition.

This format has been seen with numerous cover colors. Some are shown below.

Q: I own the hardback copy of Uncle Tom’s Cabin from 1900. Henry Altemus Company – Philadelphia.
Is it worth anything? Would anyone be interested in buying it? Do you have any suggestions on what we could do with it.

A: This book is part of the Young People’s Library.

This format of this series was published between 1902 and 1923. The titles in in this series are all reprints.

These volumes all originally came with dust jackets. An example is shown here.

Q: Hello, I’m quite stumped on when this is made (Discourses of Epictetus). I haven’t seen any other leather titles that quite look like this on your website. I would really appreciate any knowledge you have. My best guess is the mid 1890s but I’m not sure. Thanks in advance.

A: This book is part of the Fairmount Series. The titles in this series which were published in 1894 and 1895 were all reprints.

This half calf cover volume with gold vein paper sides is relatively uncommon. These books originally came within a labeled box.

Q: I had a question about this book that I purchased, A Child’s Garden of Verses. Your site says that it was published in 1908, but my book has a dedication dating 1907. I did see that this was the cover you titled 7a, an early rendition. I suppose I mostly want to get it appraised, but I have seen that these books are not going for much.

A: This book is part of the Boys and Girls Classics’ Series. The books of this series had pictorial linen cloth swatches as book covers.
These volumes originally came with a labeled floral box. An example is shown here. All of these titles were reprinted from the earlier Young People’s Library series books.

The 1908 books were released generally at Xmas time in 1907. This was done every year to capitalize on the holiday sales. This book only has nominal value.

Q: Hello, can someone give us information on this nice little book.
Title – The Song of Hiawatha
Author – Longfellow
Publisher – Henry Altemus Co., Philadelphia

We were curious as to the copyright date, and basic value.
Attached is a photo for your review.

A: Your book is part of the Petit Trianon Series.

It is a reprint published by Altemus in 1908-1909.
Originally it was sold within a labeled box. A representative box picture is shown here.

It only has nominal value.

Q: I found this old book while helping my Mother (84-years old) clean out her house. She say’s it belonged to her Mother. She is not sure where her Mother got it.

The book is not in good condition. It was wrapped in old tissue paper when I found it. The cover is a reddish-brown suede with gold foil stamp lettering, “BARRACK ROOM BALLADS AND DITTIES,” and a “harp-style” musical instrument logo in the bottom right corner.

The title page has the same title name plus author, Rudyard Kipling. Below the author name is the publisher, “Philadelphia, Henry Altemus Company.” The page before the title page has a photo of the author, author name, and in small italics, “Frontispiece.”

Based on the information from your website, this publisher did not publish suede covers earlier than 1902. I’m not sure if this book has value or, better yet, what to do with it.

A: Your book was published between 1912-1915 as part of the Poems We Love Series. The limp velvet calf covers came in either brown or green. Each of the ten books in this series originally was published with a labeled box. An example is shown.

It is a reprint with no significant value.