Q: I own two Ralph Waldo Emerson Book of Essays which came in First Series and a Second Series. They have a green cover with a silver trimming around the cover and have a date written inside of them as if they were a gift to someone in 1895. I ws hoping that you could give me some more information regarding the books. What year were these books published? Also how much these books might be worth? I haven’t been able to find these books online to compare too. Your help would be greatly appreciated. I have attached a few photos of the book for you to look at. thank you so much.

A: Your books are part of the Vademecum Series and were published in 1894.

All of the titles in this series are reprints. During 1894 the books of this series had various cover colors. Some variations are shown below.

Unfortunately because this title is not in great demand by collectors, these books will probably not sell for more than a few dollars.