The Booktryst blog has a great post about how the so-called signed, limited edition of the ex-president's new memoir has turned out to be a sham, and serves as another cautionary tale to collectors. (Another earlier post here). The book was initially announced as being strictly limited to 1,000 signed copies with the hefty price tag of $350. Now it turns out that the print run is really 4,500 (!) copies because, according to the publisher, "there were a great number of consumers who expressed disappointment at not being able to purchase a copy and we sought to accommodate them."
As Booktryst accurately points out, "a print run of 4,500 is not a 'limited edition.' It is, in reality, close to the average print run for any new, trade (standard) edition book by a non-celebrity.... And the lack of a limitation statement in the book declaring the number of copies in the edition is a huge caveat emptor for the collector. A truly collectible limited edition book always states the number of copies printed."
It will be interesting to see if their prediction regarding this "bogus collectible" comes true: "In the future, sooner or later, copies in very fine (mint) condition of the limited edition of Decision Points will be selling for $75, tops. There are just too many of them." I would tend to agree with that. Good commentary and advice for book collectors of any genre in this one.
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