The annual fall gathering for booklovers, the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair returns to the Hynes Convention Center in Boston’s beautiful Back Bay for its 42nd year, November 16-18, 2018. Featuring the collections and rare treasures of 132 booksellers from the U.S., England, Canada, Netherlands, France, Germany, Russia, Denmark, and Argentina, the Boston Book Fair gives visitors the opportunity to see, learn about, and purchase the finest in rare and valuable books, illuminated manuscripts, autographs, graphics, maps, atlases, photographs, fine and decorative prints, and much more.

Special events at this year’s Fair include Documentary Filmmaker Frederick Wiseman on the making of Ex Libris: The New York Public Library; political guru Michael Goldman on 1968: The Year of the Century; Sumio Yamazaki from the Kyoto Book Artists Society in discussion with Charles Vilnis on Japanese art books; Editor Peter K. Steinberg on Sylvia Plath; and the 17th annual Ticknor Society Roundtable panel discussion on starting a collection.

One of the oldest and most respected antiquarian book shows in the country, the event offers a top selection of items available on the international literary market. Attendees have the unique chance to get a close look at rare and historic museum-quality items, offered by some of the most prestigious participants in the trade. Whether just browsing or buying, the Fair offers something for every taste and budget—books on art, politics, travel, gastronomy, and science to sport, natural history, literature, music, and children’s books—all appealing to a range of bibliophiles and browsers.

Among the highlighted items for sale at this year’s fair will be the legendary Blue Map of China from the 19th century Qing Empire—one of the rarest, largest, and most aesthetically magnificent maps ever made; Sylvia Plath’s own proof copy of The Bell Jar; America's National Game by A.J. Spalding, published in 1911—a classic in baseball collecting; an original handwritten manuscript by Martin Luther King Jr. for his first book, Stride Toward Freedom; a newly discovered and never published 14th century commentary on The New Testament, published in Paris around 1350; the original unpublished 1980 typescript of Luis Buñuel's last screenplay, Agón o El Canto del Cisne [Struggle or Swan Song]; a rare collection of documents evoking the climax and the dawn of decay of the mighty Medici dynasty, the most influential family of the Italian Renaissance; a rare copy of the first printed Sea Chart to correctly locate Boston, 1647; an elaborately illustrated 16th century gilded vellum folio from Spain of Regla y constitutiones de la cofradia del Sanctissimo sacramento de la yglesia de San Christoval de Granada; autographed letters and memorabilia from the 1960s of Ethel Kennedy and Richard Nixon; a wondrous work of fin de siècle art and occultism—Austin de Croze’s unpublished illustrated poetic collection La Lumière Magique, created in 1920s Paris; and rare and first editions of works by Margaret Atwood, James Baldwin, William Blake, Albert Camus, Albert Einstein, Charles Dickens, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Betty Friedan, Aldous Huxley, Beatrix Potter, Marcel Proust, Ayn Rand, Sir Walter Scott, P.L. Travers, Kurt Vonnegut, and Edith Wharton.

The Fair gives visitors the opportunity to see, learn about, and purchase the finest in rare and valuable books and ephemera. For attendees wanting to start a collection without breaking the bank, there will be dealers offering “Discovery” items priced at $100 or less, including a selection of children’s books and decorative cloth bindings. The Fair is an opportunity to learn tips on how to start a collection and talk to dealers who are experts in their specialties.

On Sunday from 1:00-3:00pm, attendees can bring in their own books for FREE APPRAISALS!

Tickets are $20 for Friday night’s exclusive Opening Night event, an opportunity for the public to get a first look at items for sale at the Fair; admission is free on Saturday and Sunday.

Friday, November 16              5:00-9:00pm            Tickets: $20.00 - Opening Night          
Saturday, November 17          12:00-7:00pm          Free Admission
Sunday, November 18             12:00-5:00pm         Free Admission

Hynes Convention Center
900 Boylston Street
Boston, MA
www.mccahome.com

The Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair is sponsored by the New England Chapter of the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America. A portion of the ticket sales will benefit the Boston Public Library and the American Antiquarian Society. Tickets are for sale at www.bostonbookfair.com and at the show’s box office during Friday evening show hours.

For more information, please visit www.bostonbookfair.com or call 617-266-6540.

The Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair is produced by CommPromo, Inc. www.commpromo.com

EVENTS AT THE FAIR

Kyoto Book Artists Society
Sumio Yamazaki & Charles Vilnis

Saturday, November 17, 1:00 pm – Exhibit Hall Theater

Learn about the world of Japanese art books with Sumio Yamazaki, one of Kyoto’s top dealers, in discussion with Boston Book Company Principal Charles Vilnis, an expert in the field of Japanese printing. Cultural and artistic continuities and departures will be explored. 

Ticknor Society Roundtable: Starting a Collection

Ken Gloss, Luke Kennedy Kelly, Alexander M. Koch

Saturday, November 17, 2:30 pm – Exhibit Hall Theater 

This year’s Ticknor Society’s Collectors Roundtable will discuss the best ways for new and young collectors to begin a book collection. The panel will feature Ken Gloss, proprietor of Boston’s iconic Brattle Book Shop; Luke Kelly, Harvard University student and award-winning book collector; and Alexander Koch, book collector and Maine Conservation Task Force member. Ticknor Society board member and former president Chris Morgan will moderate.

The Making of Ex Libris: The New York Public Library
Director Frederick Wiseman

Saturday, November 17, 4:00 pm – Exhibit Hall Theater

In Ex Libris, famed director Frederick Wiseman, goes behind the scenes of one of the greatest institutions in the world, The New York Public Library, revealing it to be a place of cultural exchange, learning and community. With 92 locations through Manhattan and the boroughs, The New York Public Library affirms the deeply-held American belief that individuals have a right to know and be informed. Wiseman, arguably one of the greatest living documentary filmmakers, will discuss the making of Ex Libris and will be available for questions on this and other highlights of his brilliant career.

PLEASE NOTE: Special Screening of Wiseman’s Ex Libris: The New York Public Library at the Boston Public Library, Rabb Hall, at 12:00 noon on November 17.  Free.

1968: The Year of the Century
Michael Goldman

Sunday, November 18, 1:30 pm – Exhibit Hall Theater

Political and cultural historian Michael Goldman has been collecting books on 1968 for decades, to the point where the local monthly publication The Improper Bostonian once opined that the two best places to relive the spirit of the late 1960s were Harvard Square and the book cases in Michael Goldman’s basement! For this presentation, Goldman will explain what it is about the year 1968 that continues to fascinate and frustrate those who remember it, as well as those who missed it, and also why many of its events, music, books, and films remains the focal point of so many in our culture right into 2018.

Sylvia Plath’s Letters & Traces
Peter K. Steinberg

Sunday, November 18, 3:00 pm – Exhibit Hall Theater

Join Peter K. Steinberg for a discussion on the editorial role he served in the recently published two-volume Letters of Sylvia Plath (Faber, 2017; HarperCollins, 2018). He will discuss finding, transcribing, and annotating the more than 1,400 letters in the books. The talk will conclude with the discovery of two lost Plath poems on a piece of carbon typing paper. Steinberg maintains the oldest, continuously updated websites about Plath: (www.sylviaplath.info) and the Sylvia Plath Info Blog (http://sylviaplathinfo.blogspot.com). 

FREE Expert Appraisals!

Sunday, November 18, 1:00–3:00pm – Exhibit Hall Entrance

Bring in your own books, maps, and ephemera and discover what they’re worth. Get free expert appraisals from the best in the industry. Learn about details that determine the value of your item and whether or not it would interest collectors and dealers. You might find you have a valuable treasure!

For digital images, or for further media information, contact NinaJBerger@gmail.com or call 617-543-1595.