2009 Collectible Books of The MonthHere are the 2009 Collectible Books of The Month. Kathryn Stockett's The Help was our big winner for the year. A bestseller that reached No. 1 for several weeks. A signed copy is now $250-350! At least three books have gotten award nominations and several qualify for the upcoming awards. Our 2010 books are off to a great start. Learn more about them by subscribing to the newsletter.  December 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthServant of A Dark God by John BrownThis is John Brown's first novel and the start of a new fantasy series. The US publisher is Tor Books. It's about a complex world with a dark system of magic with monsters and soul-eaters. I don't know the number of copies in the print run but it is likely small. Mr. Brown is doing a lot of book signings so be sure to aquire a first edition signed book. These can be found at Mysterious Galaxy, Powells and Poisoned Pen. More information about the book and author and book sigings can be found on http://johndbrown.com/  November 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe Windup Girl by Paolo BacigalupiPaolo Bacigalupi's first novel, The Windup Girl, is currently available in book stores. The US publisher is Nightshade books. I don't know the number of copies in the print run but it is likely small. Mr. Bacigalupi's first book was Pump Six and Other Stories published in 2008. Three stories were nominated for awards. "The Calorie Man" won the Sturgeon Award for best sci fi short story. More information about the book and author can be found on www.windupstories.com The signed copies of the book may be difficult to find. I'll let you know if there is a store that has them.  October 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe Ghosts of Belfast by Stuart NevilleIrish author Stuart Nevilles's first novel, The Ghosts of Belfast, will be available on October 1st. The US publisher is Soho Crime. The book was previously published in the UK by Secker Harvill with the name The Twelve. But the book was a paperback.The US book is a hardcover. I've already seen it at Murder By The Book. Mr. Neville will be signing it there on Oct. 20th. The book is about Fegan, an IRA killer in northern Ireland, who is being haunted day and night by twelve ghosts. Store owner McKenna and manager David both rate this as one of the best books of the year. The total number of first printings is reported to be 30,000.  September 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthMathilda Savitch by Victor LodatoVictor Lodatos's first novel, Mathilda Savitch, will be available on September 15th. The publisher is Farrar, Straus and Giroux. He has been an actor, a poet, an artist, a playright and now a novelist.Mathilda is a 13 year-old girl whose older sister died a year ago by being pushed in front of a train. She decides to determine the truth behind her sister's death. The book had very good reviews. This is not exactly a young adult book but will obviously be read by many teenagers. The book cover illustration has a picture of a small girl inside of a snow globe. Mr. Lodato will tour to promote the book so signed copies will be available. He will tour in New York and will also be at the Texas Book Festival where I will see him and get a signed book. (I did not know this before I chose his book!). The total number of first printings is reported to be 50,000.  August 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthJohn The Revelator by Peter MurphyPeter Murphy's first novel, John The Revelator, was published by Faber and Faber in the UK in January 2009. Mr. Murphy is Irish. At this time, the UK book is only available as a mass market paperback.Normally, the true first edition would be the book to collect except for the fact that it is a trade paperback. Interestingly enough, the US version is a hard cover edition with a nice dust jacket. What I prefer to collect. The story is about a boy with a single mother growing up in a small town in Ireland. The book got quite good reviews so I was expecting that it would make the longlist for the Man Booker Prize. But this did not happen. This may be because one of the rules is that a publisher may only submit two books to be considered ... unless one of the books is by an author that was a previous winner or on the shortlist. Faber and Faber may have chosen other authors over Mr. Murphy. I looked over the authors and books that were selected (shown below) and saw that either availability is low or the books are already getting expensive. I have had trouble in the past guessing which books will move to the shortlist or will win. Mr. Murphy will have a chance at making the shortlist for the Costa Best First Novel award or other literary awards.  July 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafonhe Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon is the July selection. Mr. Zafon is the most popular living author in Spain. This is his second novel.I recently read his first novel, The Shadow of the Wind, the winner of the 2005 Barry Award for Best First Novel. It takes place in the 1940s and 50s after the Spanish Civil War. A boy finds a book in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books and he is determined to find the author and find out why his books have disappeared. This is a very collectible book, particularly if signed by Mr. Zafon. The book is not too expensive without his signature. I don't have it yet but I'm still looking. Back to The Angel's Game. The story is actually a prequel to Shadow of the Wind taking place in the 1920s. The problem with this book and why I was at first reluctant to consider buying it was that the first US printing is 600,000! But then he is a major author and not just in Spain. With this many copies, only the signed copies will be really collectible. The good news is that he will not be signing that many copies.  June 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe Selected Works of T. S. SpivetReif Larens's first book came out in early May. It is about another pre-teen protagonist who is a map maker on an adventure to collect a prize he has won. The book has an unusual size and features many drawings.
May 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe Sweetness At The Bottom of The PieAlan Bradley's debut mystery has already won an award! The Debut Dagger Award for unpublished books. The UK version came out in January and has a red dust jacket. The US version came out April 28th. Book collectors should note that signed copies will be available at only three locations in June (the author lives in Italy so signed copies may be difficult to obtain after his visit). Mr. Bradley will be at Murder By the Book in Houston on June 1st and then at Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, Arizona on June 3rd. 75,000 US copies in the first printing. The US book does not have a dust jacket. Pre-teen protagonist Flavia is a scientist and detective in 1950.  April 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe Red Wolf ConspiracyRobert V. S. Redick's second book is the start of a new series. The UK version came out a year ago. This fantasy book has gotten excellent reviews. It came out April 28th.  March 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthDog On ItSpencer Quinn's debut is the start of a detective series narrated by a dog. The book came out on February 10th. I bought a signed copy from Poisoned Pen Book Store in Scottsdale. The book had good reviews and should have broad appeal to many readers and book collectors.
February 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthThe HelpKathryn Stockett's first book is set Mississippi in the 1960s. The book came out on February 10th. Ms. Stockett signed her books in late February at Lemuria Book Store where signed copies can be obtained. The book went into at least 44 printings and was No. 1 on the bestseller lists for several weeks.
January 2009 Collectible Book of The MonthA Beautiful Place To DieMalla Nunn's debut book is set in South Africa in the 1950s. The book comes out in early January. The first printing was 75,000 copies. M is for Mystery Book Store has signed copies. Return from 2009 Collectible Books to Home Page
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