The Lure of the Signed Copy

When booksellers get together they talk about many things - how their shops are doing, bookish discoveries they have made, that sort of thing. But perhaps the best anecdotes - reserved for late evenings in the bar at conferences - involve author events, brushes with celebrities...and the pursuit of the signed copy.

We've had some great encounters over the years with authors (the knitted Alan Titchmarsh dolls presented to him by a huge fan being a particular highlight). From other booksellers, Bookseller Crow's profanity-laden Adrian Edmundson signed copy (warning: hugely offensive) is also a stand-out, and there's a fabulous tale of a big-name cricketer from the 80s doing a very grumpy (and hung-over) signing in Manchester - but the bookseller (and cricketer) must remain nameless...

But there's no mistaking the lure of the signed copy. Dedications are great, but where this isn't possible a signed copy makes a wonderful gift. Booksellers themselves are not immune - when last year we got a few signed copies of astronaut Chris Hadfield's book a few days before Christmas, one of them mysteriously ended up in my stocking, and boy was a I chuffed.

We've become aficionados of the author signature over the years. Some signatures are a work of art (Hilary Mantel's - above - springs to mind), some have obviously evolved after many years of signing thousands of books (Take a look at Derek Landy's signature - but as the Skulduggery Pleasant books are so awesome, we're not complaining!).

Chris Bradford's signature has morphed in the years we've been doing an event with him into something approaching a sword (very appropriate) and I particularly like the addition of a 'stamp' or two - our recent event with Megan Rix saw the odd paw print making its way across the page...

For insane amounts of effort for every single signature, it would be hard to beat Raymond Blanc. We watched him sit for nearly four hours signing hundreds of autographs until his kitchen-hardened hands almost went into spasm.

There are definitely health and safety issues. For some authors, repeated signing can definitely take it's toll (Jodi Picoult sported an elbow heat pack when she visited us a few years back).

Anyway, for today's 3 4 Friday #FridayReads here are three signed copies we're particularly pleased to have in the shop at the moment...

A new addition to CJ Sansom’s ‘Shardlake’ series is always a great event for fans, and the stories of the hunchbacked lawyer Matthew Shardlake during the reign of Henry VIII have already become classics. ‘Lamentation’ sees Shardlake again plunged into the deadly mix of plots, persecution and momentous history, investigating another mystery, this time set against the backdrop of an ailing Henry. We have a few signed copies – so please let us know if we can reserve one for you.

For those well-loved characters who outlive their authors though, death is not necessarily the end. In recent years, it’s become increasingly common for a well-loved character – Bond, Jeeves and Wooster, Philip Marlowe – to be resurrected by a current author, and can be fraught with controversy and risk. Sophie Hannah has just performed the incredible feat of bringing back Agatha Christie’s ‘Poirot’ in ‘The Monogram Murders’. When the book was announced, fans of both authors held their breath – but everyone can relax. Christie ueber-fan Hannah is the perfect person to resurrect the well-loved Belgian, as he investigates a triple-murder at a plush London hotel in 1929. Infused with the things that make Christie and Hannah so appealing – skilful plotting, psychological depth and not a small amount of wicked humour – this is pure enjoyment. We have fond memories of when Sophie came to a literary dinner we held in Abingdon a few years ago, so we’re delighted that she has signed copies for us – and beautiful they are too!

Finally, a big favourite with both staff and customers is Susan Hill, and a lovingly-produced hardback ghost story from Susan has almost become a Christmas tradition. This year ‘Printer’s Devil Court’ sees a truly unsettling ghost story set in Edwardian London. With echoes of Frankenstein, this tale of dark experiments involving four medical students is quick enough to read in a single sitting, but stays with you long after you finish. Signed copies of a beautifully produced edition available from us now.

We've other authors in stock - Hilary Mantel, and Bone Clocks author David Mitchell - so pop in and take a look. We're also taking pre-orders for our sold-out event with comedian David Mitchell on Nov 13. And if you want something really rare and collectible - take a look here...

Abbey Road: The Best Studio in the World

Title: Abbey Road:The Best Studio in the World

Author: Alistair Lawrence (Bloomsbury Publishing, HB, 2012)
Price: SOLD OUT
Collectible status: One of 215 limited editions, sealed, boxed, signed by George Martin

So what's it all about? The Abbey Road recording studios have been at the heart of the music industry for 80 years and are an iconic symbol of British music. With their unique blend of vintage equipment and cutting-edge technology, they remain one of the most technically advanced recording, mixing and mastering facilities in the world.

It's written by freelance music journalist Alistair Lawrence with a foreword by Sir George Martin and published to coincide with the Abbey Road Studio’s 80th anniversary, the 50th anniversary of the first Beatles recording at the studios and the 40th anniversary of the recording of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon (all in 2012).

From the original bill of sale for the property and classic landmark recordings to today’s sessions, Abbey Road takes the reader through the studio’s illustrious history.

Featuring interviews and a wealth of rare and never-before-seen photos collected from their archives, the book provides a fascinating insight into the creative home of many of the world’s celebrated artists.

Signed by Sir George Martin, this is a boxed, individually numbered, limited edition of only 215 copies.

The book comes presented in a beautiful red and grey box bearing the Abbey Road Studios logo and we are lucky enough to have copies of this exclusive - a highly collectible - book. For a music fan, a very special gift - or an investment for the future.

All copies of this book have now been sold. 

3 4 Friday: Grotesques, Gatekeepers and Grisly Tales, signed (but not in blood!)

Yesterday we took part in the annual Oxfordshire Book Award, one of the highlights of our year. A full report shortly - but at left is a sneaky pic of the attending authors signing books for pupils from the ten schools that attended.

That's Patrick Ness at the far end, then Nadia Shireen, Tony Ross, Katherine Langrish, Sally Nicholls and Jo Cotterill signing away.

Full blog post - involving author interviews and cake (!) - shortly, but for today's '3 4 Friday' #FridayReads we thought telling you about some very special signed editions was very much in order...

Firstly, you would have to have been at the South Pole not to notice that there is a new David Walliams book out. 'Ratburger' is another gross, grotesque and very funny tale involving our hero Zoe, her pet rat, and a very nasty burger restaurant owner. Inspired (if that's the correct word) by a late-night trip to a burger van, the book contains fantastic illustration by Tony Ross.

And as we were very honoured to meet Tony Ross yesterday, we were extremely pleased to arrange things on the signed copy front. What this means is that - for a limited time only - we have copies of Ratburger signed by both David Walliams and Tony Ross...how cool is that?

 

Of course, someone who has recently been to the South Pole (well, Antarctica) researching his latest book is 'Stormbreaker' and 'Power of Five' author Anthony Horowitz. To the many children (and some adults) who have been coming into Mostly Books since book four was published, we can now categorically confirm that book five 'Oblivion' is out...

We were lucky enough to meet Anthony Horowitz at an event in Abingdon last year, and we are even luckier to have a (very few) signed copies of 'Oblivion' in stock. The cover is a work of beauty, and the book will certainly not disappoint fans who have waited quite a while. Epic in its scope, with suitably apocalyptic battles and the same strong characterisation that has had fans chomping at the bit for its publication (and boy, do we know), it ensures the Power of Five series finishes on a definite high.

Finally, we have some beautiful, signed hard back editions of one of our favourite books of the year: 'Wolf Princess' by Cathryn Constable. In this beguiling tale, orphan Sophie dreams about ice and snow, dreams in which she is running away. Always fascinated by Russia, the chance of visiting on a school exchange is irresistible. But where they are staying isn’t quite what she and her schoolfriends expect. They find themselves in a winter palace, an atmospheric place mostly derelict, but with only a few very sumptuous rooms, where the few servants are badly treated in a bizarre mix of poverty and majesty, presided over by a wicked princess who tells them bloody stories of the last days of the Tsar. And when she starts to act particularly strangely towards Sophie, the girls realise their adventure is putting them in danger...

The atmosphere is fantastically created and it’s good to find a teen read that’s set in the present day, but with such a great historical context.