Wonderful Concertina Related Kids Book

[Perry Werner]

Hi folks:

 

In my new, what seems like never ending, desire to acquire, accumulate and no doubt appreciate, concertina related artifacts, I last week tripped over this wonderful children's book at a book show in New York City with the following description (which was actually written by a friend of mine who, like myself is also a rare book dealer).

 

 

"Captain Jeff and the Squeeze Box"

by Ruth K. Todt

 

Book Description: Chicago: Whitman. photos by R. D. Richardson. , 1940, unpaged. Binding is tan cloth with photo-decorated cover, no dj. photo endpapers. Photo picture book involving a concertina and a peg-legged salt named Captain Jeff and other funky marionettes. VG+ with slight edge wear and soiling to covers, contents great.

 

If anyone in interested in acquiring a copy of this book as there are several available, very reasonably priced, though the condition of the copies may vary and none of the copies I've seen listed have the dustjacket which my copy has (and for which I now realize I paid a premium, happily) though the front cover has a picture which mimcs the image on the dustjacket, please let me know and I will be happy to reveal the source.

 

Hopefully the image I've attached will appear. This image is of two facing pages inside the book.

 

Have fun,

Perry Werner

[Perry Werner]

Hi again:

I guess the image attachment did not work.

Any help with this would be appreciated and I will attempt another one.

Best,

Perry

[JimLucas]

I guess the image attachment did not work.

Two things about images:

.. 1) There's a size limit. What's the size of yours? If it's more than 120K, it won't be attached. If it's too big and you don't know how to make it smaller, send me a copy (same old email address) and I'll do it for you.

.. 2) If you attach an image and then Preview the post, the link to the attachment disappears. After preview, go back and reattach the image, then select "Add Reply" without further preview.

 

By the way, I would like to get a copy.

Also, I notice there's another copy of Tingo and His Magic Concertina on eBay.

[Perry Werner]

Hi Jim and Y'all:

 

Did it work??????

 

By the way, copies of the book are listed for sale at

 

http://dogbert.abebooks.com/servlet/Search...n+jeff&sortby=2

 

The copy from Hi + Lo Modern (a friend of mine) has been already been ordered (by me) but most of the other copies should still be available.

 

Best,

Perry

[JimLucas]

Did it work??????

Yep, it worked.

 

I tried ordering a couple of books (not just concertina books), but when I try to enter my credit card info, it keeps crashing, saying it can't find the server.

Well, I sent an email to their technical support.

[RustyBits]

I don't get how to attach apicture. The only buttons I see are for http://, img (if you have an image uplaoded to the web) @, quote, code and list. Where is the attach button???? I tried just copying a picture and pasting it into a message, but that doesn't work either.

 

Perhaps I am just having a clueless episode??

[bellowbelle]

When you're editing/adding your post, there's a 'Browse' thing down below the smilies at the bottom.

 

It's above the 'Add Reply' button....

 

So...let's see...I think the pic on your computer must be a certain size, not huge, or it won't work.

Edited May 2, 2004 by bellowbelle

[bellowbelle]

By the way, copies of the book are listed for sale at

 

http://dogbert.abebooks.com/servlet/Search...n+jeff&sortby=2

Shall make a note of this. I've yet to find any story-type books about the concertina, and I've looked at a few bookstores, when I happened to be at them.

[RustyBits]

Duh! You mean where it says "You may attach a file to this message"!

 

I WAS having a clueless episode. Pardon me

[bellowbelle]

Duh! You mean where it says "You may attach a file to this message"!

 

I WAS having a clueless episode. Pardon me

Well, no problem.

 

And, whenever I start having those 'senior moments' (...think I may have, already), I'm going to use that 'Browse' command button as a good excuse to go out shopping. That's what it always meant, when my grandmother 'browsed,' years ago....

 

...anyway, I don't know why I dare to be online, this late at night...just got home from a long drive, should probably go to bed!

 

Good luck posting some pics!

[JimLucas]

...I sent an email to their technical support.

And this morning (well, it's morning now in Europe) it worked just fine.

I have now ordered my books, both Captain Jeff and a non-concertina one.

 

This Abebooks site/company is great! I found multiple copies listed of each of two books that I've never been able to find on Amazon. (Of the one I just ordered a copy. The other I already have -- my name is in the acknowledgements, -- but it's long out of print, so I'm always curious whether it can still be found.)

 

They also have 4 copies of Tingo and His Magic Concertina, though the prices seem rather high to me. I wonder what the copy on eBay will go for.

[Guest]

Great book, thanks for the tip.

 

On a slightly related topic, there is a kids show here in Australia where all characters are children's toys, and one is a concertina [can't tell whether it's an Anglo, English etc ]

 

If I ever remember the name of the show I'll let you know

 

Cheers,

Morgana

[Perry Werner]

Hi again folks:

 

Yes, ABE (The Advanced Book Exchage) is a wonderful resource for buyers and sellers (like me).

Please be aware that prices can be all over the place and that most books are priced according to several criteria (desirability, rarity, condition, edition, presence or lack of, a dustjacket, etc., etc., etc.)

Also be aware that many books move quickly, while some sit forever, also depending on the same criteria.

 

"Tingo and His Magic Concertina" may seem pricey, but if there are only 4 copies listed, that means that there are only four copies for all the world to possibly purchase, so a dealer knows that eventually there is a good chance that they will get the asking price. There are two choices, buy it now at the current asking price or wait for another dealer to list a copy at a lesser price, which might take years. Oh yeah, the third choice is to try to find a copy at your local library.

 

If I can be of any help in the world of out of print books, I'll be happy to help out and give advice and further information.

 

By the way there are many other places to search (see Bookfinder.com or Addall.com), though ABE is probably the most comprehensive, especially for out of print, and please also know that the same exact copies of certain books from the same individual dealer can have different pricing on differnet sites due to the various commissions and fees charged by the individual site to both buyer and seller.

 

Happy hunting,

Perry Werner

[JimLucas]

"Tingo and His Magic Concertina" may seem pricey, but if there are only 4 copies listed, that means that there are only four copies for all the world to possibly purchase,...

I think not in this case.

 

My "pricey" judgement is only for this particular book, and is based on (1) the listed prices ranging over $20-35, (2) the copy currently on eBay so far has only one bid ($1.99, albeit with a bit more than 5 days to go), (3) it's the 3rd or 4th copy I've seen on eBay in a little over a year, and (4) I don't think any of those on eBay brought even $20. (I know neither mine nor Perry's did. )

 

But I am curious about the $35 copy on ABEbooks. Caveat emptor and all that, but the description says "first edition" and "sextagon boards" and lists a size greater than my copy, which is octagonal and gives no indication of there having been an earlier edition. Was this book really so popular that it went to a second printing and even a separate edition?

 

By the way there are many other places to search (see Bookfinder.com or Addall.com),...

Thanks for the tips.

[Pam B]

Also, I notice there's another copy of Tingo and His Magic Concertina on eBay. 

I have Tingo and his Magic Concertina. It's quite the novelty book. It is in the shape of a concertina. The story is a bit dry, but appropriate for it's time.

 

Pam

The Concertina Playing Children's Librarian

[malcolm clapp]

On a slightly related topic, there is a kids show here in Australia where all characters are children's toys, and one is a concertina [can't tell whether it's an Anglo, English etc ]

 

Can't remember the name of the show, but the concertina's name is MacDuff.

Regards

Malcolm Clapp

[Perry Werner]

Jim:

I'm guessing that there is not another edition of "TINGO" after the first.

As for the size and shape of the book in question, I am guessing it is the same edition as the others.

I'm also guessing that a book like "TINGO" did not go into multiple editions and size variations, though I could be wrong and will report so when I see and ask a good friend of mine who deals in children's books.

Be leery of some of the descriptions on ABE and the other book sites.

Sometimes they can be sketchy, incorrect, inaccurate and overblown.

Also, many times gereralites as to the description of the book are used not giving using proper bookman's terminology, which unfortunately most people don't understand anyway, unless they are frequent shoppers of used books.

Also, most of the dealers who are selling on these sites are good, honest folks, but like Ebay and other places on the web, there are more and more folks who are fly-by-nighters and they do not understand how to properly describe a book and just use kind of a shorthand so they can move onto their next listing. It's kind of a numbers game. The more one lists the more chances of a sale.

 

Best,

Perry

[wes williams]

I'd like to backup Perry and say that I've ordered quite a few books from all over the world over the past few years via book dealers on ABE using credit card, and never had a problem yet. More recently (which is probably a sign of its increasing popularity) I've found that books advertised have often already been sold, so its best to email or phone the dealer first (ABE will give you contact details).

 

Prices can be very different, and I've often found it a big saving to order from the USA (even with postage) rather than the UK.

 

Good Hunting!!