3 Helpful Hints I Use to Evaluate Online Booksellers

1. Contact the bookseller before making a purchase- One of the best methods I have used to determine the responsiveness and reliability of a particular online bookseller is to email them a brief clarification question, such as "When was this particular edition published and by whom?" (assuming this is not listed in the description) or "Is this particular book currently in stock?" This is an important question to ask, because not only can you verify that the book you desire is actually available, but you can also judge the customer service skills of the bookseller by their response time and friendliness.

For more expensive purchases, I usually ask a bookseller to email me a digital photograph of the dustjacket and copyright page. There is nothing to replace the touch and feel of a book in person, but a couple of digital photographs can give you a better idea of a book's overall condition. I have found that booksellers who respond within one or two business days (over the weekend) tend to be more reliable and professional. The sellers who do not respond to your emails or seem rude/stand-offish are not worth dealing with.

2. Feedback Rating- Perhaps the most obvious method to determine whether or not you are dealing with a professional seller. While the feedback system was first introduced by Ebay, it is now used by Amazon, Alibris, and many other bookselling websites. While it can help identify the most obvious scam artists, it is not always so easy to separate the professional sellers from the hobbyists and college students who use their books as food trays and beer coasters.
While a 90% rating may seem like a grade A seller, in reality, a rating of 90% is more like a C- in my opinion. Books from these sellers typically arrive in poor packaging, a week or two later than expected (allow 5-14 days for Media/Standard Mail shipments to arrive and 2-5 days for Expedited), and usually not in the condition described. I have had instances where a seller with a 90% rating described a book as Very Good and it was, in fact, brand new, but more frequently a book described as Very Good contains a plethora of highlighted pages and a heavily creased front cover.

I typically will only buy from sellers with an Ebay feedback score of 97% or higher or an Amazon feedback rating of 95% or 5 stars. If a seller does not meet this requirement, I will evaluate his feedback score within the last several months to look for red flags like:
1 out of 5: The book took two months to arrive. No response to emails.
3 out of 5: The book was no longer available and the order was cancelled (happens occasionally, even to the most reliable booksellers).
1 out of 5: Received the book, but not in the condition described, and much later than expected.

3. Book Descriptions- Here is where you can separate the bookselling veterans from the newcomers. While newcomers typically describe books using phrases like "pretty good, read once and didn't like it", the old school, highly professional bookseller's description will look more like this-

12vo. London, George Bishop. 1600. 3 vols. Small folio (292 x 191 mm.). Modern brown morocco, spine in six compartments with raised bands, lettered in gold, decorative blind-stamped borders on sides, g.e. Woodcut initials, and folding facsimile map. (24), 619, (1 blank); (16), 312, 204; (16), 868 pp.

For books published within the last 50 years or so, I prefer a description somewhere in the middle. I would like the general public to be able to understand the description, but I would also like a seasoned book collector to be able to imagine the book in his hands from my description. I always include the publication date and publisher, as well as the condition of the dustjacket and any noticeable flaws (creasing, bumping, underlining/highlighting, chipping, etc.) Perhaps descriptions are a matter of personal preference, but a general rule of thumb would be- "The longer and more detailed the description, the longer the bookseller has been in business."

Two other important indications which separate the professional bookseller from the crowd include a clearly stated Customer Satisfaction Guarantee and/or a membership in an association such as the ABA (Antiquarian Booksellers Association) or IOBA (Independent Online Booksellers Association, of which I am a proud member).

5 Outstanding Music Selections from 2007 So Far, in No Particular Order

1. Sondre Lerche- Phantom Punch



This is the album that finally lives up to his potential. I kept hearing a lot of hype about Norway's young pop prince, but I found his first few albums kind of boring. Phantom Punch has more edge than Faces Down or Two Way Monologue, and is an early contender for album of the year.

2. Patty Griffin- Children Running Through



I've got to give shout outs to Natalie and Donald Miller (author of Blue Like Jazz) for turning me on to Patty. She reminds me of a female Van Morrison in that her music spans country, jazz, blues, folk, and the like, but she manages to pull it off with grace. This is the CD that my mother and I can finally agree on.

3. Modest Mouse- We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank



This album will not disappoint fans of the group's early work, even with the new guitarist in tow (ex-smith Johnny Marr). It is sure to continue to draw in legions of new fans as well, though perhaps not as many as "Float On" did. Unlike Patty Griffin, my mother will remain appalled, and refuse to recognize this crap as music.

4. The National- Boxer



I am pretty late to the game on discovering this amazing band's sound. Apparently, this is their fourth album. After listening to it once, I went out and bought their first three, and one of them is just as good, if not better, than this one. While the singer reminds me of a much more pleasant and bearable cross between the baritone guy from Crash Test Dummies and the guy from Interpol, the lyrics are actually poetic, and at times a bit shocking and/or hilarious in an understated kind of way. The inclusion of piano, violin, and trumpets over the drums, guitar, and bass at just the right times make this quintet's combinations irresistible. Get this one and Alligator if you haven't already, and I guarantee you'll be thanking me.

5. LCD Soundsystem- Sound of Silver
Fujiya and Miyagi- Transparent Things






The two standout dance/electronic flavored albums of the early 2007. The former is a bit more serious than the latter. Fujiya and Miyagi are this year's Hot Chip, crafting an infectious brand of Japanese Style Krautrock on tracks like "Ankle Injuries" and "Reebooks in Heaven". Track #4 on Sound of Silver, entitled "Someone Great", makes the whole album worth the price of admission. Both are guaranteed to lighten up and dance-ify your lame summer barbecue.

Ode to a Bookstore

An ode to one of my favorite bookstore owners, Howard Hartog of the Vagabond Book Man in Lawrence, Kansas. This poem recalls locating a copy of Parnassus on Wheels, the precursor to The Haunted Bookshop (two perennial favorites among booksellers), among the stacks of his cluttered, yet always delightful bookshop.

On Finding a copy of Parnassus on Wheels at the Vagabond Book Store

I strolled into the bookstore on the corner of Massachusetts Avenue
And happened upon a fortress of volumes, mostly old but some new.

Friendly Howard up front, sitting at his cluttered throne,
Reading a novel, as if he was in front of the fireplace at home.

He directed me to the section which contained some of his signed first editions
And I remembered how broke I was since bookselling became my religion.

Of course I found several rare copies I could not do without:
A signed collection of Bukowski poems and Brautigan's book on trout.

I was thinking I needed at least one other to add to my personal collection,
When I stumbled upon a mysterious section.

A title caught my eye, and as I pulled the book from the shelf by its tattered dustjacket
I found exactly what I was looking for, in fact it

Was the prequel to the book I was currently reading,
To impatient to start at part one, for the written word I often become greedy.

The price on the front free endpaper was clearly marked in pencil,
"Not for Sale" it read, and I thought this must be a bookstore miracle.

I brought the book to Howard, thinking I deserved a prize
For discovering the single volume in the store lacking a penciled in price.

He gave me the book as a gift for purchasing several others
and also gave me sage bookselling advice like a kind older brother.

"Buy low and sell high, and only sell the good stuff" he said,
And I thought I had heard that in a book I had already read.

If you ever happen to visit the college town of Lawrence, Kansas,
Make sure to pay a visit to Howard on the corner of 12th and Massachusetts.