If someone came into our house, and walked into the library or down into the bookstore, and randomly picked out a book and asked me, “When did you buy this book, from whom, and how much did you pay?” I could answer that question with 100% accuracy within about one minute. Is it because I have a photographic memory – nope. It is because, as an anal accountant, back in the mid-1970s, I made the decision that when I bought a book for the library, it should be a first edition (if possible) in great condition (if possible), and so on but I decided that I should write up the acquired books information on one of those lined 5”x3” index cards. I still do it today, whether it is for our personal library or for Raven & Gryphon Fine Books. The information entered on the card includes: author, title, if illustrated and by whom, the publisher, place of publication and date, edition, a physical description of the book and dust jacket with condition noted, how much was paid, to whom, and where, month of purchase and on the back of the card, if warranted, estimates of current value.
Terrific!
As I write this, we have exactly 3,539 books as at the end of the last quarter, in the book business. We have a rather large Excel Book Inventory worksheet: the first worksheet is a summary of purchases and sales, by year of acquisition, with the total cost. The second worksheet has the same outline but reflects the revenue/replacement value rather than cost. The next worksheet has a listing of all books, with an indication whether or not an item has been sold for books acquired in 1974. This is followed by a sheet for every year up to 2026. This is of extreme value for insurance purposes, and only last month, I increased the coverage to 100%.
Still terrific!
If I was asked how many books are in your personal library, what did they cost and what are they worth today – my answer would be, I think about 2,500 books, I could go add up the costs per the index cards, call me next month, and don’t know about current replacement cost.
No longer terrific, in fact, scary that I don’t know. There is contents insurance on the house in case of fire, but how would I justify a claim? I have photos of some of the bookcases.
Not Acceptable!
I used to have a back-up plan. Using carbon paper, I would create a duplicate index card for each book, and periodically I would give them to Glenda’s sister. Who tried to give them back last month.
I must digitalize the personal library. I started earlier this month. The information on the individual worksheets, more or less mirrors what is on the index cards, which is what I am working from, but reviewing the actual books is required on many. And what about replacement costs?
It is pretty easy to access replacement costs today, thanks to the internet. But, many of the books I acquired for the library predated the internet – yep. I had two sources back then: book dealer catalogues, as you can see on the verso of the cards in the photos, or I could go to the library and pull out the latest Bookman’s Price Index (BPI) that was a compilation of catalogue entries from 100 to 200 book dealers. All outdated.
For books purchased over the last 20 years, the back of the index cards shows a summary of prices by condition. Mostly outdated.
For every entry in the new workbook, I check Abebooks, so that this Digitalized file will reflect and note the 2026 replacement costs. It can be selectively updated down the road.
So, how best to set up “The Cutten Library” Excel file? Not by year. I have chosen collecting interests. To date, I have completed the worksheets for Beresford Egan; J.P. Donleavy; Phil Rickman; and I’m working on my Dutch Treat Club collection. The first subject matter worksheet, I have called “Individual High Value Items” and I cherry pick the books. To date: a 1541 Plutarch; a book illustrated by Tony Johannot, 1843; a book illustrated by Aubrey Beardsley in 1896; and the first printing of Ernest Hemingway’s “Old Man and The Sea” – perhaps the finest short story I have ever read.
All our computer files are backed up in the cloud – so the destruction of the house, the books, the index cards, the computers will be survived by the offsite storage. Right now, the book business is taken care of, and inch by inch, so also the personal library.
Well reader – what about your library, your treasured books? If they are worth replacing, please digitalize them.