Biff Books and Records (Sheffield) - Description of Books

BIFF BOOKS and RECORDS - SHEFFIELD

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TERMS USED IN DESCRIBING THE SIZE AND CONDITION OF BOOKS

Books have been described using standard bookseller's terms, these are reviewed below.

Broadly speaking my stock falls into two categories: Books below 5 pounds, which are mainly paperbacks and form the basis of the shop stock, and books over 5 pounds, which are stored elsewhere.

Condition is not normally given for books below 5 pounds, although size is. Most are in at least Very Good condition. Those that are below Vg show a good reduction in price.

Books above 5 pounds form the basis of my Internet stock. These are described in terms of both size and condition. If you would like to visit the shop to view particular items of this stock please email me at least 24 hours in advance.

If you would like to know the condition of any undescribed book, or if you require any further information email me directly at biffbooks@btinternet.com or use the order form to make your enquiry.

CONDITION
Obvious defects have been described. Books and dustwrappers are graded separately, books first.

M - Mint. As new condition.
F - Fine. Nearly new, only very minor signs of wear.
Vg - Very Good. A clean copy. Second hand but well looked after.
G - Good. A reading copy. Sound and complete but not a collectable copy.
Foxed, Foxing - Patches of discoloration.
Cockled - A "wavy" appearance caused by shrinkage of a dustwrapper's lamination. A common fault of large books.

SIZE

Whilst the condition of a book is clearly somewhat subjective, it might be imagined that describing its size would be straight forward. Indeed there are standard terms to do just that. In increasing order the terms Foolscap, Crown, Large Crown, Demy, Medium, Royal, Super Royal and Imperial may be used in conjunction with Octavo and Quarto. Not to mention 12mo, 16mo, 18mo....However, as I do not think that the majority of customers would find such terms particularly helpful, I have used the terms below:

8vo - Octavo. The size and shape of an ordinary hardback novel, about 9½" by 6". This is sometimes qualified: large 8vo or small 8vo.
4vo - Quarto. The size and shape of a sheet of A4 paper, about 11¼" by 8¾", again small or large may be added.
B Format - The larger of the two standard paperback sizes, about 7¾" by 5".

GENERAL TERMS

H/B - Hard Back.
P/B - Paper Back. Usually the size of an older Penguin, unless stated otherwise.
d/w - Dust Wrapper.
pp - Pages.
Unpaginated - No page numbers.
Half Title - Page with just the title on it, before the Title Page proper.
fep - Front end paper. Sometimes called the Paste Down. The paper which lines the inside of the cover.
ffep - Front free end paper. The blank leaf before the printed pages.
rep - Rear end paper.
rfep - Rear free end paper.
Oblong - The book is bound on its short, rather than its long, side.
a.e.g. - All edges gilt.
t.e.g. - Top edge gilt.