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UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 8:04 am
by csmith10
I am thinking of buying this set in the US ($75 list price, 25,000 copies). Would 25,000 copies be considered a lot of copies for limited edition? I guess I am wondering how much might this be worth one day if kept in mint condtion. 25,000 copies seems like a lot to me, but I have never bought a limited edition book set before and I really don't know how many they normally make, so that is why I decided to post here. One more thing I am confused about is the page count. One place that has the set cheaper says
Edition: Collector's
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publish Date: Nov 2009
ISBN-13: 9781439156971
ISBN-10: 1439156972
Format: Hardcover, 1074 pages

I thought it was 1088 pages. There are not two collector's editions are there?

Thanks!

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 1:30 pm
by ur2ndbiggestfan
My opinion only, but 25,000 copies is not a limited edition at all. 500 signed and numbered or less would be a limited edition. Years ago, a first print run was 4 or 5 thousand copies, and this was considered normal. But those days are gone.

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 1:51 pm
by jhanic
25,000 is still fairly limited when you consider there were about 925,000 trade firsts printed. It will probably eventually sell for a small premium above the list price, but not too much. It IS, however, fairly different than the trade (it has a different, "printless" cover, the pictures inside, the box of cards) so that it is more valuable.

For the difference in pagination, both the trade and the Collector's editions are the same. I'll have to check that out.

John

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 1:11 am
by csmith10
Thank you both for the answers. So I guess that it may not be worth getting this collector's set unless I just want it for my own collection as it may not be worth a lot more than what I pay for it, and it may be a long time before I could even sell it. And then there may be 24,999 others selling theirs. I did get the regular book today and it is 1074 pages long. So are you saying the collector's one should be the same length (1074) or are you saying it should be 1088 and you don't know why the description says different? WalMart is where I found the collector's edition that I copied/pasted to my first post. Barnes & Nobles (for one) states it is 1088 pages. So I am confused on that issue. BTW, so far I am enjoying the book and probably would still be reading but I began to fall asleep. I rarely ever used to get sleepy when reading, but now that I am older (and I don't sleep regular hours either), I find it happens frequently, which makes it take longer to read books than it ever used to take me. :(

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 4:39 am
by ELazansky
My Colllector's Edition and First Edition both have 1074 pages in them.

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 5:31 am
by ur2ndbiggestfan
I doubt if this will help you, but I buy books purely for the love of having and owning (and of course reading) them. Trying to get every possible first state edition uf UTD is FUN, even though right now I can't afford some of them. But the hunt is sometimes the best part of collecting. I know I can't take them with me (although I am trying to find a clause in this contract that WILL let me transport my library to Heaven [where I'm sure I'll end up (ALL fingers crossed)]). So enjoy the book as long as you can, and if somewhere down the line you no longer want it, then you can sell it.

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 6:32 am
by ELazansky
I agree. Collect for enjoyment, not for what it may be worth 10-20 years from now. I'm having fun picking up different copies of UTD. So far, I have the US 1st with White letters, the US 1sy with Grey letters, the US Collector's Edition, the UK 1st Edition, and the UK Signed/Limited to 500. I'd like to get the Italian and German versions next, even though I can't read them. I'll probably need a whole new bookcase just for UTD.

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 8:02 am
by TheCollector
csmith10 wrote:Thank you both for the answers. So I guess that it may not be worth getting this collector's set unless I just want it for my own collection as it may not be worth a lot more than what I pay for it, and it may be a long time before I could even sell it. And then there may be 24,999 others selling theirs. I did get the regular book today and it is 1074 pages long. So are you saying the collector's one should be the same length (1074) or are you saying it should be 1088 and you don't know why the description says different? WalMart is where I found the collector's edition that I copied/pasted to my first post. Barnes & Nobles (for one) states it is 1088 pages. So I am confused on that issue. BTW, so far I am enjoying the book and probably would still be reading but I began to fall asleep. I rarely ever used to get sleepy when reading, but now that I am older (and I don't sleep regular hours either), I find it happens frequently, which makes it take longer to read books than it ever used to take me. :(
It all depends on why you collect books. If like some it's purely for enjoyment then the gift edition is quite a deal as it's identical to the Signed edition (minus signature) for a fraction of the price.

However if you're collecting only for value then you should look at it this way

1st edition = Worthless, will almost always loose value due to 1,000,000+ print runs
Gift/Artist edition = Will only hold value, may go up eventually but not right away
S/L edition = Will immediatly go up in value if bought at publisher's price, much of the immediate price gain is already factored in if buying on the 2ndary market.

If you collect with a mix of both value and enjoyment in mind (and I think many do) each book is going to fall either more on the enjoyment side or the financial side of the equation. You'll have to figure out exactly where on a case-by-case basis.

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 8:29 am
by MrLevity
If i was going to get one limited edition of this book i would choose the UK limited edition. Even though now genuinely sold out, you can still find this for not much more than the publishers price on ebay.co.uk.
Limited to only 500 and far better spec than the US one, this should only go up in value.

Re: UTD collector's (limited) edition set

Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 8:58 am
by ChristineB
I will only add one clarification to this thread.

You asked if there is more then one special edition of this book, yes there is:

US Signed Collector's Edition--1500 printed, $200 price on DJ, Color end pages of the map, set of b&w cards of the characters and a tipped in sheet with no limitation statement and SK's sig on it and a belly band with name of book and author. By S&S

US Collector's Edition--25,000 printed, exact same as Signed edition only with out the signed tipped in page and $75 price on DJ. By S&S

UK Signed Numbered Limited Edition--500 printed, nothing like any other edition, blue slipcase and boards, sold for 150pounds? By Hodder and Straton

If you want to invest in an edition of this book that will appreciate quickly and keep it's value then you want the UK SL, The US signed version will be worth a bit more then it sold for but I don't see it gaining much value at all. Large publishers should not do SL's, at least not this large publisher.