The set of terms below were proposed in 1949 by AB Bookman's Weekly. They were adopted by the bookselling community and are still in use today.[1][2][3]
As new means that the book is in the state that it should have been in when it left the publisher. This is the equivalent of mint condition in numismatics.
Fine (F or FN) is "as new" but allowing for the normal effects of time on an unused book that has been protected. A fine book shows no damage.
Very good (VG) describes a book that is worn but untorn. For many collectors this is the minimum acceptable condition for all but the rarest items. Any defects must be noted.
Good (G) describes the condition of an average used worn book that is complete. Any defects must be noted.
Fair shows wear and tear but all the text pages and illustrations or maps are present. It may lack endpapers, half-title, and even the title page. All defects must be noted.
Poor describes a book that has the complete text but is so damaged that it is only of interest to a buyer who seeks a reading copy. If the damage renders the text illegible then the book is not even poor.
Ex-library copies must always be designated as such no matter what the condition of the book.
Book club copies must always be designated as such no matter what the condition of the book.
Binding copy describes a book in which the pages or leaves are perfect, but the binding is very bad, loose, off, or non-existent.
Dust jacketsEdit
Partially chipped (PC) describes small scuffs that remove the original colour of the dust jacket in discrete small flecks.
In all cases, the lack of a dust jacket is noted if the book was issued with one. The same applies to other possible accessories, such as inlays (like errata lists, cards, photo prints, PCBs), foldouts (like maps), media (like diskettes, CDs, DVDs) etc. There is no standard term for books in a condition below poor. Their normal fate is to be discarded or to be broken into individual pages if these have any value.
Internet book listingsEdit
With the advent of the Internet, AB Bookman's Weekly magazine declined and its place was taken by Internet listing services starting with Interloc in 1994. These services, for their own purposes, have made modifications to the descriptions in listings. For example, Amazon adds the terms "acceptable".[4]
Hollowell, Hugh. . Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
External linksEdit
ABEBooks list of book conditions
October 20, 2023
list, used, book, conditions, this, list, used, book, conditions, booksellers, standard, terms, describe, condition, used, books, that, they, sell, contents, dust, jackets, internet, book, listings, also, references, bibliography, external, links, editthe, ter. This is a list of used book conditions Booksellers use standard terms to describe the condition of the used books that they sell Contents 1 List of used book conditions 2 Dust jackets 3 Internet book listings 4 See also 5 References 6 Bibliography 7 External linksList of used book conditions EditThe set of terms below were proposed in 1949 by AB Bookman s Weekly They were adopted by the bookselling community and are still in use today 1 2 3 As new means that the book is in the state that it should have been in when it left the publisher This is the equivalent of mint condition in numismatics Fine F or FN is as new but allowing for the normal effects of time on an unused book that has been protected A fine book shows no damage Very good VG describes a book that is worn but untorn For many collectors this is the minimum acceptable condition for all but the rarest items Any defects must be noted Good G describes the condition of an average used worn book that is complete Any defects must be noted Fair shows wear and tear but all the text pages and illustrations or maps are present It may lack endpapers half title and even the title page All defects must be noted Poor describes a book that has the complete text but is so damaged that it is only of interest to a buyer who seeks a reading copy If the damage renders the text illegible then the book is not even poor Ex library copies must always be designated as such no matter what the condition of the book Book club copies must always be designated as such no matter what the condition of the book Binding copy describes a book in which the pages or leaves are perfect but the binding is very bad loose off or non existent Dust jackets EditPartially chipped PC describes small scuffs that remove the original colour of the dust jacket in discrete small flecks In all cases the lack of a dust jacket is noted if the book was issued with one The same applies to other possible accessories such as inlays like errata lists cards photo prints PCBs foldouts like maps media like diskettes CDs DVDs etc There is no standard term for books in a condition below poor Their normal fate is to be discarded or to be broken into individual pages if these have any value Internet book listings EditWith the advent of the Internet AB Bookman s Weekly magazine declined and its place was taken by Internet listing services starting with Interloc in 1994 These services for their own purposes have made modifications to the descriptions in listings For example Amazon adds the terms acceptable 4 See also EditFoxing List of booksellers abbreviationsReferences Edit Chernofsky 1991 p 183 Hollowell 2010 Rare books basics Powell s City of Books Archived from the original on October 27 2014 Retrieved October 11 2014 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint unfit URL link Amazon book conditions Retrieved October 4 2014 Bibliography EditChernofsky Jacob L editor Bookman s Yearbook 1990 1991 Clifton NJ Bookman s Weekly 1991 Hollowell Hugh The Original AB Bookman Grading Scale 1949 Archived from the original on 3 March 2016 Retrieved 28 October 2010 External links EditABEBooks list of book conditions IOBA grading system Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title List of used book conditions amp oldid 1168992159, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
