We enjoying talking to people who collect vintage treasures. In this interview, we find out more about Joe, the owner of the vintage shop ProsperosBookshelf on Etsy.
Why and when did you start collecting?
It must have been in 1951, but it seems to me that you collect books when you begin to enjoy reading, and my father started to bring me books during the 1930s. But I got my first teaching job in 1951 and started gathering books seriously. That is the “when.”
“Why?” Because I have always enjoyed reading. As an English professor I had a direction: American literature. In the 1950s American literature was just beginning to become an accepted university subject. (University English professors were mainly anglophiles.) As time passed, I began specializing in American dramatic literature, and in that area I did most of my research and writing. Later I became interested in drama and theater around the world and consequently taught courses in American drama (from its beginnings), Asian drama (China, Japan, South and Southeast Asia), the Middle East, Africa and the Caribbean. It was exciting: I travelled a lot and bought many books.
Who or what was your influence for collecting?
I am not sure that I can answer this question. Perhaps the word “collecting” is not appropriate. I never thought about “collecting” books. If you simply enjoy reading or if books are the means by which you gain the necessary information to live the life you want, you read books. And soon you discover that you’ve acquired a great many.
What is one of your favorite pieces and why?
As you have probably gathered, I am now selling the library that I accumulated during 42 years of teaching; so I am not really “collecting” books any more, although I still buy books that interest me but which are, however, not generally vintage. (In my view it is more satisfying to sell something you have enjoyed to someone who wants it than to have your heirs eventually sell your library to someone who will pay perhaps ten dollars for a shelf of 25 books. American dramatic literature before World War I has never been a popular subject, even for theater libraries.) I have enjoyed my books, and now I having fun selling them on Etsy.
At present, here is a book that I enjoyed finding and having through the years:
The “Memoir of George Holland the Veteran Comedian,” 1871, is a rare volume, “one of 50 on quarto paper” of a Limited Edition of 250.
Memoir of George Holland the Veteran Comedian 1871 Very Rare! Limited Edition of 250
During the third quarter of the 19th century Holland was extremely popular in New York theaters and in the country’s theaters that had touring actors. I am not sure where I found it, but I loved the time I spent in fusty old second hand bookstores.
What tips can you give us about collecting?
You just have to like rummaging through old bookstores. I will never forget an old house in Boston where every room was jam packed with books – even the bathtub was overflowing with them. Earlier this year I stopped by our town library and tried to give some of my old books to the librarian. I was shocked by what happened. The librarian took each book from my box and put it up to her nose. This was her “smell test,” she explained. No book could smell the least bit musty, and my poor books failed her test. She accepted only two quite new books. To me the mustier the better. Just step into a used book store and take a deep breath.
What would be your holy grail piece and why?
I am afraid that I don’t have one, but I can tell you what it might be like. Most of my early teaching days I spent gathering material for “The Complete Plays of W. D. Howells,” and one of my most exciting moments came when I was working among Howells’s papers that were owned by his grandson. One morning as I visited the grandson, he handed me a box which contained the manuscript of a play that Howells had written but never published – a dramatization of Longfellow’s “The Courtship of Miles Standish” which Howells called “Priscilla: A Comedy.” To my knowledge scholars who had written about Howells might have mentioned the play, but nobody had ever seen it. That was exciting. Manuscripts, privately printed books by famous authors, early and rare editions – these items answer the question. Holland’s Memoirs is a good example.
Where do you look for new items to add to your shop/collection?
I don’t look anymore, but if I did it would be the dusty old 2nd hand bookstore. We have a huge such store not far away called The Big Chicken Barn. A few years back I found there an acting edition of a 1838 play called “Nick of the Woods” by Louisa Medina, a very popular writer of sensational melodrama. It had never been published in a commercial edition, but it has been now – by Feedback Theatrebooks, my other Etsy shop.
How has collecting changed or affected your life?
Books haven’t changed my life, they have directed my life. As a teacher, I tried always to follow Longfellow’s dictum:
“The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,
And all the sweet serenity of books.”
And now, as a retired professor, I’m enjoy my collections in a different way – offering them to interested readers on Etsy.
Where can we find you?
Etsy – http://www.etsy.com/shop/prosperosbookshelf
Twitter – twitter.com/RoughMagicME
Facebook – facebook.com/ProsperosBookshelf
Pinterest – pinterest.com/roughmagicshops
Blog – prosperosbookshelf.blogspot.com
Loved reading this glimpse into you life; past and present. Hope you and Mollie have a happy healthy 2016!!
Thank you, Suz! Mollie says “Hi!” And we both send our wishes for a happy and healthy New Year!
It is such a pleasure to meet you, Joe. You’ve taught me so much, as I’ve never given much appreciation to books beyond the cover or those passed down to me by my grandmother. I certainly enjoy reading, but the books I read will never become classics. 🙂
Thank you so much for continuing to educate people, namely me. That librarian must have been young, because even I value old books, even if I never crack the cover.
Wishing you a lovely New Year.
Thank you, Terri. I am very pleased to hear from you. May you read many wonderful books and enjoy a happy and healthy New Year in 2016.
Enjoyed reading about your shop and collection. I have an appreciation for the old books but more to rescue and pass on to those that desire to read them.
An admirable objective, GirlPickers. Many of those old books certainly deserve new readers, and their authors had appealing thoughts which tell us a lot about our past.
I have a feeling it would be a very fun time digging through the books at the Big Chicken Barn with Joe! 🙂 I’ve always wondered if books were being collected to be sold or if his collection was being sold. Now I know! Thank you!
It is a hugh place, that Chicken Barn, though a little cold at this time of year. Now you know my aim with my old books, but somehow my book shelves still keep filling up. Have a great New Year!
I knew a little bit about you through Mollie and the RoughMagic shop at etsy, so what a delight to learn more! It must be very satisfying to pass on the books you enjoyed to those who will also enjoy them.
I hear your name around here a lot, Phylly, and find your shop, LovesVintage Delights, as fascinating as its name. Enjoy the New Year which I hope brings you many Delights.
A wonderful interview about a wonderful man! Thank you so much for sharing your collection with the world, Joe. I treasure the volumes I’ve added to my library thanks to you.
And yes – the mustier the better!
Happiness and love to you and Mollie!
Thank you, always, Faith. We have been thinking of you these days as the New Year seems not to be treating very well, but tonight Mollie tells me that you are feeling better. That is the right direction; keep going. You have our love and best wishes always.
What a great post! Can’t wait to get over to this wonderful Etsy shop and snoop around….who knows what I will find!!
Hi Urban Pearl! Who knows? “Who knows what **** lurks in the hearts of men?” (Or women) “The Shadow knows.” **** Happy New Year to you!
Very interesting read, and as an avid reader and book lover myself, I totally get your passion for books, Joe… cracking open a new one is wonderful, but there’s something about that “old smell”… and that librarian should be ashamed, lol 😉 Knowing of you thru your sweet Mollie, now I feel I know more about you 🙂
Yes, I, too, feel that I know you, as your name comes up around here frequently. Thank you for your comment, and a very Happy New Year to you!
This is such a great interview Joe, and I loved reading about your life of reading, teaching and collecting books. I too love books, old and new, and as much as I love seeing them on my shelves, I hope someday to pass them onto others that appreciate reading a “real book”. Thank you for sharing with us a little bit about you!
How very nice to hear from you, Glenna, and thank you for your comment. Winter is always a great time to think of reading and books. A fire in the fireplace and a good book! And snow–which I am sure that you are getting more than we are. Happy New Year to all of you!
Ah, a kindred spirit who learned to love reading from Dad! I have never gotten into reading plays beyond the Greek playwrights and Shakespeare, so there is a whole genre awaiting. Lucky me! Thanks so much for sharing, “The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,
And all the sweet serenity of books.”
It is nice to hear from a person whose name I hear a great deal. I think that it is true that most people do not read plays, and there are reasons. The true “theater person” wants to see a play on stage rather than read one, and until the last hundred years or so playwrights felt the same way and were reluctant to publish their plays. And, of course, all actors feel that way. And reading plays is a different kind of reading: you have to exercise your imagination. But that is fun, too. Thanks for the comment, and Happy New Year, kindred spirit!
What a lovely read and insight into your ‘bookishness’ – sad to hear of the rejection of ‘musty’ books – that smell is one of the most evocative I know 🙂 Happy New Year Joe!
Thank you, Patricia. Happy New Year to you and James!
Gotta love books!!!
Gotta Love Silver, too. I have been looking at your shop. No wonder Mollie speaks so highly of your special talents. Happy New Year and thanks for your comment.
Interesting look into your book collection. As an avid reader myself I can appreciate the joy of finding a new book and looking through its pages. So wonderful of you to share your treasures with other book lovers. Happy New Year Joe.
Thank you, Judy. Happy reading and Happy New Year!
Love reading this! As a retired teacher I can totally relate to the collecting of things related to my teaching experience and love of my subject. I would definitely purchase a book from Joe, just based on what I have read here. Thank you for interviewing him and publishing his story here.
Thank you, Laurie, for your kind comment. I hear your name frequently from Mollie. You have a beautiful shop, and I wish you a very Happy New Year!
I love a good book, sometimes the older the better. Some of my favorite older American literature that comes to mind includes almost all of Steinbeck, Mosquitoes by Faulkner and On The Road by Kerouac and my husband is tickled by many of Mark Twain’s witticisms. These are the writers that came to mind when I read “American Literature”. I can see that I would have learned a thing or two in your classes.
Good morning, Brooke,
California is Steinbeck country–and so many others. American literature offers a lot of pleasure for those who love to read, and it was something of a shock to me when I started teaching to discover that several of my English Department colleagues had very little interest in American writers. At the University of Kansas I initiated courses in the American novel, poetry, short story and drama when previously only survey courses were taught–and that only recently. Times change. Happy reading and thanks for the comment.
What a delightful glimpse into a whole different world. Thank-you!
Thank you, Jennifer, for your comment. So many worlds to explore!
Absolutely loved this feature. I love books! I have a Kindle and use it daily but….often will pick up a book, just because, it feels so right. The feel, the smell..old or new, its just perfect. Thanks for sharing.
Good Morning, Mimi,
What a nice comment to find in the morning e-mail. I have never used a kindle because I have always thought that one should be sitting before a blazing fire in the fireplace or under a pine tree in the shade–but I guess that you can do even that now with an i-pad. Whatever – thanks for the comment and have a great day–reading a book.
Sweet serenity, indeed!
Thank you for the comment, Barbara. Always pleasant to meet readers who know how to find that “sweet serenity.”