Book collecting has its own terminology and vocabulary. All our stock (with noted exceptions) is previously owned and therefore a precise description of conditionis an integral part of our business. Although it may be disconcerting to read anything less than a glowing description of a book, a collector, or any buyer, wants a true description of what they are buying. That’s why booksellers describe in detail such details  as condition of binding and dust jacket, any marks, wear on the cover,  underlining, previous owner’s signature/bookplate–anything that makes the book look and feel less than brand-new.  For certain collectible books, the difference between an absolutely perfect copy and one with any marks or defects could be  thousands of dollars. We describe books as accurately as possible and try to give them conservative ratings.

AB Bookman’s Weekly (aka Antiquarian Bookman), one of the most well-respected journals in the book-selling trade, listed the following categories for judging the condition of used books. The criteria for each category have become the industry standard:

1. As New is to be used only when the book is in the same immaculate condition in which it was published. There can be no defects, no missing pages, no library stamps, etc., and the dust jacket (if it was issued with one) must be perfect without any tears. (The term As New is preferred over the alternative term Mint to describe a copy that is perfect in every respect, including jacket.)
2. Fine approaches the condition of As New, but without being crisp. For the use of the term Fine there must also be no defects, etc., and if the jacket has a small tear, or other defect, or looks worn, those should be noted.
3. Very Good can describe a used book that does show some small signs of wear – but no tears – on either binding or paper. Any defects must be noted.
4. Good describes the average used and worn book that has all pages or leaves present. Any defects must be noted.
5. Fair is a worn book that has complete text pages (including those with maps or plates) but may lack endpapers, half-title, etc. (which must be noted). Binding, jacket (if any), etc., may also be worn. All defects must be noted.
6. Poor describes a book that is sufficiently worn that its only merit is as a Reading Copy because it does have the complete text, which must be legible. Any missing maps or plates should still be noted. This copy may be soiled, scuffed, stained or spotted and may have loose joints, hinges, pages, etc.
7. Ex-library copies must always be noted as such no matter what the condition of the book.
8. Book Club editions must always be noted as such no matter what the condition of the book.
9. Binding Copy describes a book in which the pages or leaves are perfect but the binding is very bad, loose, off, or nonexistent.

   In all cases, the lack of a dustjacket should be noted if the book was issued with one.