I need to get rid of Diseases of the Skin and Medical Gynecology...

August 9, 2010 1:08 PM

Where to sell about 10 medical books (1909-1940) that are in good/very good condition?

Bookfinder shows them to be about $20 each in the marketplace, not finding any completed listings on eBay, and no desire to go with an online place that requires a $20 or $25 fee just to sign up - unless you can tell me why I should!

If that's the price range I'm looking at, and if I can figure a physical store will give me maybe a third of that, I'd probably rather try online.

For physical stores, Washington DC/Baltimore/NOVA region.

posted by mrs. taters to grab bag (4 answers total)

You will probably not be able to get anywhere near that much for them. Medical texts from this era are common, and unless it's a very rare or desirable, will not fetch much at all. They are also usually big and heavy, which means shipping them is a pain.
posted by cosmicbandito at 1:17 PM on August 9, 2010

Have you checked prices on AbeBooks?

I collect Pre-WWII American medical books and frankly, I think I've paid more than $20 on only a handful of items; admittedly, I don't go searching for the more expensive ones. But realistically, size and condition make little difference in many cases. There are two main categories: actually rare and prized and in good condition, which can go for a LOT, and everything else, which ranges from 'take it so we can have our shelves back' to $15.
posted by cobaltnine at 1:25 PM on August 9, 2010

Ah, I once hung onto a really nice set of Tice, Practice of Medicine, of that approximate age, for quite some time. Nobody wanted it. Nobody wanted it for free plus shipping. I had to hassle a medical school to take it. And I had to take it there.
posted by adipocere at 1:50 PM on August 9, 2010

An artist friend of mine collects these and finds nearly all of his stuff on eBay. He uses them in sculptures, dismantling them and reassembling them. The look of them is what he is after, not the content. As has already been mentioned, most are not particularly valuable, but he ends up paying the upper end of the "non-rare book" prices when he finds handsome ones. Maybe you would have more luck in listing them with very specific tags and not pursuing the average collector collecting for content.
posted by nickjadlowe at 2:31 PM on August 9, 2010