| One of the great benefits of the internet to book | | | | would then mark it up to the lowest listed price or |
| lovers is that they can now determine the market | | | | even lower. The book dealer may or may not list the |
| value of a book by consulting online bookstores. | | | | book for sale on the internet, but even if the book is |
| They can also consult book price comparison services | | | | put on the shelves in a secondhand bookshop in the |
| to see at a glance what several bookstores are | | | | mall, then the bookshop owner has the satisfaction |
| asking for precisely the same book.Often people | | | | of knowing she is not ripping off the public or doing |
| come to our brick and mortar used-book shop asking | | | | herself down either.It is important to note that the |
| the value of a certain book. In most cases it turns | | | | listed prices of books in internet bookstores are |
| out to be much less valuable, in monetary terms, | | | | asking prices only. There is no comprehensive |
| than the person had supposed. Often the | | | | database yet, of book prices that have been realized. |
| book-owner confuses the sentimental value of the | | | | It is fair to assume though, that as the number of |
| book (my great-aunt Molly left it to me) with the | | | | books available for sale in online bookstores |
| price that the market may be willing to pay for that | | | | approaches the one billion mark, the more |
| particular book. Where the sentimental value is high, | | | | authoritative and accurate the aggregate prices for |
| the monetary value is invariably low.Before the | | | | listed books are becoming. The sheer weight of |
| explosion of online book dealing, which began around | | | | numbers is also showing up those online bookstores, |
| 1994, determining the real value of a book was a | | | | or individual booksellers on group sites, whose prices |
| headache. One ended up phoning experts for price | | | | are unrealistically high.All this data can never take into |
| guidelines or wading through printed catalogues or | | | | account the subjective reasons for which people so |
| else just using one's gut feel. Now it is possible with | | | | often buy books. These include the smell of the |
| the click of a mouse to see where a book fits into | | | | pages, a memory of this book in someone's house, a |
| the book price universe.The method of using online | | | | half-recalled phrase, an arresting illustration, the feel |
| bookstores to value books is in fact how secondhand | | | | of well-worn boards. These emotional feel-good |
| bookstores determine whether it is worth buying a | | | | factors may persuade buyers to purchase a book, |
| book. When confronted with an old leather-bound | | | | even at a premium price. Most of these things can be |
| volume, for instance, and asked to make an offer | | | | appreciated by buyers only in a walk-in bookstore, |
| for it, the book dealer will in all likelihood head for the | | | | where they can browse at leisure and in peace.The |
| PC.If there are only a couple of copies of identical | | | | internet book store can never replace the experience |
| books (in terms of edition and condition) in the online | | | | of browsing and its emotional responses. The smart |
| bookstore and the lowest priced of them has a high | | | | book dealer in the brick and mortar store should take |
| price (anything above $20), then it may be worth the | | | | this into account and factor it into the price of her |
| dealer's while for her to offer to buy the book. She | | | | books. |