NEW BOOK: GUIDE BOOK OF THE OFFICIAL RED BOOK OF UNITED STATES COINS
The E-Sylum (4/19/2009)
Book Content
Dennis Tucker of Whitman Publishing forwarded this press release about the new "Guide Book of the Guide Book" by Frank Colletti (see his picture below). -Editor
Whitman Publishing entered the field of numismatic publishing in 1934. In 2009 the company celebrates its 75th year with a book about the hobby’s leading annual reference—the Guide Book of United States Coins, popularly known as the “Red Book.”Over time the Red Book, which has been a cornerstone of the hobby since it debuted in late 1946, has become a collectible itself. Many coin collectors save a copy each year, while striving to hunt down the elusive early editions and rare errors and varieties.
To assist other collectors, researcher and longtime hobbyist Frank J. Colletti has written the definitive guide to the scarlet tome: the Guide Book of the Official Red Book of United States Coins.
A reader needn’t be a confirmed “numismatic bibliophile” to love this book—just a fan of the world’s greatest pastime. It’s unlikely that any coin collector active today has not heard of the hobby’s beloved “Red Book.” Collectors have bought more than 22 million copies since 1946, making it one of the best-selling nonfiction books in the history of American publishing.
The Guide Book of the Official Red Book of United States Coins offers a history of earlier coin price guides. Colletti explores the foundation laid by hobby legend R.S. Yeoman with the “Blue Book” (which debuted in 1942, and compiled dealers’ buying prices). He then studies each Red Book issued since 1946. Regular editions, special editions, authorized overprint editions, and amazing errors are all examined in detail, with market values given for various grades. Colletti tells what to look for and how to build and care for a collection of Red Books. He also discusses Red Book–related medals and other collectibles.
Along the way, the reader will enjoy a wealth of old advertisements, vintage photographs of the personalities involved in the book, and historical hobby memorabilia. Kenneth Bressett, Q. David Bowers, and other famous hobbyists offer their personal recollections. In pictures and words, it’s like sitting down with friends and learning all the behind-the-scenes stories, the legends, and the lore of more than 60 years of American numismatics.
Everyone who collects or deals in rare coins, numismatic literature, or collectible books—or loves learning about the hobby’s famous dealers, collectors, and researchers—as well as those who want to add to their own collection of Red Books, or find out how much they’re worth—will be delighted with the Guide Book of the Official Red Book of United States Coins.Available online, including at at www.WhitmanBooks.com; and in bookstores and hobby shops nationwide.
By Frank J. Colletti. Forewords by Kenneth Bressett and Q. David Bowers.
304 pages; full color; 6 x 9; softcover. Retail $19.95.
A leather-bound Limited Edition (250 copies, autographed by the author) is available for $49.95.