Ian Sansom

The cut-throat business of the secondhand book trade

Rick Gekoski regales us with tales of buccaneer book dealers ready to go into battle at the slightest hint of a rare first edition

Barter Books in the old railway station at Alnwick, one of the largest secondhand bookshops in Europe. [Alamy]
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  • White Spines: Confessions of a Book Collector

    Nicholas Royle

    Salt, pp. 176, £9

  • Guarded by Dragons: Encounters with Rare Books and Rare People

    Rick Gekoski

    Constable, pp. 256, £18

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