The Most Expensive Books Sold by AbeBooks in the Last 30 Days – Guess How Many Are Genre-Related?

Richard Davies from AbeBooks sent along this list of the most expensive books that AbeBooks.com sold between November 24 & December 7, 2008.

What does it say that most of these are genre titles, I wonder?

1. Dreams From My Father by Barack Obama – $5,000 – Signed by both the President-Elect and Michelle Obama.
2. Space Odyssey Series by Arthur C. Clarke – $3,750 – Complete set (4) of first editions – all signed by Clarke, who died earlier this year.
3. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley – $3,000 – First American edition, one of 250 numbered copies signed by the author.
4. The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice – $3,000 – Complete set (10) of first editions – all signed by Rice.
5. China, in a series of Views, Displaying the Scenery, Architecture, and Social Habits of that Ancient Empire by George Newenham Wright – $2,556 – Published in 1843, a rare insight into China during the Qing Dynasty.
6. The Works of Alexandre Dumas – $2,500 – First edition published in 1894; 15 volumes including the Count of Monte Cristo, Three Musketeers and more.
7. Poems by Wallace Stevens – $2,475 – Number 294 of 326 limited edition copies with original Jasper Johns etchings.
8. Enders Game by Orson Scott Card – $1,500 – 1985 first printing of the Nebula and Hugo Award-winning novel.
9. The Complete Works of George Orwell – $1,238 – Complete 20-volume set published in 1998.
10. Psycho by Robert Bloch – $1,188 – First UK edition from 1960.

I don’t know about you, but I’m not a serious enough colector to lay down that kind of money.

See also: What’s the Most You Ever Paid for a Single SF/F Book?