This is a collectible 1st/1st hardcover copy of Carol Goodman’s 2003 critically-acclaimed novel, The Seduction of Water, 1st printings of which already are becoming increasingly hard to find.
Most importantly, this stated "First Edition" w/ full number line (ending w/ "1") is in excellent overall condition; it appears never read, has no markings and its DJ is clean and bright with no significant flaws . The only notable blemish is just the light edge/corner shelf wear from the 15 years of normal shelf storage and occasional handling.
Indeed, the inside of the book is pristine w/ no names, writing, highlighting, stamps, stickers, imprints, inscriptions, penciled prices, or anything else added by a previous owner or seller. The book’s pages are clean and crisp w/ no stains, moisture damage, soiling, intentional corner creases, wrinkles, rips, or any other marks. Thus, the inside looks and essentially is new or at least "like" new.
The DJ is in terrific overall condition, especially for a book that has endured 15 years of normal shelf storage and occasional handling. The face of the DJ is "clean and bright" with no writing, stains, stickers, moisture damage, scratches or any other significant flaws. There are no marks. At most, there is some very minimal, barely noticeable rubbing and slight surface wear from rubbing (these rubbing scuffs are very light barely noticeable marks that do penetrate the surface, and thus are not scratches— they generally are unavoidable w/out a plastic cover).
The DJ's edges/corners are mostly sharp and overall are in at least good condition. There is, however, the light edge/corner wear one should expect from 15 years of normal storage and occasional handling. The corners opposite the spine in particular, most notably the front, top right corner have have noticeable light fraying, and there is various color loss, gentle creasing and other minor overt wear along edges and on and around corners. Most importantly, there are no rips nor any significant edge or corner wear. See photos. Indeed, the wear is limited to edges/corners, is not problematic in any way and really does not diminish the overall attractive appearance of the DJ. While I sincerely believe the DJ’s wear is minimal especially in light of the book’s age and its overall excellent condition, I have of course taken such blemishes into consideration in pricing the book.
In short, this collectible hard to find 1st edition is in excellent overall condition. It is clean, unmarked and without significant flaws. In sum, this wonderful book would be a great addition to any fine book collection, a highlight of any Goodman collection a terrific gift for Goodman fans or simply a compelling read.
Other relevant specifics:
• This book was published by Books in 2003. Th e copyright page of this hardcover expressly states that it is the “First Edition: January 2003“. It also includes a full number line ending with a "1", thereby establishing that this is the collectible First Printing of the First Edition, pursuant to the publisher's guidelines in effect at that time.
• The book has 357 enumerated pages.
• This is neither a library copy nor a book club edition.
• There are no remainder marks nor is it price-clipped (the DJ front flap has the $23.95 list price in the upper right corner).
• There are no names, inscriptions, stickers, or other markings or anything else added to the book by a previous owner or seller.
• There is no writing, stains, soiling, rips, moisture damage or other significant markings or damage on the inside of any pages.
• There is no writing, stains, soiling, rips, stickers, moisture damage or other significant markings or damage on the DJ.
• The DJ flaps edges are in fine condition with no corner creases, overt wear or other flaws.
• There is no spotting, discoloration, or any other signs of damage from the natural aging process or mold, mildew, warping, or other notable damage arising from inadequate storage.
• The boards, hinges, spine and end pages are all in fine condition w/ no overt flaws.
In any event, please review the photos to also consider the condition of the book yourself, but please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions about the book or the listing.
Thank you for looking!
General issues and policies
I do combine shipping- buyers will not pay any duplicative shipping costs when purchasing multiple products from me.
I do not use “stock” photos- the photos included in the listing are of the actual product
I try to include as many photos and otherwise provide as much info as appropriate to allow buyers to properly evaluate the product
It is important to recognize that determining the condition of a book is primarily a subjective, as opposed to objective, process. Moreover, one person’s “very fine” may be another’s “fine”. Indeed, even experienced collectors can differ widely on describing the same book. Of course, part of the problem is semantics; e.g., even descriptive terms of art, such as "chipping" or even "very fine" can be defined differently. What is required to meet a definition also can differ widely. Similarly, different collectors/sellers/buyers prioritize issues quite differently- e.g., to one, a previous owner’s name inside a book may a significant issue, while another could care less. As a result of such apparent inconsistencies, I simply to try be as descriptive as possible in plain language. I try to minimize use of terms of art and instead simply try to describe the book as thoroughly as possible, especially when the book is likely to be bought for collecting purposes as opposed for reading pleasure. Sometimes, I may be a little excessive in my descriptions, but in general, I would rather provide too much info than not enough.
Ultimately, I believe it is my responsibility to inform the buyer through the listing's description of any and all potentially relevant info about the book's condition so that the buyer can make an informed decision about purchasing the book. Similarly, I believe it is my responsibility to include photos of any and all of the book's notable blemishes or at least an appropriate example of a blemish if there are multiple blemishes of the same nature. Such info and photos are necessary to make a proper informed decision on buying a product- I want it when I purchase anything on-line and believe you deserve it.
While I believe it is my responsibility to provide the relevant info and photos about the book's condition, it is the buyer's responsibility to determine such information's significance. Again, significance is a subjective standard. It also depends on the buyer's particular need-- eg, a collector will be much more concerned about a barely noticeable remainder mark than a buyer who simply wants to buy an unmarked book to read. To the extent I do state my opinion about the significance of a blemish, it surely is ok for us to disagree. It is your opinion that ultimately matters. My opinion still may be worth knowing, however, to help you understand how I priced the book. Generally, while I take any and all blemishes into consideration in pricing a book, if I consider a blemish to be relatively insignificant (e.g., a penciled price that easily can be erased w/out damage), you should know that the book was not likely discounted significantly b/c of that issue.
Please understand that the listing of books is very time-consuming, especially the reviewing, photographing + describing aspect. So while I do try to be as informative as possible, the effort must be balanced against the need to minimize my time input. Believe it or not, It generally takes over a 1/2 hour for me to list each book, mostly b/c of the time-consuming nature of inserting thorough descriptions. The cost of such time input is surely the main reason why most sellers use stock photos and have limited product descriptions. While I refuse to take such shortcuts, I still have to balance my desire to be as descriptive as possible w/ the other demands on my time —primarily the demands arising out of raising my 3 daughters. To that end, please be understanding. If I occasionally miss something in my review, my description is not as thorough as it should have been or 1 or more photos is lacking, I sincerely apologize! While I sincerely do my best to thoroughly and accurately describe my products, I, like everyone else, do make mistakes. Nonetheless, PLEASE know that the mistake was unintentional and that I have NO desire to mislead anyone. After all, not only does such conduct, i.e., misleading customers, only trigger and/or result in complaints, bad feedback, and ultimately returns and refunds, all of which are time-consuming and costly, it also is bad business in general, and most importantly, simply wrong.
RETURNS- I do accept all return requests based on an inaccurate or incomplete description— simply contact me and let me know the problem, I kindly will agree to the return w/out a conflict. Per eBay policy, I will refund your account once I receive the product back from you. As an alternative to the time-consuming return process, it may more appropriate or otherwise preferable to do a partial refund, whereby u keep the book and we amicably agree to an appropriate solution-- e.g. a partial refund, i.e., a discount to the price you paid based on the significance of your concern, your inconvenience/disappointment + my desire to correct the mistake- I tend to be quite generous in such circumstances. Alternatively, we could reach other possible solutions such as substituting a better copy of the same book, discounts to purchases, or some combination of different offers. In sum, In sum, while I always attempt to satisfactorily rectify any problems, I assure you that I especially will go out of my way if the problem arose out of by my failure to properly describe a book.
In fact, in general, I sincerely try to prioritize customer satisfaction and if you are unsatisfied in any way I will do my reasonable best to address your concerns. Accordingly, please do not hesitate to inform me of your concerns. In response, at a minimum, I will try to follow the golden rule, whereby I will treat you as I like to be treated. I simply ask that you similarly try to be honest and reasonable.
Please understand I am not a store, do not have employees, + do not do this to maximize profits. I do this because I love books, and love to read and collect them; selling some of them helps offset my own collecting costs while reducing overwhelming inventory. While I do not have the benefits of a big store to assist me or you, I am able to provide you personalized attention.
If you have a particular need or requirement, please let me know and I will do my best to help you. E.g.,customize packing, expedite shipping when necessary, and I personally deliver almost all of my shipments to the post office to speed up process and help ensure safety.
Also, I have 1000’s of books, many of which eventually will be listed— in the meantime, if you r looking for a particular book, I may have it and likely would be willing to work something out with you.
I try to be flexible, and generally am open to any reasonable offer. For example, If you are interested in a book, but believe that it is overpriced or simply cannot afford it, please just let me know and I'll try to work it out w/you.
I especially like to take care of past + repeat customers. If you r such a customer, let me know.
If you have ANY comments, questions, or concerns, please send me a message.
Thank you for consideration!