What are the toughest titles to find?

Generally speaking, the toughest titles to find are:

• those that are cross-collectible, especially with introductions unique to the Modern Library editions
• those that were in short supply to begin with
• those whose authors were so obscure that nobody bothered to preserve them (especially pre-1930 titles)

The toughest books to find by far are first editions of any of the first twelve Modern Library titles in matching dust jackets (the famed First Catalog). These titles all were published in May of 1917 and had the First Catalog list near the half-title page. They are flat-out rare, and usually extremely pricey to boot.

Generally scarce are any of the Boni-Liveright titles in VG Boni-Liveright dust jackets.

Of course, scarce does not necessarily equate to outrageously expensive or even to valuable. To be valuable, as any first-year economics student will tell you, a commodity must be in both scarce supply and strong demand. For example, printing errors such as a binding from one title on the text of another or an upside-down binding are fairly scarce but not at all valuable.

But in general, because there ARE diehard Modern Library collectors, the scarcer the title is - especially in dust jacket and especially in VG/VG or better condition - the more you can expect to pay.

---