For Immediate Release
Rocky Mountain Book and Paper Fair - "Your Ticket to Read" Friday, August 3 and Saturday August 4 Denver Merchandise Mart Expo Building
The 23rd Annual Rocky Mountain Book and Paper Fair is coming to the Denver Merchandise Mart Expo Building, Friday, August 3 from 5-9 pm and Saturday, August 4 from 10 am-5 pm. Over 75 booksellers from around the United States and England will be offering an outstanding collection of books and vintage ephemera for sale.
The Rocky Mountain Antiquarian Booksellers Association (RMABA) has been joined by the Colorado Railroad Museum as a co-sponsor for this year's event, "Your Ticket to Read". While the theme is railroads, many rare, out-of-print, and unusual books in a wide variety of specialties will be available.
A selection of ephemera, those bits of throwaway paper of every day life, such as advertising, ticket stubs, programs, some booklets and pamphlets, will be on hand for the paper enthusiasts. Also, antiquarian maps and prints, posters and lithographs, original art, postcards, photographs, and almost any imaginable printed or paper collectibles will be available.
The fair provides an opportunity for people to see, feel, and perhaps purchase special books and historical items that are seldom seen outside of libraries and museums. Collectors will find a wide selection of affordable books of interest. There will also be several informative programs and events designed to help visitors improve their collections.
Some of the interesting items that may be seen at the fair include first editions of John C. Fremont's report of his first three expeditions and his role in the conquest of California, L. Frank Baum's Glinda of OZ, John Arrowsmith's map of the Republic of Texas, John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, and Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas. In addition, a signed limited edition of The Shay Locomotive; books from the library of James W. Denver, Territorial Governor and City of Denver namesake; and historic photo albums of Gold Creek Gulch will be for sale.
For Civil War buffs, there is a copy of Mrs. Ellen Williams Three Years and a Half in the Army, a personal narrative written by the wife who went to war with her soldier husband and became the regimental historian for the Second Colorados.
As a special attraction this year, Rob Barnes, owner of Vintage Press Works of Denver, will bring an authentic replica of Ben Franklin's English Common Press, currently in the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. This new press has been painstakingly hand crafted over the last four years. Visitors to the fair will be able to print their own copy of the Declaration of Independence, as distributed on July 4, 1776 to the colonies.
This broadside is a reproduction of what many consider the most important document in the world, a document that began this nation and went on to inspire the French and German revolutions. Proceeds from the sale of these replications will go to the Book Arts League, an area organization dedicated to providing a community resource for the book arts.
Three special events will take place during the fair. On Friday evening at 7:00, author, Charles Harbart, will discuss and sign his new book, Colorado History: Insights and Views Through Postcards, which shows how Colorado history has been depicted and enriched through postcards.
On Saturday at 11:00, Jim Ozment, well known railroad historian, will show and discuss railroad ephemera and give a feel for the technology that built the West. On Saturday afternoon at 2:00, long-time antiquarian book dealers Robert Gavora of Talent, Oregon and Don Gallagher of Denver, will discuss and answer questions about collecting railroad books.
The Library People: Friends of Colorado Libraries, long-time fair participants, will once again sponsor a silent auction of donations from the exhibitors. Proceeds from the auction are used to support Colorado libraries and literacy projects.
The Rocky Mountain Antiquarian Booksellers Association is an organization of used and rare book-dealers in the Rocky Mountain West, dedicated to stimulating book collecting, promoting ethical trade in all facets of the antiquarian book business, and educating the public in the field of antiquarian books.
For additional details on the Fair see www.rmaba.org/bookFair.php or contact fair coordinator Myron West, rmbpf@rmaba.org - 307-631-8599. For biographical questions on presenters, please contact Sue Gallagher, sue@gcbooks.com - 303-903-1152.