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This Ready Reckoner will help you work out the value of a book in any condition.

For example, if you have a book which we value at £10 in Mint condition, but which is only in Good condition, you can read across the appropriate line and find the correct value of your book - in this case, £4.

Please note that Poor condition books worth less than £12 in Mint condition are virtually worthless to collectors. However, Poor condition books may be worth many times more if they contain intact, good illustrations.

STANDARD CONDITIONS FOR BOOKS AND DUSTJACKETS

Below are the Standard Conditions for grading second-hand books and their dust-wrappers which we use in all features, bibliographies and advertisements in BOOK AND MAGAZINE COLLECTOR, so that anyone buying or selling books has a standard system to use to state the amount of wear and tear a book has been subject to. The five basic conditions accepted by collectors all over the world are listed here, together with a description of what each one means.

MINT: This means that the book is in perfect condition. It is complete with its dust-wrapper and is impossible to tell from a new copy. DUSTJACKET: as new.

FINE: The book appears to be in excellent condition. Closer examination, however, will show evidence of ownership and storage. There may also be a small inscription to the previous owner, but generally the book is in near perfect condition.DUSTJACKET: as new but with very slight rubbing on the corners.

VERY GOOD: Slightly less than fine condition. Apart from slight foxing or fading, the book has no faults. DUSTJACKET: clean with excellent colouring, but with slight rubbing to most edges and corners.

GOOD: It is obvious that the book is second-hand. However, apart from minor faults, it must always be assumed that books in Good condition are complete in all respects, unless described otherwise. DUSTJACKET: fairly clean with almost perfect colouring, but suffering from marks, slight creasing and other signs of wear. Most of the edges are rubbed or have very small tears in them.

POOR: A book in this category is in really bad condition. It may be warped, the preliminary pages may be missing, and the spine irreparably damaged. The text is complete but the book is really only suitable to read. DUSTJACKET: tatty and grubby, and may well be marked, creased or torn.