BOOK GRADING FAQ

VJ Books grading system is designed to satisfy the expectations of the discriminating collector.

Our best grade is NEW/UNREAD. These books are bookstore fresh, mint copies without visible flaws or defects. The jackets on hardcover books are flawless. Soft cover wrappers are in new condition, free of defect.

Following the best grade, books and jackets are graded separately. A FINE/FINE book is our second highest grade. A FINE/FINE book, is a fine book in a fine dust jacket. These books are clean, straight, free from defect, and will be acceptable to the collector.

Common defects such as price clipped and remainder markings will always be noted.

As we cater to the collector market we seldom offer books that grade less than these two grades. Occasionally, we will offer a rare, or hard to find book that grades below these standards. As such, a FINE/VERY GOOD grading will indicate a fine book in a very good dust jacket. All flaws or defects will be included in the book's description.

Signed books will have clean signatures, free of inscription. Inscribed books will disclose the exact wording of the inscription in the description. Signatures on bookplates will be disclosed in the description.

Book editions will follow the standard conventions used by the various publishing houses. VJ Books use of 1st EDITION in a book's description denotes a FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINTING of the book being described. Later printings (when offered) will always be disclosed. Special printings, deluxe bindings, limited/numbered editions, and valued reprints (another version of a First Edition Thus) will always be disclosed in the description.

Occasionally, a first hard cover appearance (where the true first is a paperback) will be released with the acceptable first editions marking in place. In these cases, our description will read 1st EDITION THUS.

PBO denotes a paperback original, and indicates the first appearance of a title in a mass market sized paper back. TRADE PAPER denotes a full sized soft cover book.

ADVANCE READING COPIES are trade paper sized soft cover books sent by publishers to bookstores and/or reviewers prior to the release of the title to promote the book. Descriptions of these books will include the words IN A PICTORIAL WRAPPER, denoting a soft cover with a picture (usually the cover art to be used on the book when released). These are sometimes referred to as GALLEYS.

UNCORRECTED PROOFS are trade sized soft cover books used by publishers to proof a title prior to publication, and are usually bound in plain papers.