This companion sets out to provide in one comprehensive volume much of the essential information required by those who sell antiquarian and secondhand books and by those who buy them. It has been compiled with particular attention to the needs of those who do not have ready access to all the necessary reference sources.

The entries - some four hundred and fifty in all - include explanations of many technical terms used in the description of books. Printing illustration, and binding are all covered as are many features of book trace practice.

Thirty specially commissioned longer articles provide important studies of the main aspects of the world of antiquarian books. For example, Anthony Rota contributes an introductory article on Bookselling in a Changing World, Henry Woudhuysen writes on Bibliography, Mirjam Foot on Fine Bookbinding, David Chambers on Book Collecting, Robin de Beaumont on Victorian Books, and Lord John Kerr on Book Auctions; all the contributors are authoritative specialists in their various fields.

Antiquarian Books includes bibliographical references in the text as well as useful appendices a comprehensive index, and text illustrations. The book is intended primarily for the dealer in antiquarian and second-hand books, but will be of interest to everyone with a professional or personal interest in the subject.