Value of 99 Critical Shots, 1st edition

Paul Mon

Paul Mon

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I've found a copy of Ray Martin's 99 Critical Shots in good condition. There is no dust jacket but the inside front cover is autographed by Ray to someone named Glen. I won't divulge the asking price but it is less than dinner at Ruth's Chris. Does anyone know the fair value for a signed 1st edition?

Paul Mon
 
Hard to say. You can do searches of Ebay, ABE Books, and other online sources. Book collectors don't generally buy books without jackets if the book came with one. Most pool players who collect don't care about stuff like that for the most part. Pool players will not care if it's a first edition or not. Also, you need to be aware, if you aren't already, that what you consider good may be only fair in book collector terms as far as condition. Also, as a general rule, inscribed copies bring less than simply signed.
Try here:http://www.firsts.com/FundOne.html for collector information.
I've bought, sold, traded, and collected books for over thirty years, now. Most of the time, you'll get whatever someone is willing to pay. I've sold $2000 books for $1000 simply because that was what the market would handle.
 
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A good example of the vagaries of book collecting with regard to Pool and Billiards is "Hustlers, Beats, and Others" by Ned Polsky. Paper cover reprints are fairly easy to find and not all that expensive, for the most part. The hard cover first edition is a different story. I've seen it in dealer catalogs for $100.00 and up. It's not the pool hustler stuff but the part about the Beat poets that makes the book valuable and in demand.
 
Look inside

The first 30 or so pages are pretty basic...but the rest of the book is basically Priceless.

Read it it will help
 
I sold my signed 1st edition for about $40 here on AZ. I offered a signed 2nd edition that didn't even sell. My experience is hardly scientific, but it leads me to believe that the collectability of that particular title is limited.

It seems everyone agrees, however, that 99 shots is a great book and one of the few that offers guaranteed improvement if read.

I'll buy or trade for it if you decide to sell down the road. (Got a buddy named Glen who plays) Good luck.
 
It's a copyrighted book. The paperback is not expensive. It's worth double the price.

Bob Jewett might have a good estimate of a collectors copy's worth.
 
Thanks to all

I going to pass on the book. I should have mentioned that I already have a paperback copy of the book. IMO, this book is required reading for anyone wanting to improve.

Paul
 
Paul Mon said:
I going to pass on the book. I should have mentioned that I already have a paperback copy of the book. IMO, this book is required reading for anyone wanting to improve.

Paul
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Unless the price is very cheap, I think you're wise to do so. You get the best money out of this kind of stuff if the condition is close to new, or fine, in book parlance.
 
A little off subject...but anyone that buys the book and learns ALL 99 shots will be ahead $1000's of dollars in tournament play and/or gambling.. It's a great book. Johnnyt
 
JimS said:
It's a copyrighted book. The paperback is not expensive. It's worth double the price.

Bob Jewett might have a good estimate of a collectors copy's worth.
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Bob Jewett is the man when it comes to billiard book collecting.
 
The best thing about the paperback is that you don't have to worry about it. Throw it down, step on it, bend it flat to copy a page.... who cares. With a first edition signed perfect condition collectors model I put it away and look at it through glass.... then get out the paperback and practice some stuff. :groucho:
 
JimS said:
... Bob Jewett might have a good estimate of a collectors copy's worth.
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I'd guess that a signed copy would get about $40. There are not too many collectors who specialize in signed billiard books, but a signature might double the price of a rarish book. With a little footwork, you could probably get Ray to sign a book. Rosser Reeves' signature will be harder. A dust cover in mint condition will also be tough to find.

The book was reprinted in 2007 with a revised introduction on the occasion of its 30th anniversary. It is also available in Korean. When it was published in 1977, it was the best available info for a wide range of shots. The info has since been greatly extended by other books and articles. Unfortunately, several errors were not corrected in the 2007 reprint.
 
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Bob Jewett said:
I'd guess that a signed copy would get about $40. There are not too many collectors who specialize in signed billiard books, but a signature might double the price of a rarish book. With a little footwork, you could probably get Ray to sign a book. Rosser Reeves' signature will be harder. A dust cover in mint condition will also be tough to find.

The book was reprinted in 2007 with a revised introduction on the occasion of its 30th anniversary. It is also available in Korean. When it was published in 1977, it was the best available info for a wide range of shots. The info has since been greatly extended by other books and articles. Unfortunately, several errors were not corrected in the 2007 reprint.
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Thanks for the information, Bob. I seldom see any of the out of print stuff any more so I don't keep up with the prices. I did happen to see a copy of "Billiards Accuracy" by Marvin Chin at a church garage sale a month or so ago and bought it. First one I've ever seen. Everyone was talking about it when it came out in 1982.
 
JimS said:
It's a copyrighted book. The paperback is not expensive. It's worth double the price. ...
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The site http://used.addall.com/ shows used copies available for $1 plus shipping. The new edition seems to be available new for $8 plus shipping. Or, you could support your local brick-and-mortar book store, spend $15, and have instant gratification.
 
Bob Jewett said:
The site http://used.addall.com/ shows used copies available for $1 plus shipping. The new edition seems to be available new for $8 plus shipping. Or, you could support your local brick-and-mortar book store, spend $15, and have instant gratification.
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Holy Cow! A buck for all the information that is in that book!! That just sort of staggers the imagination. Not many years ago it was impossible to beg, borrow, or steal that information and if it could be bought it would have been dammed expensive. When I was a kid in the pool hall, 1956/57 I begged for just a crumb of information and was told to shut up and watch. Nobody ever did tell me anything... back then.

I'm very fortunate to have stayed alive long enough to be able to access all the great pool information that's out there now. It's great to have that book, all the others, your writing, Byrne, Koehler, .... so much other stuff.

The secrets of the ages all in the 99 Critical Shots and only a buck or two. Wow.

I bought two first edition copies on the net a year or so back and then sent them to Mr. Martin and he signed them for me.

I couldn't begin to pay him what the books or his signature was worth to me but I tried. He and many others, dammed sure earned it! :groucho:
 
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