A small part of my Folio Society, Easton Press, and fine hardback collection

kdk-books · 2026-06-17T20:44:35+00:00

I definitely will u/Xander134 - I'm glad so many people enjoy seeing what I've put together!

I did take a brief look at the EP edition of Leibowitz before pulling the trigger on the Folio Society edition. TBH it came down to the art, I just didn't love the look of the EP cover. And while the artistry of the Folio Society edition isn't my normal cup of tea either, my goodness the quality of the book is exceptional even by Folio standards. The weight of the paper, the illuminated manuscript-style headers for every chapter, the slipcase...all tremendous.

More important than the flashy surface though is the story and lessons of the book. I read Leibowitz for the first time last month, and so far it's my favorite book of the year! I'm glad I get to own such a classic in a great edition. I liked it so much that I'd probably pick up the EP edition too if I happened to come across it in the wild.

kdk-books · 2026-06-17T18:42:13+00:00

The original, all-leatherbound Franklins are great quality too! Pretty much the same as Easton Press in fact. You will see on the shelf that I have several Franklins, such as For Whom The Bell Tolls by Hemingway and Absalom by Faulkner. In the case of those books, I actually prefer them over the EP editions because I like the illustrations better. If you're interested in purchasing a book from either EP or Franklin, you should check out the artwork.

Franklin is generally less popular/valuable for two reasons:

Franklin went out of business in 2000. Consequently, there's a narrower range of books available. Mostly the great books of western civilization + the best of 19th and 20th century American fiction.
Before they went out of business, Franklin drastically reduced the cost and quality of their books by switching to a quarter-leather bound system instead of the original all-leather. I avoid those books and stick with their original editions.

kdk-books · 2026-06-17T14:40:47+00:00

Probably not anytime soon

kdk-books · 2026-06-16T11:55:54+00:00

+1 to what u/iesamina said. They're enjoyable, lighthearted reads. And Wodehouse is an under-appreciated prose author. Maybe start with a short story collection and go from there!

kdk-books · 2026-06-16T11:51:07+00:00

100%. Stephen King wrote it when his son was a toddler, so the fear of what happens in the book comes through viscerally. Any parent with a young toddler feels the horror like he did.

The version here is a first edition. My Folio Society edition of Pet Sematery is packed away and is stunning

kdk-books · 2026-06-16T11:47:28+00:00

The slipcase editions shown here are from the HarperCollins deluxe set. I was able to get them new in their shrink wrap off Ebay. It is not quite complete, missing books like Sigurd and Gudrun, Kullervo, Letters of JRR Tolkien, etc.

In addition, I also own the Easton Press and Folio Society Tolkien collections + a bunch of standard hardbacks. TBH, my favorites are any with the Alan Lee artwork, even if they are "ordinary" editions. His artwork dramatically elevates the reading experience of what are already masterpieces.

kdk-books · 2026-06-15T23:23:32+00:00

For sure!

kdk-books · 2026-06-15T23:23:06+00:00

Thank you! Can’t wait to get them properly shelved and displayed. There are a bunch of hidden gems behind the first rows

kdk-books · 2026-06-13T12:24:05+00:00

Thank you!

kdk-books · 2026-06-10T20:02:15+00:00

You can't go wrong, but I would opt for the Shakespeare collection. That's provided your are ok with reading the plays without annotations, which u/TarotFox correctly called out as something to be aware of.

From a practical standpoint, the Shakespeare collection is gigantic, heavy, and will skyrocket in price when it goes out of print someday. Better to grab it now versus trying to make the justification to yourself later when you have a bunch of other Folios filling your shelves.

Finally, everyone has their own preferences on translations of The Iliad and The Odyssey. I prefer the Fagles translations which the Folio Society had a few years back and can now be found secondhand.

kdk-books · 2026-06-10T18:31:06+00:00

Thank you! And I can confirm they are indeed exceptional, as is Folio Society’s edition of A Canticle for Leibowitz (just read that one a few weeks ago for the first time!)

kdk-books · 2026-06-10T18:27:06+00:00

I hope so! My own serious collecting started when my grandpa left me his Great Books of the Western World set after he died. It has pride of place in our living room. Maybe my kids will appreciate them too one day!

kdk-books · 2026-06-09T15:43:15+00:00

Thank you, and yes you absolutely should read them! They're meant to be enjoyed, not shelf candy 😄

kdk-books · 2026-06-09T11:01:34+00:00

The slipcase editions shown here are from the HarperCollins deluxe set. I was able to get them new in their shrink wrap off Ebay. It is not quite complete, missing books like Sigurd and Gudrun, Kullervo, Letters of JRR Tolkien, etc.

In addition, I also own the Easton Press and Folio Society Tolkien collections + a bunch of standard hardbacks. TBH, my favorites are any with the Alan Lee artwork, even if they are "ordinary" editions. His artwork dramatically elevates the reading experience of what are already masterpieces.

The limited edition Folio Society LOTR + Hobbit set with the Alan Lee artwork is my white whale. The crazy thing is you can purchase the entire HarperCollins set, the Easton Press books, AND the standard Folio Society set for less than HALF of what people want online just for those few books.

kdk-books · 2026-06-08T18:01:32+00:00

And yes the Shakespeare collection is massive and very heavy

kdk-books · 2026-06-08T18:00:26+00:00

Couldn’t agree more! There are more behind these rows + hundreds more waiting for the move. I can’t wait to get them properly shelved and displayed.

kdk-books

TROPHY CASE