Bookseller Interviews

Sheryl Jaeger co-founded Eclectibles with Ralph Gallo in 1991, but it wasn’t until 1996 that she gave up her career in the healthcare industry to pursue her passion for ephemera full time. Sheryl found the ephemera world was the perfect place for her penchant for careful and exacting research, organization and knowledge of the internet. Sheryl became a member of the ABAA in 2008 and currently serves on the Board of Governors. She chairs the Public Relations committee and sits on several other committees.

Eclectibles operates out of Tolland, CT, and specializes in Paper Americana, Childhood Ephemera and Art, Juvenile Books, Made by Hand, Ephemera, Appraisal and Collection services, Travel and Tourism, History of Advertising, Popular Culture, Visual Culture, and Tokens of Love. ABAA Member since 2008. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 18, 2012 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Brad has been a member of the ABAA since 2008 and offers a vast array of materials, with specialties in literature and poetry, California and the West, archives and archival material, vernacular photography, and heavy metal. Their brick-and-mortar location, The Book Shop, is located in Covina, California.

ABAA Member Since 2008. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on February 8, 2014 at the California International Antiquarian Book Fair in Pasadena.

Kevin Johnson founded Royal Books, Inc. in 1998. Prior to entering the profession, Kevin worked for the government and had founded a small record label. Today, he is a leading expert on Modern First Editions. Kevin is the author of The Dark Page: Books That Inspired American Film Noir (1950-1965), a two volume full-color guide to first edition sources of film noir. Kevin was a faculty member of the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar for several years.

Royal Books, Inc. is located in Baltimore, MD specializes in Modern Literature, Books Into Film, Screenplays and Film Ephemera, Crime Fiction, Science Fiction, African-American Literature, and Books on Film and Music. ABAA Member since 2002. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on April 10, 2010 at the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Priscilla Juvelis of Kennebunkport, ME has been an antiquarian bookseller since 1980. She served on the Board of Governors from 1988-2002 and was President of the Association from 1998-2000. Priscilla has also served as President of the Massachusetts and Rhode Island Antiquarian Booksellers (MARIAB) and as a Trustee to Manuscript Society. ABAA Member since 1983. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.

A bibliophile for his entire life, Ian Kahn dabbled in brokering and collecting during his professional career as an attorney. In 2003 Ian decided to devote all of his time to book selling and founded Lux Mentis, Booksellers in Portland, ME.

Lux Mentis, Booksellers specializes in Architecture & Design, Early Medical Texts, First Editions, Heirloom Volumes, Library & Collection Development, Photography & Art, Spec. Fiction & Gothic Horror. ABAA Member since 2007. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 18, 2012 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Seth Kaller grew up participating in his family’s business Myron Kaller & Associates,  purveyors of rare stamps and coins.  After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1988, Seth started his own business as a specialist in antiquarian books and manuscripts. Over the years he has become one of the top Americana specialists in the country and has handled numerous one-of-a-kind items.
Seth Kaller, Inc. operates out of White Plains, NY and specializes in American History: Important Content Letters & Documents from the Revolution and Founding to the Civil War and Reconstruction. ABAA Member since 1999. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on April 5, 2014 at the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Ken Karmiole of Santa Monica, CA got his start in the trade in 1970. By 1972 he had established his own business, Kenneth Karmiole Bookseller, Inc., and became an ABAA member in 1976. Ken has served on the Board of Governors and as Membership Committee Chair. Ken is also an active alumnus at UCLA, where he received his masters in library science. In 2002 he endowed the Karmiole Fellowship, which each year supports one student in the study of rare books and manuscripts, and in 2006 Ken established the Kenneth Karmiole Endowment for Rare Books and Manuscripts, which supports the acquisition of special collections throughout UCLA's libraries.

Kenneth Karmiole Bookseller, Inc. specializes in Early Printing, Travel, History of Printing, Science and Technology, and Incunabula. ABAA Member since 1976. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Howard Karno first started selling books in the early 1970s. Sadly, Howard passed away in 2012, but his wife Beverly Joy-Karno, also an ABAA member, continues to run the business. Howard Karno Books, Inc. operates out of Valley Center, CA and specializes in Latin America, Mexico, Caribbean, Afro-Latin Americana, and South America, with an emphasis on: Art, Architecture, Photography, History, Travel & Voyages, Basques, Military, and Music.  

*Please note: audio for this video does not start until the 1min mark. Apologies for the inconvenience. ABAA Member from 1978 until his passing in 2012. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the California International Antiquarian Book Fair in Pasadena.

Ben Kinmont is an antiquarian bookseller specializing in 15th to 19th century books about food and wine. The business started in 1998 in Lower Manhattan and issues approximately one catalogue a year. In addition to attending various auctions around the world, he participates in book fairs in Los Angeles, Milan, New York City, Paris, and San Francisco. Ben joined the ABAA in 2001.

ABAA Member Since 2001. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on February 14, 2016 at the California International Antiquarian Book Fair in Pasadena.

After a career in the military, Frank S. Klein took over his father's book store in the 1970's and truly made it his own by delving into the world of antiquarian books. The Bookseller, Inc. is located in Akron, OH and is still a family business, as Frank works alongside his daughter, Andrea. They specialize in U.S. Military, Aviation, Aeronautics, Lighter-than-Air, Ohioana and Old Northwest, Maps, Atlases and Postcards, and Americana. ABAA Member from1989-2019. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Eric Chaim Kline studied Jewish History and Philosophy and it was the desire to own the books he was reading that taught him how to scout and sell books. Before long, his side activities in the trade helped supplement his income while traveling through Germany researching his doctoral thesis. The book business lured him away from his studies and he established Eric Chaim Kline, Booksellers in 1984.

Eric Chaim Kline, Bookseller operates out of Santa Monica, CA, and specializes in Architecture, Art, Bibles, Foreign Language Books, Judaica, Modernism, Olympic Games, and Photography. ABAA Member since 1989. Interviewed by Taylor Bowie on October 10, 2010 at the Seattle Antiquarian Book Fair.

Joyce Kosofsky grew up in a small oceanside town on the outskirts of Boston and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she studied journalism and mass media. After working for local news outlets for a few years, Joyce entered the trade in the late 1970s, when she began working at the Brattle Book Shop with Ken Gloss, her future husband and business partner. The rest, as they say, is history.

Joyce has been a member of the ABAA since 1984. She serves on the Board of Governors and is the current Chair of the Ethics Committee.

The celebrated Brattle Book Shop is located in Boston, MA and has over 150,000 books on all subjects. They specialize in not specializing. ABAA Member since 1984. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 11, 2017 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Malcolm Kottler taught Evolutionary Biology and History of Biology at the University of Minnesota for a decade before he began selling antiquarian books full time. Scientia Books operates out of Arlington, MA and specializes in Medicine, Science, History of Medicine, History of Science, Evolution, and Genetics. ABAA Member since 1988. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Peter Kraus of Ursus Rare Books in Manhattan, NY has been in the book business since he was a young man. Ursus Rare Books specializes in Art Books, Illustrated Books, Art, Architechture, Natural History, Decorative Master Prints and Watercolours, First Editions and Travel. ABAA Member since 1974. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Owen D. Kubik of Kubik Fine Books in Dayton, OH has been in the book business since 1986. Owen is a past President of the Midwest Chapter, and he specializes in Roman Catholic History and Theology of all types, as well as Military History, History, and Historical Fiction. ABAA Member since 1990. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.

John Kuenzig graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and worked in high technology before becoming a bookseller in 1997. John became a member of the ABAA in 2007 and serves on the Internet Committee.

Kuenzig Books operates out of Topsfield, MA and specializes in Engineering, Ephemera, Photography, Science, and Technology. ABAA Member since 2007. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on November 18, 2012 at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair.

Charles Kutcher has worn a number of different hats sincehe earned his degrees in English Literature and business: teacher, novelist, business owner, and financial consultant. In 1998 Charles and his wife Joan opened Kaaterskill Books in 1998. Charles became a member of the ABAA in 2007. He is currently the Treasurer of the Association and serves on the Board of Governors in addition to other committees.

Katterskill Books operates out of East Jewett, NY, and specializes in Americana, Art, Books on Books, History, Literature, and Religion.

ABAA Member since 2007. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg on February 8, 2014 at the California International Antiquarian Book Fair in Pasadena.

Lawrence I. Fox has been the ABAA's legal counsel since 1979. A lifelong bibliophile, Larry is also an avid book collector. In this interview he discusses some of the major milestones in the Association's history. ABAA legal counsel since 1979. Interviewed by Michael Ginsberg at the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.