How to get the botanical art books you want

I've been buying botanical art books - new and used - for years and years and I've learned a few things along the way. I'm sharing my tips with you below - along with a pic (and some details) of the botanical art books I got for Christmas!

If the botanical art books you want are a little bit expensive - or even outrageously expensive - try the following

• WAIT until Christmas (or your Birthday) and then you can ask people who want to give you gifts to give you vouchers or money so you can get the ones you want. I've now got my other half trained now to hand over cash while I order in advance. I've also trained myself not to look at them before handing them over to him for packing ready for Christmas Day! My sister who lives in Australia sends me a digital Amazon voucher.
• Do NOT order when they are first published - unless you're worried it might sell out and not get republished. That's because very many books which sell for full cost when first published will reduce in price a few months after publication. One or two years later they can cost quite a lot less than they did when first published. I've learned to wait - for the most part....  You can check out typical price reductions by looking at the percentage reduction on books published last year. On botanical art instruction books we're not talking about big differences between price on publication and a few months or a year later - but on more expensive botanical art history books it can be big money!

OR ​
Buy USED books - I've found this to be a totally brilliant way of getting hold of books which are superb in terms of content and yet so niche that they are now out of print and unlikely ever to be reprinted - particularly if the author is now deceased!

​Read on for my tips for buying vintage / used books.

Three of the books I got for Christmas

Tips for buying vintage (used) botanical art books
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My tips for buying used books are as follows:

• Use a reputable dealer who specialises in botanical art books. In terms of recommendations, I've bought very many books from Mike Park Books over the years. Unfortunately he no longer takes a stand at the RHS Shows which is a very great pity. However you can see what he has to offer online.  He specialises in gardening, botany and natural history books - and has always had a good stock of a variety of books about botanical illustration. It's also the only place I know where you can get some collectable books - such as W. T Stearn's personal copy of The Flower Drawings of Jan van Huysum or the now out of print second edition of The Genus Paphiopedilum with illustrations by Pandora Sellars and Carol Woodin.
• Buy online. Those selling in niche areas are typically now selling their books via online websites. It enables them to store huge numbers of books without having to have a shop - and hence cuts their overheads.
• Understand what the condition description means in relation to books. Every seller who is using a shorthand to describe condition should define what it means. The one below is the one defined for sellers using Amazon.com

Books – New and Used
​In addition to the general condition guidelines, apply the following guidelines to new and used books:

• New: Just like it sounds. A brand-new, unused, unread copy in perfect condition. The dust cover and original protective wrapping, if any, are intact. All supplementary materials are included and all access codes for electronic material, if applicable, are valid and/or in working condition. Books with markings of any kind on the cover or pages, books marked as "Bargain" or "Remainder," or with any other labels attached, may not be listed as New condition.
• Used - Like New: Dust cover is intact, with no nicks or tears. Spine has no signs of creasing. Pages are clean and not marred by notes or folds of any kind. May contain remainder marks on outside edges, which should be noted in listing comments.
• Used - Very Good: Pages and dust cover are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine is undamaged.
• Used - Good: All pages and cover are intact (including the dust cover, if applicable). Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include "From the library of" labels.
• Used - Acceptable: All pages and the cover are intact, but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting, but the text cannot be obscured or unreadable.
• Unacceptable: Has missing pages and obscured or unreadable text. We also do not permit the sale of advance reading copies, including uncorrected proofs, of in-print or not-yet-published books.
• The above can be found on Selling on Amazon - Condition Guidelines for Books - New and Used

​TIPS continued

• Choose sellers who have a good track record. I will only buy via online sites which provide good quality feedback about the experiences of previous buyers (and if you buy online do share your experiences - it's valuable!)
• Choose either "Used - like new" or "Used - very good" categories if you want a book in excellent condition. I've never been disappointed. The difficulty comes when those categories are inordinately expensive and yet the "Good" category is much more reasonably priced. That's when I need to get a lot more choosy as to the seller. 
• Choose sellers who have very good ratings/comments - I often look at the details of the reviews - and particularly the most recent ones - which I find give you an excellent idea of how carefully they have looked after the books and will wrap them prior to despatch. TIP - ones with huge numbers of ratings (typically under 95) on Amazon very often just use a plastic bag for books - and that's it. Now I know who they are, I avoid them.
• Never ever hesitate to provide feedback to the seller if you feel they have fallen short on what was described and make it clear you expect action on their part. There's an incentive for the seller to make sure you do NOT end up feeling disappointed.

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My Christmas books
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My Christmas books this year from my other half - who is so grateful he never has to do shopping for me(!) - are listed below. Please note: My affiliate Amazon Associates ID is embedded in the links embedded in the titles above (and links in book titles elsewhere on this website). The very small contribution I get if you buy a book via that link helps fund the cost of this website.

• ​Joseph Banks' Florilegium: Botanical Treasures from Cook's First Voyage by David Mabberley - Banks commissioned over 700 engravings of the exotic flora brought back from Cook's travels around the world between 1772 and 1784. They were never published in his lifetime and only finally published as a limited edition in 1990 after the plates were found in the archives of the Natural History Museum. This is a 'cut down' version and the quality is amazing!  It's only just been published so I've ignored one of my own rules because I think this edition will sell out fast and I'm not sure how long a reprint will take. So I'm playing safe and using one of my other rules to justify the expense!
• The New Sylva by Gabriel Hemery and Sarah Simblet - This is a book which documents the most important species of trees in the UK. It includes 200 pen and ink drawings of trees by Sarah Simblet (who also wrote and illustrated Botany for the Artist and teaches pen and ink drawing on select botanical art courses in the UK).  I've been meaning to get this book for ages - ever since I took a class with Sarah on drawing trees!  I particularly like her approach to drawing in monochrome and looking at her illustrations is a really stimulating experience.  However I was prepared to wait for the price to drop.... 
• A Garden Eden: Masterpieces of Botanical Illustration - This is a small and very fat book (624 pages!) published by Taschen which is utterly delightful, well produced (as Taschen books always are) and has a totally bargain price from new (published last year). It focuses on the botanical masterworks in the finest botanical manuscripts in the National Library of Vienna. I've referenced this library as a way to see excellent botanical artwork many times so this book was a very logical purchase for me.  It's also great for those who don't speak English as the text comes in English, German and French.​

I've got another one coming - funded by family - and have my fingers crossed that the 'temporarily out of stock' everywhere I look for it will be remedied PDQ!

Find out more about Botanical Art Books on my website
The Best Botanical Art Instruction Books
The Best Botanical Art History Books
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