COVID-19 and the Book Market. Fleeting Phenomena and Lasting Changes

Keywords: antiquarian books, bookselling, e-commerce, book auctions, pandemic

Abstract

The article presents selected issues related to the antiquarian book market in Poland during the pandemic. The first part shows the increased interest in three titles of world prose with epidemic themes (A Journal of the Plague Year by Daniel Defoe, The Plague by Albert Camus, and Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez). Demand for these titles increased significantly, as did their prices, although these depended on market opportunities. However, interest in these titles waned over time. However, the changes in the antiquarian auction market, which had already moved entirely online as a result of the pandemic, proved to be permanent. Meanwhile, the Internet has allowed new sellers and buyers to enter the market, although the top position of the industry has not changed.

Author Biography

Grzegorz Nieć , University of the National Education Commission, Krakow

Professor at the University of the National Education Commission, Krakow. He is a historian, specialising mainly in the history of books and newspapers. He is the author of the monograph Wtórny rynek książki w Polsce. Instytucje, asortyment, uczestnicy [The Secondary Book Market in Poland] (2016) and a history of the Czech book to the 18th century Książka – Naród – Religia: Dzieje książki czeskiej do czasów odrodzenia narodowego (2022) and many other studies. He is a bibliophile and populariser of books knowledge.

Published
2023-12-29
How to Cite
[1]
Nieć , G. 2023. COVID-19 and the Book Market. Fleeting Phenomena and Lasting Changes. Perspectives on Culture. 43, 4/2 (Dec. 2023), 639-650. DOI:https://doi.org/10.35765/pk.2023.430402.36.