Kelley House docent and book sale curator Katy Tahja shows some of the books awaiting buyers
Save the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend (May 25th) for a visit to the Kelley House Museum in Mendocino and their Historic Book Sale from 10AM to 3PM. Due to the donation of some excellent art and history books, a great selection will be available on the east porch. Now is the time to add some century-old books to your bookshelf, at bargain prices.
An old three-volume set on the history of freemasonry would look good there. For people who enjoy food there is a set of Culinary Arts Institute’s “cook booklets,” with 20 available. From Anchovies to Zucchini, if an object flew in the sky, walked on earth, swam in the sea, or grew from dirt there will be a recipe on how to cook it. Can’t wait for someone to make Prune Ice Cream!
A slipcovered two-volume set on the Plan of St. Gall, a church designed in 820 AD in Europe. All the original drawings survived 12 centuries and were reproduced in this University of California publication. There is a reprint of “American Engineers & Surveyors Instruments-1874” and a companion volume, “Instruments of Precision-Illustrated-1900.” Or perhaps a reader will enjoy “The Beginnings of San Francisco-1774 to 1850” by Goeth Eldredge, only 110 years old. For more recent history there is “115 Years of Headline News” by the Ft. Bragg Advocate News” from 2004. It contains 48 big pages of news pieces printed between1890 and 2004. We have many binders of “First Day Covers” for stamp collectors or readers of postmarks.
Students learning to read in 1917 used the “The New Barnes Reader” by Ladilaw Brothers Publishing. Even if the stories don’t enchant you, the illustrations should. Collage artists buy books like this for no other reason than to cut them apart for art projects. That’s OK. Sales support the Kelley House Museum. “Readings from the California Poets” by Edmund Russell was printed in San Francisco 132 years ago. Inside the 124-page volume are verses by Ina Coolbrith, Brett Harte, Joaquin Miller, and more.
For someone who enjoys doing cross-stitch embroidery there is a stack of pattern books, and for fans of hot springs there is a great book on the hot springs of Nevada. Old hippies will like “Roll Your Own,” a 1974 guide to living in a truck, bus, van or camper; they may also enjoy a classic of that era: “In Harmony with Nature—Creative Country Construction” by Christian Bruyere, with beautiful hand-drawn illustrations. There are travel books to take readers all over the USA and the world, and art books to sit by the fire with some quiet evening, knowing it’s a $40 dollar art book that was yours for $5.
The focus of the sale is history, biography, travel, philosophy, nature, art and cooking, so visitors to the sale will not find much fiction, but curator and retired librarian Katy Tahja makes allowances for fiction over 100 years old.
For more information, contact the book sale curator, Katy Tahja, at 707-937-5854. The Kelley House Museum is open Thursday-Monday 11AM to 3PM. The spring exhibit “Don’t Panic * Eat Organic,” celebrating the 50th anniversary of Corners of the Mouth, is on view until June 2. Walking tours of Mendocino are available throughout the week. Visit the Kelley House Event Calendar for a Walking Tour schedule.