What is the difference between a laminated first edition and one with a glassine cover?
A. Glassine covers are the hardest to find on any editions. A laminated cover is a clear cover “stuck” to a book – a Glassine cover is a translucent “dust-jacket”, similar to thin greaseproof paper. If you think of an envelope with a translucent window in the front – that window is similar to glassine. A glassine dust-jacket is very fragile, and few have survived in one piece. Laminated editions are easier to find – though, over time, the laminate can come away from the book. When that happens, the laminate usually takes the gold lettering with it (so if you find an early edition with no lettering but “indentations” where the text should be, then it was probably laminated to start with).
