Salvaged Heritage Press Books

Hello, all! I've recently saved a small trove of Heritage Press books from a trip to the landfill (which, from what I understand, is not a very good place to store books). Someday I'd like to start a small personal library, but I'm not in a position to do so now. I'm looking to sell the books so others might appreciate them. Below is a list of the books, plus my attempt at a (conservative) grading and a brief description of the slipcase condition. My questions are as follows:

(1) Would anyone be interested in any of these books? Obviously I'll take a lot of photos before selling anything; I want to collect some information before I invest the effort.
(2) For pricing HP books, do I need to look at the Sandglass number to figure out the exact publication date? For example, the Pickwick Papers Sandglass number is "xii:26". From my understanding, HP books are essentially a rerun of LEC books, and my impression is that each book was only published once. So, I don't need to figure out what edition they are from the Sandglass number (?)
(3) Any other general tips for pricing? I can look them up on eBay to see historic sales, but it would be a lot of effort.
(4) Is it worth bothering to try to sell books with minor water/mildew damage? I understand people don't want to invite that into their collection, but some of these are very nice aside from slight mildew. If there's a treatment/restoration to get rid of that, people may still be interested.

I hope this isn't against any group policies, but I figured this would be the best place to ask. I'd like to try selling here first, because I figure people may want multiple books which makes my life easier (with shipping and the like). I tried to be critical in my book grading; I hope you'll forgive any mistakes in light of my utter ineptitude!

Author | Name | Slipcase | Sandglass | Book Grade | Slipcase Condition
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Honoré de Balzac | Droll Stories | Y | Y | VG | Small peel, corner dent

Ugolino Brunforte | The Little Flowers of Saint Francis of Assisi | Y | Y | VG+ | Great condition, no discoloration, very minor scuffs

Robert Burns | The Poems of Robert Burns | Y | Y | G (NF if not for small patches of mildew in corner of last few pages) | Some light browning, water spotting in back corner

James Cooper | The Pathfinder | Y | Y | VG | Small scuffs

James Cooper | The Spy | Y | Y | VG | Noticeable browning around borders, scratch, light spotting inside

Charles Darwin | On the Origin of Species | Y | Y | NF | Light browning near borders

Charles Dickens | The Pickwick Papers | N | Y | G | N/A

Charles Dickens | Five Christmas Novels | Y | Y | G/VG | Some ripples, small dent, light foxing inside, small spiderweb

Charles Dickens | Great Expectations | Y | Y | G | Scuffed Corner

Charles Dickens | Oliver Twist | Y | Y | G | Dent, some foxing inside

Charles Dickens | David Copperfield | Y | Y | G | Good condition, slipcase snug

Henry Fielding | The History of Tom Jones | Y | Y | G (VG if not for "Ex Libris" sticker) | Some superficial water damage

Benjamin Franklin | Poor Richard's Almanacks | Y | Y | NF | Great condition, very minor discoloration

O. Henry | The Stories of O. Henry | Y | Y | NF/F | Very small scuffs

Henrik Ibsen | Three plays of Henrik Ibsen | Y | Y | G (NF if not for slight water damage) | Discoloration on corner from water damage

Jonathan Swift | Gulliver's Travels | Y | Y | NF | Vinyl chipping near bottom

Mark Twain | The Innocents Abroad | Y | Y | G/VG | Worn on edges exposing cardboard, coffee-cup stain on exterior of one face

H.G. Wells | The War of the Worlds/The Time Machine | Y | Y | G | Water damage on corner | Water damaged corner of exterior of book, did not impact pages much

>1 StevenBBooth: I'm sorry that nobody has replied. I already have all the HPs I want (and nice books they are!). Perhaps that is the case with other members, too.

I have similar questions for a collection I've inherited. I hope someone can shed some educated light on the topic for us. I'd especially like to know the answer to the first edition question. I've seen books listed on Abe as "First Edition Thus" which I think would apply to all of the Heritage Press book sbut would like to know for sure.

>3 splicer415: The phrase "First Edition Thus" is a meaningless phrase, really. A book is either a first edition or it isn't. If it isn't, then it's a later edition, a reprint, etc. Using that phrase is an attempt to give greater significance to a book than is warranted. Experienced booksellers do not use this phrase.

The biggest issue with Heritage Press books is that it is extremely difficult to discern editions. There are a few telltale signs: if the publisher location is New York, Del Mar, California, or Norwalk/Avon, Connecticut; the Sandglass number (if you're lucky to have it); or for certain books there's aesthetic clues (such as a binding choice or if some illustrations are colored in full or partially, for example).

Out of the list Steven provided, for example, Droll Stories, The Pickwick Papers, Five Christmas Novels, Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, and Gulliver's Travels are unique to the Heritage Press. Of those, David Copperfield has the best chance of being collectable if it's one of the actual "first editions", i.e. signed by John Austen, the illustrator. With a Sandglass and some help from Michael Bussacio's eBooks on the Heritage Press, you may be able to discern if they are the original publications of those titles. The others are reprints from Limited Editions Club titles, and outside of being pleasant and well produced (if they are New York editions, at least; quality slides downhill for the Heritage Press after George Macy's passing in 1956, and even further after the Club is sold to the Easton Press' parent company...these are the Connecticut issuings, by the by) they are difficult to sell to collectors unless they only want Heritage Press books or nice editions of the classics.

Unfortunately, the condition of the books does not sound great, so you'd be hard pressed to sell them to a bookshop, and most collectors would likely pass over a book with mildew or water damage. Selling them as a lot on eBay might be the best bet for Steven.

As for splicer, a lot of the same issues will occur for you unless you have Heritage Press exclusives. The sad truth of the matter is that Heritage Press books are wonderful, but their resale isn't particularly valuable outside of the First Series' original run of 1500, a couple other signed editions, and one or two other curios. I started collecting Heritage books and after I switched gears to the Limited Editions Club it was a little disheartening to see how little I got back for the Heritage books I traded in. They often sell for peanuts at library book sales, $10 - 20 at used shops (unless a seller doesn't know the general perception of the Press and over- or undercharges), and for more excessive prices at antique shops.

Of course, this is my own personal experience (and I've been collecting these since 2008, give or take), but if your intention is to sell the books, a lot on eBay averaging $5 - 10 a book would be best for most, and if you have one of the more desirable titles (which I have a list of Exclusives on my blog here that will help: https://georgemacyimagery.wordpress.com/heritage-press-exclusives/), you may be able to sell it for $50 - 200 alone depending on the condition, completeness, and interest (which again will be based on the factors I outline above).

I hope that helps; I meant to reply earlier but haven't had the energy or time to give a thorough answer until now.