Collecting for Beginners

From Bobblehead dolls to refrigerator magnets, pricy porcelain figurines to autographed baseballs, everything, it seems, is collected by just about everyone. And no one knows the rapidly growing field of collectibles better than renowned expert Jeff Figler. You may have seen him on PBS's Nightly Business Report or heard him on Sirius Radio. In Collecting for Beginners, Figler introduces fledging collectors to the ins and outs of collecting from A to Z. Figler takes readers on a fascinating - and at times hilarious - journey into the back rooms of thrift stores, long neglected garages, and to many other unusual places where collectibles - some worth small fortunes - have been discovered. This is no ordinary journey because Figler is no ordinary expert. He started young with baseball cards, as so many collectors did, and now owns a museum housing many of the most exquisite and priceless collectibles in the worlds of sports, politics, history, and celebrities. Readers of this highly entertaining guide will find themselves adorned in the memory of Elvis Presley's Peacock jumpsuit, and in the back of John Lennon's psychedelic limousine, because the world of collectibles spans everything from rocks to rock 'n roll, baseball bats to political banners. Collecting for Beginners covers a huge array of topics, including how to care for collectibles, how to help children collect the treasures that they hold most dear, how to collect for the future, and how hopeful collectors should conduct themselves at auctions, both on-site and online. (Yes, there's a lot of "how to" in this richly detailed book.) Collectors will also find themselves immersed in the astonishing world of celebrities and their collectibles, and they'll discover the secrets to learning the real value of their most cherished items. Collecting for Beginners will tell you all you need to know to get started in one of the fastest growing hobbies in the world. Collecting is fun, fabulous, and its vibrancy comes fully alive in a book that will soon become essential to every aspiring collector - and there are millions of them. There is no other book that serves as a primer for aspiring collectors, whose numbers continue to grow despite the economic slowdown