– by Troy Kirk (1990)
REVIEWED BY MARK A. LARSON
Editor & Publisher
In 1990, the card collecting hobby was hot. Red hot. … Sizzling like a steak on a grill.
Publicity was popping up everywhere about the joys of collecting cards and the possibility of making big profits. Swarms of non-collectors were becoming attracted to the hobby like bugs to a night-light.
“Collector’s Guide to Baseball Cards” by Troy Kirk landed on bookstore shelves just as thousands of these newbies were pouring into the hobby. During the previous dozen years or so, the public’s mind about baseball card collecting had gone from “an innocent kids-only pursuit” to an adult obsession filled with potential financial gain.
• 1955 Bowman •
For many, knowledge was lacking. Some of the rookie collectors simply felt intimidated as they struck out on their own. Others thought they knew everything and got burned in the process. But the smartest of the newcomers began to educate themselves on the history and nuances of card collecting and Kirk’s book was there to help … in a big way.
The book was aimed at the general public and was part of a series of collector volumes published by Wallace-Homestead Book Company. Even though written for a wide audience, it’s still very interesting for collectors of all stripes.
The author gives two reasons he wrote “Collector’s Guide to Baseball Cards”:
• 1) “I love baseball cards and want to present a salute to the cards themselves.”
• 2) “There is an information gap about the history of baseball cards and card collecting … historical price trends … card distribution, etc.”
A wide array of topics are covered over several chapters, including: The history of baseball cards and how they’re categorized; rare and valuable cards; the organized hobby; how to build a collection; using price guides; card shows and publications; profiting from baseball cards; and the future of collecting.
The nearly 300 photos, illustrations and charts over 158 pages bring the information to life and make the book even more enjoyable.
If you read author Kirk’s articles elsewhere on this website, then you know he does impeccable research. This book is no exception.
One of my favorite passages in the book involves the Fleer company’s invention of bubble gum in 1928. Up to that time, various attempts at coming up with an acceptable bubble gum weren’t very successful, as the gum was either too sticky or didn’t hold together well. Eventually, through trial and error, an employee in the late 1920s created a bubble gum that “made huge bubbles and peeled gently and easily from the chewer’s face upon bursting. … The new bubble gum was called Dubble Bubble, and proved to be hugely successful.”
Here’s the part of the story that I find most interesting. The author relates: “When the first batch of the new bubble gum was made, the only food coloring at hand was pink, and this is the main reason why almost all bubble gum today is found in this color.”
Details like that show the homework that went into the book.
“Collector’s Guide to Baseball Cards” was not only a well-organized, step-by-step hobby primer. It was also a great reference for the hobbyist who was already collecting, but who may not have been aware of the background and all the ins-and-outs of the hobby.
The true sign of a well-written book like this is when a veteran hobbyist can read it and come away feeling they learned something of value or – at the very least – enjoyed the read. Just like with baseball itself, I’m one of those people who can never get enough of hobby history.
• 1989 Upper Deck •
Even though this book was published over 30 years ago, it’s still fun to read about that period of baseball card collecting. … And today’s reader may still learn a thing or two.
Perhaps the single most important statement is the very first line of the book’s Introduction: “The reason baseball card collecting has been going on so long and is even bigger today than ever before is because it is fun.”
Yes, indeed.
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