We're counting the days, hours, minutes, seconds ...

In just a few weeks, we'll be gathering at The Coliseum in downtown St. Petersburg for the 34th annual Florida Antiquarian Book Fair. Antiquarian booksellers from all over the country will be here for the oldest and largest book fair in the southeastern United States.

Every year we're thrilled when time for the book fair rolls around. We're looking forward to seeing old friends. Many of the booksellers have been showing at this book fair for decades. It's just what they do. They, in turn, have made many friends in Florida who come to see them every year. Meanwhile, there are always new book dealers who are exhibiting at the book fair for the first time. We look forward to seeing them as well.

Our dealers are knowledgeable about the books, maps, prints, ephemera, and related items they bring to the book fair. So if these things interest you, you're going to find kindred spirits at the book fair. A few years ago, someone described the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair as a little book village that springs up Brigadoon-like every year. We think its a special place to be and we hope you do, too.

We're counting down to the big day!

Well, it won't be long now. More time has passed since the last Florida Antiquarian Book Fair than still remains until the next one. In just a few weeks, antiquarian booksellers from across the country will gather at The Coliseum in downtown St. Petersburg for the 33rd annual Florida Antiquarian Book Fair.

We're particularly excited, of course, because it's the time we live for all year long. We realize that not everyone is quite as obsessive about the arrival of the book fair, though we have empirical evidence that we're not alone.

One reason we're so excited is that we'll be seeing a lot of old friends. Many of the dealers who exhibit at the book fair have been coming to the fair for decades. It's part of their life. And they are part of ours.

Another reason we're excited, though, is that there will be new dealers here, too. New friends. It's always great to make new friends.

No matter whether they're regulars or brand new to the book fair, our dealers always bring the most fascinating books, ephemera, prints, maps, and a whole host of other related items. If you like this stuff (and you wouldn't be reading this far into this post if you didn't), this is the place for you.

There's an atmosphere at the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair that is quite special, and we'll talk more about that in a later post. In the meantime, you're welcome to share this countdown post with anyone you think might want a reminder about the book fair. It only happens once a year. It's only for three days, and you don't want to miss it.