Walking around the New York International Book Fair, I felt drawn to a certain bookstall. This book stall contained many aged books. The stall was not only huge, but the pictures from the books were being showcased behind a glass container. The pictures are what drew my eyes to the stall. The owner, Amanda Hall, is a British rare book seller. Her establishment, Amanda Hall Rare Books began in 1997, in a small attic in Paris. Speaking with Hall, I learned that she first began collecting books because of how she loved to read. Reading was one of her passions, as well as collecting old rare books.

Hall first began running her own English literature department in the United Kingdom. From there, she branched out into French and Continental Literature. Upon arriving in Paris, she was captivated by the copies of books she found there. The books’ colors and make enticed Hall to start her own business of rare books.

The Amanda Hall Rare Book collection consists of literature from the ​eighteenth​ century. Many books from her collection are lifestyle books, theater, children’s books, women, military, and the list goes on. Hall’s ambition to work in this field began from the love she had for books, but evolved when she learned she could be her own employer. Since this is her own company, she buys and sells any books she wants, and auctions them to whom she wishes. Her business travels beyond England to places in America, such as New York and California. Hall’s rare book customers are mostly people that enjoy books written from the eighteenth century that they can’t find at your local library.