Surprising Second-Hand Book Values in New Zealand – September 2025

Each week I highlight some of the more surprising, unusual, or high-value book auctions on Trade Me. This isn’t about Bibles or leather-bound classics — it’s about the outliers, the quirky finds, and the books you might actually have on your shelf that are suddenly worth real money.

Highlights from Trade Me

The prices listed here are the bids as they stand at the time of writing. They’re likely to climb before auctions close, so think of them as baseline values rather than final sale prices.

The Blue Privilege: The Last Tattooed Māori Women — $150

This book documents the life and tradition of the last Māori women to wear the moko kauae. It consistently holds value whenever it comes up for sale, and this week is no exception.

NZ Hot Rod Magazine, Edition 1 (1967) — $100

Early runs of niche magazines are surprisingly collectible — especially when tied to a cultural moment. This first edition speaks to NZ’s car culture of the 1960s.

Hunting in Auckland Conservancy (1985) — $100

At first glance, this looks like a slim leaflet, but New Zealand has a history of producing modest conservation and regional guides that later become collectible simply because so few were printed. This one is a vintage publication from The New Zealand Forest Service

You Only Live Twice (Ian Fleming) — $100

Bond novels are a global collector staple, notably this month at Sotheby's London, a signed first edition of this book fetched £11,970 ($27,341 NZD). Two copies currently available to 'buy now' on TM, highlighting the huge difference in price, with or without a dust jacket. 

(Tip - there are several sites including Etsy that offer reprinted dust jackets for first editions, and every now and again, original dust jackets without the book, come up for sale on Ebay, Etsy and Trademe) 

Footrot Flats #25 and #26 (Murray Ball) — $100 each

Murray Ball’s work is iconic in New Zealand. These later numbers in the series often climb higher than you’d expect, showing Kiwi nostalgia has a reliable market. 

The Bachman Books (Stephen King, hardcover) — $61

Stephen King always features strongly, both locally and internationally, King fans will pay big money for hardback 1st editions, and King is relentless at signing lots of his books. He also regularly releases Special Edition copies, his loyal fans will fall over themselves to get ALL 1st edition versions of his books, US & UK releases. The story behind the Bachman books is an interesting one, and individually, the four original paperback books usually fetch over $1000 a piece. That's an incredible amount for a paperback book, and worth remembering the name Richard Bachman while rummaging in the Salvation Army!

Flour Water Salt Yeast (Ken Forkish) — $50

Here’s one of those surprise entries: a modern cookbook about artisan bread and pizza. A quick search reveals this book can be bought brand new for the same price! 

Rugrats Around the World Magazines (2001–2002) — $60

Early 2000s nostalgia is creeping into the second-hand market. Tie-in magazines like these are starting to attract collectors who grew up with them.

Takeaways

• Ephemera and slim guides can be surprisingly valuable.
• Nostalgia (Rugrats, Footrot Flats) holds steady.
• Stephen King remains a safe bet in any market.

Closing

Want to know if the books on your shelf are worth selling? Try using Google Lens to search an image of the book cover. Don't get over excited by ANY prices listed on Amazon, base your valuation on the lowest price you find for the exact same copy of your book. Alternatively you can contact us with photos (info@booksworthkeeping.co.nz) We would be happy to sell on your behalf (50/50) if its a goodie! 

Follow Books Worth Selling for weekly highlights, or explore our Books Worth Keeping on our website. www.booksworthkeeping.co.nz