Features
- Cover Type: Paperback with 112 pages
- Published by: Universe Publishing June 1, 2002
- Written in: English
- ISBN 10 Number: 0789306808
- ISBN 13 Number: 978-0789306807
-
Book Dimensions:
7.3 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
- Weighs: 7.7 ounces
Product Review
"Found on EBay" (Universe), is an encyclopedia of weird knickknacks sold on the Internetalongside color photographs and wacky e-mails. --
Los Angeles Times, July, 25, 2002
Product Description
Have you ever gone to a yard sale and marvelled at the dubious treasures on display? Imagine seeing a homemade deer-poop paperweight for ten dollars, a lonely left boot, a belt with a glass eye embedded in its buckle. It would never be possible to find such fantastic oddities all in one thrift shop or garage. But, all these objects do exist and have been sold on eBay. Now these items and many, many more like them are collected for your viewing pleasure in this hilarious "museum" of priceless eBay artifacts. With thirty million registered users, eBay is one dotcom that has thrived, becoming the most popular shopping website on the net. The suspense of bidding online inspires fanatic obsession, and all kinds of people from grandmothers to teenagers come to eBay to buy and sell just about everything. If you're searching for a rare deal on a hard-to-find gift, eBay is the place. But, when it comes to the unusual, buyers can easily get more than they bargained for. The author has collected one hundred of these gimcracks and photographed them as if they were jewels. Here are a trucker's prayer plaque in its shining newness, a real frog coin purse that looks like it's about to hop off the page, and a strand of Abraham Lincoln's hair shot as a historical gem. Accompanying each image are the seller's original sales pitch and goofy email correspondence about the objects' possible but improbable uses. This pocket-size catalog of curiosities makes for a delightful novelty gift for the eBayer in anyone's family.
Reader ReviewsHave you been searching forever for necktie made from duct tape? How about a 1963 J.F. Kennedy Garden Gnome? Author Marc Hartzman discovered these and 99 other items -- all actual listings found on eBay -- and compiled them into this humorous short book. Some interesting, some disgusting, but all totally bizarre. The book includes a picture, item description from the auction, starting price, and the sale value (if the item sold). For a few items, Hartzman emailed a question or two and included the responses. And, almost anything you can imagine is listed here. One of my favorites is the last listing, for "Nothing! Absolutely Nothing!" which someone bought for $1.03. They say that truth is stranger than fiction, and this book does a fine job showing that and how much eBay is becoming part of the American culture. This is a must for anyone who has bought or sold on eBay or who simply has a hankering for the bizarre and unusual. A funny little gem of a book.
Search for books at
