I originally posted this in CMT, all excited that I had posted a WL book. Several hours pass, and the lone wisher hadn't requested it, I got impatient, and went and saw that there are actually 1544 copies in the system.

There is a wish list for the large print edition. Link here: http://www.paperbackswap.com/book/details/9780375433535-The+Testament+Random+House+Large+Print

Here is the link for the 1544 available copies: http://www.paperbackswap.com/book/details/9780440234746-The+Testament

And here is the link for the lone WLd copy: http://www.paperbackswap.com/book/details/9780385339582-The+Testament

How is the copy (in regular print) different from the copy with 1544 available?

Thanks!

My guess is the book was originally a WL book. Someone put every edition on their WL and forgot to remove one.  Maybe that's a harder to find version and so they've never been offered it before. Or it could be that this person knows it's a tradesize book and since PBS doesn't mark a book as tradesize it's hard to tell. 

I posted a WL book a month or two ago. I always check peoples WL to see if I have something else. I noticed she had a book on her WL that I had on my shelf.  It was The Devil Who Tamed Her by Johanna Lindsay.  My version had over 100 copies posted.  So I PM'd her and she said she didn't realize that was still on there.  She had already gotten a version of the book and that one had been on her WL from before the book was published.  There were about 5 people in line for it too.

They have different ISBNs, different publisher, different publication dates. The content I guess is the same.

it looks like the WL copy is a Trade Paperback version (or some other bigger paperback) while the 1544 copies are all Mass market paperbacks

also even for a WL book, the person does have 48 hours to accept a WL book if they aren't on auto request (they might be trying to find a credit or they might not have logged on), so a few hours is too early to get impatient.

Mary,

How can you check people's WL?

Melissa- click on a member's link (in blue) by their name or nickname and it will take you to their shelf and a tab that shows their WL and a tab that shows the Reviews they've written.  That's what you get to see.  You go through their public profile if they made one and straight to the shelf if they didn't.

Ruth

Thanks Ruth!

But just to confirm, there is no way for me to find out who is wishing for a book, by the book's title/ISBN, correct?

The only way would be to post the book then PM them.  Chances are that person is no longer active in PBS and that version is hard to find and so it's just there on WL until someone happens to post that one.  Then when it gets posted it'll probably time out. Also with so many copies posted of that one version-the people on WL already know it's there.  They probably specifically want the one they have on WL especially in the case of large print.

And if they do by chance order it-it'll go to that first person who posted the book unless they find you specifically. 

When I post a WL book and it's pending I check out the persons WL to see if I have anything else in MT TBR.  I do this by hitting the PM button and following the link to their WL. I believe this only works if they have set up at least a nickname.  Then I PM them if I have another book on their shelf.  So I can read it, post it to them and save on postage. I do the same thing if someone requests a book from me.  But only if I know I can read it in time.

Here are the differences as listed at amazon's website:

1544 available copies:

Mass Market Paperback: 544 pages
Publisher: Island Books (December 28, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0440234743
ISBN-13: 978-0440234746
Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces

The lone wished for book:

Paperback: 480 pages
Publisher: Delta (September 27, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385339585
ISBN-13: 978-0385339582
Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.3 x 1.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces

It's making me very curious as to why someone wants the Delta published version. What's soooo special about that version? Is it some rare version? Have a better ending than the one with 1544 copies in the system?  (Not to spoil anything for anyone, but I'd hold out for a different version if that's the case.)

At the moment, I am actually credit rich, so it's not that I needed someone to request my copy. I was just super excited that I could fullfill someone's wish! Bummer that I can't.

Thanks for the explaining everyone.

But, if the lone wisher of the odd-ball copy is reading this... the curiosity is killing me. What's so special about that other edition?!

Some folks want all the books on their keeper shelf to match.  Some want the HB or trade version as the print is slightly bigger.  Some folks just don't notice.  And sometimes it is how the book is indexed.  Do all versions have the same spelling, initials, and spacing?

At times, I will wish for a more recent edition of a paperback copy because older editions tend to have more page yellowing---6 years can make a difference.

In my experience, the quality of paper in hardbacks tend to be better with less yellowing and with more overall uniformity across the page. Paperbacks tend to age with the heaviest yellowing along the outside edges. I just sent out a 1981 paperback  and it was quite yellowed, but stil very readable. The price on the front was $1.50.

Judging by the measurements the newer one could be one of those new taller mmps. You know the ones they came out with a couple years ago that are basically the same width and thickness as a mmp but slightly taller.  So maybe be they really want that one.  Maybe it's easier for them to read and they are willing to wait.

I probably have books on my WL that have other versions posted intio PBS.  I have so many books to read that it just hasn't been worth the time to me to look up each possible edition of all the books I have on WL incase I missed one.  I have the emails turned off because of audio books.

Just to throw out one more possible reason:

Some people who collect books try to collect a copy of every cover design for a title. 

(I think this is most common among collectors of SciFi and Fantasy, but that is just speculation.)

How do you tell how many copies are available in the system?

You can find the number of copies in the system by adding the book to your reminder list.