When one thinks of a rare book dealer, the portrait of Natalie Galustian doesn’t exactly come to mind.
Lacking are the stereotypical images of her trade – the long white beard, a tweed coat, a wooden pipe, and granny glasses. Quite the contrary, this connoisseur of the classics seems better suited to the worlds of high fashion or entertainment. At first glance, one expects to find a copy of Vogue beneath her forearm. Instead, she’s more likely to be shielding a tattered century-old book, which might fetch five figures at auction.
Indeed, Galustian defies our expectations, whether it’s her chosen profession or her latest passion, poker – which just so happen to be one and the same. Her life’s work is, in fact, books or more precisely pursuit of the rarest of all books, those precious priceless keepsakes of prior generations which to this day stand as the only bona fide portholes to previous eras. Long before anyone had heard of the Internet or iPhones, books were the vessels of most ideas. Books were the caldrons of great adventure encasing the boldest of visions, which despite the greatest advances in contemporary technology can never quite be replicated electronically. Alas, books rely on a simple vitality – reader imagination.
Today, Galustian possesses what is unquestionably the most extensive collection of rare poker books ever assembled. Many of these treasures date all the way back to the early 1800s. A few of her books are the only copies which are known to exist.
For example, consider one of her most prized rarities. A book written by James Hildreth published in 1838 called Dragoon Campaigns to the Rocky Mountains; Being a History of the Enlistment, Organization, and First Campaigns of the Regiment of U.S. Dragoons; Together With Incidents of a Soldier's Life, and Sketches of Scenery and Indian Character, (yes, that’s really the title) provides what is believed to be the very first reference ever to the game of poker in the English language. The word “poker” was so new to readers at the time that it had to be footnoted with a short description which reads simply, “a popular game in the southwest.”
Galustian holds court daily in her privately-owned bookshop conveniently located at Cecil Court in central London’s theatre district, a fitting locale given the suspensful contents of her extraordinary collection. The bookshop -- Natalie Galustian Rare Books -- seems a living museum more than a store, a bygone throwback to days long before the big retailers seem to take all the fun out of the book trade. Her shop is only steps away from Casino at the Empire at Leicester Sqaure, host of the first four years of World Series of Poker Europe.
Nestled on a small side street surrounded by world-class theatres and antique dealers, one might be stunned to pass by a panoramic storefront window containing the oversized images of none other than Doyle Brunson, Stu Ungar, and Chris “Jesus” Ferguson. In fact, Ms. Galustian’s love of poker is more than just a passing fancy. And, it's poker which benefits most from this unusual courtship. Her affection and devotion not only helps to legitimize poker in literature as a serious subject but also transforms these poker portraits into oddly appropriate magnets of curiosity alongside those of James Joyce and Herman Melville, which hang next door.
An avid reader since childhood, Galustian knew from the start she would somehow make use of her love of language. After graduating from the prestigious London University with an undergraduate degree in English literature and later a Masters in modernism, she took jobs first as a screenplay reader and later as a news editor. She even worked for the BBC, one of the world’s most prestigious news organizations.
One afternoon, while strolling around London's Noting Hill area, famous for its antique stores, Galustian entered a small bookshop. Little did she know at the time that her life was about to take a dramatic turn. She was fascinated by the contents of the store – mostly old books gathering dust, largely ignored by passersby. She was so intrigued by the books she saw that she accepted an offer on the spot to work part-time, a few days per week. It became a life’s calling. Galustian eventually left the BBC and began working full-time. Before she knew it, five years had passed.
“It’s incredible that a chance encounter wandering into a bookshop turned into my career,” Galustian recalled. “That where I learned my trade.”
Galustian recalled the fond memory of experiencing her first love, professionally speaking:
I was walking by the shop and I saw one of my favorite books in first edition. It was the first printing of “Hangover Square,” by Patrick Hamilton – who is quite an underrated author. It’s a wonderful book first published in 1939. I thought to myself, that it would be a wonderful book to own! But it was 1,000 pounds (about $1,600), which was a lot of money. I learned that this book was published at the very start of the Second World War, when paper stocks were very scarce. A lot of copies were lost in the (London) bombings. So, it’s now very rare, indeed. That’s when I began to understand why first-edition books have such great value attached to them. Rarity dictates value. Very few copies of this book still exist, and it’s also a great work of literature.
Like her unanticipated career path, Galustian’s lure to poker books was completely accidental. Most rare book dealers gradually develop niche specialties. Galustian became aware that no one specialized in books about gambling and poker. She slowly began to accumulate books and artifacts, adding to her treasure trove one purchase at a time until she possessed a collection of 250 precious rarities. It is currently the most valuable collection of its kind ever assembled.
How much is the entire collection worth? Try well over $100,000. Of course, the real value is up to a prospective buyer.
“I was always very interested in gambling and going to casinos,” Galustian explained. “I started buying books about gambling. I eventually discovered no one had really ever done a thorough bibliography on gambling and poker. No one had charted the evolution of literature on poker. So, I started going to book fairs, special sales, and auctions. It took me about six years to put this collection together.”
For Galustian, such dedication to buying and selling rare books is not merely a business venture. Being a specialized book dealer is just as much about protecting and preserving history. Her books are not merely paper and printed words. They are more precisely literary hieroglyphics, serving as the only available references to the origins of the game we know today as poker.
“I am more passionate about collecting than dealing in books,” Galustian said. “Part of being a rare book dealer is being able to own them – at least for a finite time. I’m a curator of sorts, as in looking after a museum. These books will outlive all of us.”
Consider another book in her collection written by the former Civil War General Robert C. Schenck. During the decade immediately following the war, Schenck was appointed the U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain. While attending a diplomatic function in London, Schenck was asked about his experiences as a soldier. He brought up a popular card game he played during the war, completely unknown in England at the time. Schenck scribed the rules of the card game for his engrossed audience, notes which were rewritten and published soon thereafter. This became the first official rule book on draw poker.
Like most books in Galustian’s collection, this book has immeasurable historical importance. Schenck’s book introduced poker to England. To say the book changed history would be an understatement. In fact, had many of the books included in the collection never been written, poker is unlikely to have evolved into the game as we know it today. At the very least, poker would most certainly be a different game were it not for these monumental snapshots in time. In short, Galustian’s books have served to legitimize a game that was formally played only by outlaws and undesirables. Legitimacy came one word and one printed page at a time.
COMING IN PART 2: More on Natalie Galustian, her prized rare book collection, and her views on modern poker books.