Antiquarian book collecting, how to start?

[rengb6]

Hello every! This is my first post so please excuse my ignorance. I recently became interested in antiquarian book collecting after reading De Musset's The Confession of a Child of the Century. I'm looking to purchase a collectable copy of this book (my first antique book) but I don't know what to look for. Obviously a 1st edition would be great but there are multiple first editions from different publishers. Bauman books has the first edition (1899) from George Barrie & Son but I have seen it elsewhere for less. What do you think? Is this edition worth collecting? And is it worth 150-250$? Any suggestions on different editions or antique book collecting in general? Thanks in advance!

[Whifflingpin]

This gets to be an emotive subject in this forum. I'll offer a few random comments.

There is only one "First Edition". There may be other sought-after editions, e.g. the first American edition or a limited edition in a fine binding.

A book (or anything else) is worth what you are willing to pay for it. The edition you may be referring to can be bought on-line for between $80 & $90, but the condition of the book is also a major factor in its price, so $150 - 200 may not be unreasonable.

I have about 300 books over a hundred years old. Some of those were only half that age when I bought them. They are probably no more valuable now than they were then. I should think that the whole lot aren't worth more than $3000.
On the other hand some first editions less than fifty years old might sell for several hundred dollars. And I can think of one author whose worst (later) books tend to cost far more than her better (earlier) ones, simply because the earlier ones sold more copies and ran to more editions, and her later ones are rarer and only mad collectors would want them. There are no rules.

So, unless you just want to be a trader in antique books, I'd say 1) Buy a book primarily because its contents interest you; 2) buy the best looking edition you can afford [after all, you will probably spend far more time looking at the spine of any book on your shelf than actually reading the book;] 3) Look after your books carefully.