Book It, Buzz: Landing NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr.

For years now, autographed books coming direct from the publishers -- or direct from the authors themselves -- have been an affordable way to collect ink from notable names in all realms of pop culture.

It's not a perfect system with stamps, fakes and autopens sometimes in the mix -- a problem for publishers to catch as they are not authenticators -- but thanks to dedicated collectors on the Blowout Cards Forum and elsewhere, those problems often get caught and fixed ... or at least become well-known enough to avoid if it's an issue that goes uncorrected.

Getting ink in-person is always best -- book tours still happen, of course -- but landing autographed editions from publishers, online sellers or celebs themselves via their websites or other appearances are common. So, with that said, here's the first of what just might become a monthly department here on The Buzz for this new year

Our second subject and autograph in this ongoing series? NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr.

THE RUNDOWN ... 
The Book: Buster Gets Back on Track (autographed edition via publisher)
The Author: Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- with illustrations by Ela Smietanka 
The Specs: Tommy Nelson publishing -- released on Sept. 19, 2023 (40 pages)
The Price: $18.99 (cover price)
The Spot: Barnes & Noble for this one

Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Once NASCAR's young bad boy as the driver of the No. 8 Budweiser Chevy, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is now a four-time author with this one being a follow-up to Buster's Trip to Victory Lane, which was his first children's book released in late-2022. (His other two books were in-career/post-career biographies that arrived in in 2002 and 2019, while this book is dedicated to his two young daughters ages six and three.) He was a 26-time winner in NASCAR's top series -- including two Daytona 500s -- and finished in the Top 10 in almost half of his Cup races with his third-place finish in the season rankings in 2003 his pinnacle there after winning the Busch Series title twice. He retired as a full-time racer in 2017 and was a 15-time winner of the fan-voted Most Popular Driver award and there are plenty of other highlights, of course, that led him to a place in the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2022. He's findable when it comes to ink -- most NASCAR drivers are -- but he's also pricier as he's still got a prominent place among racers in pop culture and continues these days as a team owner, broadcaster and podcaster with his Dirty Mo Media group.

Why this item: February means NASCAR with the season-starting events and the Daytona 500 set for Feb. 18, so I figured now was the time for this one. While I have a few of his autos -- from both through-the-mail a couple decades ago to past in-pack finds from Press Pass and Panini America -- this one seemed right for this month. This one is a bookplate signature -- think "sticker" auto but on a paper sticker affixed inside the book -- but at least it's one where the little holographic sticker isn't affixed to his sig. Those, which also were used on stickers for some card releases, are rough ... so no matter how much somebody may not like a bookplate at least these aren't that. For cover price, this was an easy grab -- and there's a whole world of notable celebs singing on to do kids' books like this with many of them doing signed editions, too. Some surprising names can be found in this realm -- and a lot of sports fans/auto collectors may not think to look there. You'll see more of those here in the coming months.

Chase ink on cards: BlowoutCards.com for NASCAR boxes

The Bottom Line: Earnhardt is a popular signer, so adding his ink for less than the price of a blaster box is a no-brainer.

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