poppy Posted September 26, 2012 Share Posted September 26, 2012 No I didn't Vod, sorry, I'll go and see if I can find it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 11, 2012 Author Share Posted October 11, 2012 Apparently the book fair wasn't enough for me because I've been ordering more books. In the past few weeks, I've received: Lewis Carroll Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (I have a large hardback from my childhood but wanted a more accessible paperback) Lewis Carroll Through the Looking Glass (I've read this, but only in an ebook version, so I wanted my own copy) Agatha Christie (about half a dozen books) Patricia Highsmith Ripley Under Ground Patricia Highsmith Ripley Under Water (well, I haven't received this yet and I've been waiting much longer than usual, but hopefully it will turn up soon) Patricia Highsmith Strangers on a Train Richard Kennedy A Boy at the Hogarth Press Ransom Riggs Talking Pictures John Steinbeck Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters John Steinbeck Working Days: The Journals of the Grapes of Wrath Johann David Wyss The Swiss Family Robinson I have ordered: EM Delafield The Diary of a Provincial Lady Pamela Des Barres I'm with the Band Philip K Dick Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said Mark Dunn Under the Harrow F Scott Fitzgerald Dream of Youth: The Letters of F Scott Fitzgerald Tim Harford The Undercover Economist Patricia Highsmith The Talented Miss Highsmith HL Mencken The Diary of HL Mencken Walter Moers The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books Bill Morgan The Typewriter is Holy: The Complete, Uncensored History of the Beat Generation Anne Sexton A Biography Rainer Maria Wilke Letters to a Young Poet Virginia Woolf Hyde Park Gate News Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian. Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 I love reading about your book buying. It makes me far less guilty about my book buying Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 EM Delafield's The Diary of a Provincial Lady is one of my favourite books - I've been thinking of re-reading it again, as it's been a while since I've read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppyshake Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Apparently the book fair wasn't enough for me because I've been ordering more books. In the past few weeks, I've received: Patricia Highsmith Ripley Under Ground Patricia Highsmith Ripley Under Water (well, I haven't received this yet and I've been waiting much longer than usual, but hopefully it will turn up soon) Patricia Highsmith Strangers on a Train These sound great .. I'm wanting to read The Talented Mr Ripley but didn't know there were others .. didn't know that she wrote Strangers on a Train either. Richard Kennedy A Boy at the Hogarth Press I want, I want, I want Ransom Riggs Talking Pictures Is this a continuation of Miss Peregrine? or something else entirely? John Steinbeck Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters Sounds brilliant F Scott Fitzgerald Dream of Youth: The Letters of F Scott Fitzgerald .. and this one. Patricia Highsmith The Talented Miss Highsmith You are bringing books to my attention all the time .. I should either be thanking you or applying for a restraining order HL Mencken The Diary of HL Mencken Walter Moers The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books Must look these up. Virginia Woolf Hyde Park Gate News Brilliant .. you've caught the same bug as me I love reading about your book buying. It makes me far less guilty about my book buying You are building a library of dreams Kylie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsgood Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 Ditto here! I love reading about your book buying. It makes me far less guilty about my book buying Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 I had nearly forgotten to recount a tale of my awesomeness! A few weeks back, I went to my parents' place to watch a footy grand final with a couple of family friends. The conversation wound around to books (woohoo!) and Kindles, so Mum got her beloved Kindle out to show the other couple. She told them that she was 66% into the book. So I jumped up and grabbed the actual 'tree' book off her bookshelf. I opened it at a random spot that looked to be about 2/3 of the way through and said 'are you up to Chapter 59?' Now, this was one of those crime books and was rather lengthy. Each chapter was only a few pages long (Chapter 59 was two pages long), so the odds of me randomly landing on her exact chapter were next to none. Still, she checked her Kindle (I bet you can't guess what's coming ) and confirmed that she was indeed up to Chapter 59. I thought that was very cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 Oh dear .. I'm in for it now Yeah you are An artist, a Bloomsbury Group member and Virginia Woolf's sister. Ah, thanks I feel like I've seen her name on some books... I can't remember where... Titles Between the Sheets and The Bolter (which chesilbeach read and kindly sent to me) come to mind... She's waiting to see if I crack first The most ideal plan, is it not? I applaud Kylie's cunning mind! Patricia Highsmith Ripley Under Ground Patricia Highsmith Ripley Under Water (well, I haven't received this yet and I've been waiting much longer than usual, but hopefully it will turn up soon) Patricia Highsmith Strangers on a Train No sign of the les lit book by her? What was it called, the Salty something? John Steinbeck Journal of a Novel: The East of Eden Letters John Steinbeck Working Days: The Journals of the Grapes of Wrath So cool I'm so happy for you! Pamela Des Barres I'm with the Band Wohoo, for the Rory list! But I think it'll be interesting enough on it's own right, too. Mark Dunn Under the Harrow Hehe, you and your collection of Mark Dunn F Scott Fitzgerald Dream of Youth: The Letters of F Scott Fitzgerald So cool! Tim Harford The Undercover Economist Hehe, we already discussed this in my log. I'm happy for you! HL Mencken The Diary of HL Mencken Oh. My. God. Either I didn't know or I've forgotten: I had no idea he kept a diary and it's been published! This is so going on my wishlist! Walter Moers The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books Hehe, you must be loving this! Bill Morgan The Typewriter is Holy: The Complete, Uncensored History of the Beat Generation And this! Anne Sexton A Biography I'm jealous! Rainer Maria Wilke Letters to a Young Poet Wohoo for Rory list, again Virginia Woolf Hyde Park Gate News Why haven't I heard of this? I love reading about your book buying. It makes me far less guilty about my book buying Here here EM Delafield's The Diary of a Provincial Lady is one of my favourite books - I've been thinking of re-reading it again, as it's been a while since I've read it. What's it like? Is it a novel or a real diary? I had nearly forgotten to recount a tale of my awesomeness! A few weeks back, I went to my parents' place to watch a footy grand final with a couple of family friends. The conversation wound around to books (woohoo!) and Kindles, so Mum got her beloved Kindle out to show the other couple. She told them that she was 66% into the book. So I jumped up and grabbed the actual 'tree' book off her bookshelf. I opened it at a random spot that looked to be about 2/3 of the way through and said 'are you up to Chapter 59?' Now, this was one of those crime books and was rather lengthy. Each chapter was only a few pages long (Chapter 59 was two pages long), so the odds of me randomly landing on her exact chapter were next to none. Still, she checked her Kindle (I bet you can't guess what's coming ) and confirmed that she was indeed up to Chapter 59. I thought that was very cool. Very cool I'd forgotten your Mum has a Kindle. She's come so far! She probably owns all the Deaver novels already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 What's it like? Is it a novel or a real diary? It's a comic novel written in the form of a diary. It's set in the 1930s in one of those very British upper middle class households, with the lead character trying to keep up appearances and make everything nice. There's a few further editions - I know I've read one set in London - but I can't remember how many there are in total. I do remember, however, feeling like I had to read it my best cut glass RP English accent (believe me, coming from the West Country there is no way I can achieve this in reality :giggle2)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 It's a comic novel written in the form of a diary. It's set in the 1930s in one of those very British upper middle class households, with the lead character trying to keep up appearances and make everything nice. There's a few further editions - I know I've read one set in London - but I can't remember how many there are in total. I do remember, however, feeling like I had to read it my best cut glass RP English accent (believe me, coming from the West Country there is no way I can achieve this in reality :giggle2)! Oh darn, sounds right up my alley, I do love novels that are in someways so British Comic novels in particular. For me it's so funny to hear you guys talking about your accents: it's been so long since I've had any classes on pronunciation and different dialects/accents in the UK, that I've forgotten about all of the regional differences and I imagine all you darling Brits to speak full on proper RP, preferably with the little finger in the air I'm in for a bit of a shock whenever I shall meet some of you guys, aren't I? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 13, 2012 Author Share Posted October 13, 2012 I love reading about your book buying. It makes me far less guilty about my book buying Ditto here! Here here Thanks everyone...I think. Prepare to feel even less guilty, y'all... I had to do an editing exam today (the first exam I've done in about 12 years). Because pretty much anyone can call themselves an editor here (like moi) and there is no real standard throughout Australia, an organisation has started holding accreditation exams. They've only done a few, and today I went along to try and get my accreditation. I think I did reasonably well. I need 80%+ to pass, and I'm quietly confident but not getting my hopes up (I failed a practice exam I did the day before!) Anyway, the test was in Sydney so I went in extra early so I could visit my favourite bookshop there. (Hey, my friend gave me a gift voucher, so I had to go!) I was too nervous to be in much of a book shopping mood, but I already knew what I wanted, and I got it: Jane Austen's Letters! It's a large hardback and so pretty. It's rather expensive so not something I would buy for myself. The beauty of a gift voucher is that you can feel like you're treating yourself and splashing out on something lavish, but with someone else's money! After the exam, I decided I needed another treat. (Some people need a stiff drink - I need a book or three). So I went to another of my favourite shops and bought three books: Benjamin Black Elegy for April Sally Brampton Shoot the Damn Dog (a memoir about depression) Suzanne Collins The Ladies of Grace Adieu (this is to replace the hardback I have) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsgood Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 Prepare to feel even less guilty, y'all... Look at it as a public service. When I get shifty looks for my book buying, I can point to your posts and say "But look, if you think I'm bad, you should see her!" I had to do an editing exam today (the first exam I've done in about 12 years). Because pretty much anyone can call themselves an editor here (like moi) and there is no real standard throughout Australia, an organisation has started holding accreditation exams. They've only done a few, and today I went along to try and get my accreditation. I think I did reasonably well. I need 80%+ to pass, and I'm quietly confident but not getting my hopes up (I failed a practice exam I did the day before!) 80% is nothing to sneeze at, so be proud my friend, be proud! Anyway, the test was in Sydney so I went in extra early so I could visit my favourite bookshop there. (Hey, my friend gave me a gift voucher, so I had to go!) I was too nervous to be in much of a book shopping mood, but I already knew what I wanted, and I got it: Jane Austen's Letters! It's a large hardback and so pretty. It's rather expensive so not something I would buy for myself. The beauty of a gift voucher is that you can feel like you're treating yourself and splashing out on something lavish, but with someone else's money! Absolutely you had to go. Otherwise it would have just been an insult. Uh huh, that's my story and I'm sticking to it! I've got a couple of hardcover entire works in one volume, collectible books for both Jane Austen and The Bronte Sisters. They are heavy but sooo pretty. Of course I also have cheaper versions of the idividual works that I actually use for reading, but pretty books are just well, pretty! After the exam, I decided I needed another treat. (Some people need a stiff drink - I need a book or three). So I went to another of my favourite shops and bought three books: Sometimes both can be good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 Fingers crossed for the exam result, Kylie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 14, 2012 Author Share Posted October 14, 2012 Thanks Steve. I won't find out for 6-8 weeks, though. I'll try not to think about it in the meantime! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 14, 2012 Author Share Posted October 14, 2012 From what little you read, what did you make of the book? Re Magical Thinking. I quite liked it. It let me in on a little of his eventful life, so I can only imagine how much better (worse?) Running with Scissors is going to be. I was only checking out the chapters that had naughty headings, so I don't know if I was reading the 'worst' stuff or not (yes, I can be very immature sometimes - but hey, I didn't write it, I only read it!) Russell Ash & Brian Lake Bizarre Books: A Compendium of Classic Oddities This should be interesting! Yes indeedy! Here's the blurb: "They say you can't judge a book by its cover—but its title can tell you MORE than you ever needed to know! Amazing, illuminating, and gut-bustingly funny, Bizarre Books is the wonderfully twisted product of more than two decades of determined searching in forgotten corners of out-of-the-way libraries and through the literary detritus of eclectic private collections. It is certain to delight every true fan of trivia and the patently absurd." Here are the examples of funny book titles that are given on the back cover: Fun and games! Pranks with the Mouth Wrestling for Gay Guys Play with Your Own Marbles Self Help! Handbook for the Limbless What to Say When You Talk to Yourself How to Draw a Straight Line Science and Technology! Romping through Physics Nuclear War: What's in it for You? Fine Fiction! The Fangs of Suet Pudding Girls of the Pansy Patrol My Poor Dick Groucho Marx Memoirs of a Mangy Lover Harpo Marx & Rowland Barber Harpo Speaks! You already commented on the Harpo book on my thread but I still find it funny that we should've bought the same book on the very same day We're awesome. I watched my second Marx Brothers movie recently: Animal Crackers. 'twas great! Kate Atkinson Started Early, Took My Dog I think this is on my wishlist, although I'm pretty sure it's not really about dogs. It's a murder mystery, is it not? Yes, you're right. There were several books by Atkinson at the fair, and when I stopped to look at them before I bought them, I realised they were mostly part of a series. A couple of the blurbs didn't really appeal to me though, so I gave one or two to my Mum and I think I put a couple of others back (see? I showed restraint!) Jane Austen & Charlotte Bronte The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte Interesting, what's this about? These are the early writings of Austen and Bronte - the stuff they wrote before they were famous. Richard Brautigan So the Wind Won't Blow it All Away Haha, hippie Brautigan book! Yay! I was looking up more of his work recently and added some stuff to my wish list. All of his stuff sounds great. Simone de Beauvoir The Woman Destroyed Wohoo for Beauvoir! I don't believe I have a copy of this, great find! Yep. They had a few of her titles, but I showed restraint and only bought the one that I thought sounded the most interesting. William Faulkner As I Lay Dying Jealous! I was so pleased to find this. I have always known the title but never knew what it was about. Then, just before I went to the bookfair, I was reading a list somewhere of the greatest novels set in the south, and this one really caught my eye. Jessica Mitford The Making of a Mudraker This must be one of the Mitford sisters? Yep! Haruki Murakami The Elephant Vanishes Yay for finding Murakami. And I can't believe you didn't even think of him until you found a copy, I think one of the books/authors I remember the best from our book fair trip is Murakami, we both found so many of his titles. This was the only Murakami title I saw. I think they are still trying to replenish their stocks of Murakami after Cyclone Frankie whipped through and grabbed most of them two years ago. You did way better than me on that front! Dan Rhodes This is Life I don't think I've even heard of this one Me neither! It's quite chunky compared to his other books, too. I just looked it up and realised it was only published in March this year. Score! That would also explain why my copy is a large paperback edition. Garth Stein The Art of Racing in the Rain Yay!! I'm the most happy about you purchasing this novel! As I'm sure you probably expected. I knew you would be! I had been looking for it for ages in the cheap bookshops but could never find it. Now that I've found it at the bookfair, I finally saw it elsewhere yesterday. That's so typical! Amy Tan The Bonesetter's Daughter Amy Tan Saving Fish from Drowning Cool! I hope to possibly read some of these together with you, if our reading schedules allow it! That would be great. There were a couple more of hers there, but I limited myself to these. I couldn't remember which one everyone had recently read for the GG challenge, but I was hoping it was one of these. I'm pretty sure now that it isn't, but oh well! Alice Walker The Color Purple This was a great novel! Great! I've seen the movie once or twice and have always wanted to read the book. It's one that I've seen many times at the bookfair, but I have never been able to find an edition I like. The covers are usually very ugly. Happily, I finally found one. Robert Penn Warren All the King's Men This rings a few bells but I can't remember where I've heard the title. This is another one I found out about on the 'great southern books' list. I kept thinking it sounded familiar too, but I think I might have been confusing it with All the President's Men (the book/movie about the Watergate scandal) Here's a synopsis from Goodreads: Set in the 1930s, this Pulitzer Prize-winning novel traces the rise and fall of demagogue Willie Stark, a fictional character who resembles the real-life Huey "Kingfish" Long of Louisiana. Stark begins his political career as an idealistic man of the people but soon becomes corrupted by success and caught between dreams of service and an insatiable lust for power. As relevant today as it was more than fifty years ago, All the King's Men is one of the classics of American literature. Jeanette Winterson Gut Symmetries Jeanette Winterson Lighthousekeeping Jeanette Winterson Sexing the Cherry Oh boy, is poppyshake to be blamed for this? No, not really! I have always eyed off Winterson's books at previous bookfairs, but I've never known where to start with them (I'm sure at least one or two are on various book lists, but I could never remember which titles, so I just didn't get anything). Then I watched an interview that Jennifer Byrne did with Winterson a couple of months ago, and I became quite interested in her. This aired shortly after I bought Winterson's autobiography anyway, so I just gave in and bought all the titles I've been seeing for years. Virginia Woolf A Haunted House: The Complete Shorter Fiction So cool! Yep! I was very happy to find it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 14, 2012 Author Share Posted October 14, 2012 Before I forget: Have you counted how many books you bought in total? Was this your biggest book fair haul to date? It certainly looks like a serious contender! I think I bought 112 'unique' titles, and maybe another dozen to replace editions I already have. I don't think it's my biggest haul ever, but it's certainly right up there! Charlotte Chandler Hello, I Must Be Going: Groucho and His Friends I see a pattern here... Yeah, you'd think I like the Marx Brothers or something. I have a few of their autobiographies, so it'll be interesting to read about them from someone else's point of view. Richard Harwell (ed) Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind Letters, 1936-1949 Gertrude Stein Paris France Jean-Paul Sartre Words Jealous! Bloody hell, some amazing finds. I agree! Especially about Margaret Mitchell's letters. I love the book and the movie so much, and these are letters she wrote about the movie. Awesome! Julia Briggs Virginia Woolf: An Inner Life Rebecca Fraser Charlotte Bronte George Woodstock The Crystal Spirit: A Study of George Orwell Excellent choices! Thank you! Truman Capote A Capote Reader I'm betting you were really psyched to find this! I'm so happy for you Yes! I love Capote. This book did pose a shelving dilemma, though, because it's part non-fiction and part fiction. I decided on non-fiction in the end. HL Mencken Selected Prejudices This purchase is the other book besides The Art of Racing in the Rain that I'm so happy and excited about, we are crazy for Mencken Thank you! And it matches the Mencken I found at the last fair (In Defence of Women); they are both small blue hardbacks. I'm surprised I found them because the print on the spine is tiny and I usually gloss over those types of hardbacks anyway because they're a little unappealing. But I did look more closely this time because of my last find, and it paid off! Regina Marler Selected Letters of Vanessa Bell Hmmm, who was Vanessa Bell again? She was Virginia Woolf's sister and another member of the Bloomsbury group. Frederic Spotts Letters of Leonard Woolf This should be interesting. Indeed! It's probably one I won't get to for about 20 years (I hope to finish Virginia Woolf's works by about that time ), but it's nice to have. Tom Wolfe The New Journalism Tom Wolfe The Purple Decades These should be really interesting as well. Hmm, I was expecting a little more enthusiasm about The New Journalism because I thought you had brought it to my attention originally, but now I'm not so sure! Maybe I found out about it after reading The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test? All I know is that the book is out of print and I thought I'd never find it. I actually gave a little gasp when I saw it. This was probably the find of the bookfair for me. Virginia Woolf The Diary of Virginia Woolf Volume 3 1925-1930 Virginia Woolf The Diary of Virginia Woolf Volume 4 1931-1935 Virginia Woolf Women and Writing I see someone's getting into Woolf these days I'm really jealous about the diaries. I can't wait for you to get into them so you can tell me if you like them. Are you thinking about doing the same kind of Woolf challenge poppyshake is doing? I was happy to find them but disappointed not to find the rest. I remember that, a bit before the bookfair, Lifeline's online shop had a set of all 8 volumes for sale (in hardback; the ones I bought are paperback). I dithered too long over buying them and someone else snapped them up, so I was happy to at least find these two. I'll have fun looking for the rest now whenever I go shopping. No, I won't be doing a challenge like Poppyshake is; I don't set myself challenges anymore because I have so little reading time. Reading the books as a challenge would quickly make them feel like a millstone around my neck (and you know how that feels!) Harold Bloom How to Read and Why Hehe, I have a copy of this! Really?! I was expecting you to make a smart comment like 'you need a book to tell you how to read?' Actually, I'm surprised nobody said that! Carmen Callil & Colm Toibin The Modern Library: The 200 Best Novels in English Since 1950 I wonder which books are on the list... I'll find/post a list soonish. I was thrilled to find this because I just discovered the list a couple of weeks before the book fair! I was actually going to start a thread for it in the relevant area...and then I found the book! Ernest Hemingway Death in the Afternoon Oh man I'm so jealous! And it's the awesome-looking Vintage edition, too! Jane Austen The Wit and Wisdom of Jane Austen So cool! Yeah. I couldn't resist this cute collection of Austen's most awesome stuff. *sigh* I heart Jane Austen. Mardy Grothe Oxymoronica Please tell me more about this when you have the time! Gideon Haigh (ed) Peter the Lord's Cat and Other Unexpected Obituaries from Wisden What the hell is this? Hehe. It's an awesome little book of cricket-related obituaries. Wisden is an annual publication of cricket statistics etc. It's a massive book - around 1,500 pages (according to Wikipedia). The book contains some of the most interesting, humorous and moving obituaries that Wisden has published, including one about a cat who spent a lot of time at Lord's Cricket Ground in London. Hey, I just noticed that Peter has his own Wikipedia entry. Richard Lederer More Anguished English Read question above. The subtitle is 'An Expose of Embarrassing, Excruciating and Egregious Errors in English'. Basically, a collection of typos. I just saw Richard Lederer described as 'the illegitimate offspring of HL Mencken'. Haha! I have the first book (Anguished English) on my TBR pile already. Roger Lewis Seasonal Suicide Notes Read question above. Here's the synopsis from Amazon: Christmas round robins from a grumpy old man - For some years, the biographer Roger Lewis has been entertaining his friends with a letter at Christmas, in which he records details of the joys and frustrations of his life as it is actually lived. Here for the first time is a book-length version of this 'cult classic', a hilarious collection of diaries and memoirs - highlights of which include a trip up the Amazon River with countless ants and Maureen Lipman; his eldest son Tristan training to be a juggler at Zippos Circus ("Frankly, where did Magdalen College, Oxford, ever get me, eh?"); the mystery of the stolen kettle at Age Concern; the humiliation of not being invited to the premiere of his very own movie at Cannes; and the way the Dell call-centre people in Bombay keep thinking he's a woman...With his sharp eye for folly, his malice - and the unexpected shafts of humanity in spite of his chronic ill temper - Roger Lewis is the Evelyn Waugh of the 21st century. These addictive and paradoxically life-enhancing Seasonal Suicide Notes have the makings of a lasting comic masterpiece. Although I'm not sure you'd allow me to touch your precious, precious books Remember how much fun we had when we put up one of your Billy bookcases when I was visiting? And how we talked about how you must remove the library room door off its hinges and get rid of it so you could fit the bookcase next to the others? Haha! Of course I would let you touch them! I would just watch you very, very carefully to make sure you didn't pinch any. Yes, we had so much fun! Didn't we remove the library door together? Here's something to make you laugh: with the last bookcase I put up in the lounge room, I accidentally put on the top shelf back to front (and I had been so careful with every other shelf), so the edge facing out was brown instead of black. You can probably see it if you check out the photos in the Show Your Bookshelf thread. It's at the top of the bookcase on the far right. Dad has since painted over it for me - but he didn't move the books first and got some black paint on my Bill Bryson books! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted October 20, 2012 Author Share Posted October 20, 2012 A local online bookshop was having a big sale recently, and I couldn't resist buying some cheap reads: Jane Austen Emma (Vintage edition; I already own, and have read, my Penguin edition) Neil Gaiman & Al Sarrantonio (eds) Stories (short stories by a range of authors, including Gene Wolfe, Roddy Doyle, Chuck Palahniuk, Diana Wynne Jones, Jeffery Deaver and Richard Adams) Peter Haining Wrotten English: A Celebration of Literary Misprints, Mistakes and Mishaps A Parody Shite's Unoriginal Miscellany (started reading; quite odd) A Parody Old Sh!te's Almanac Dan Simmons Hyperion Defining Moments in Science Defining Moments in History I also have the Books, Music and Movies editions from this series. These are great, informative books in a similar vein to 1001 Books You Must Read...etc because they have small entries for each item, except that the lists are not numbered and they cover only the twentieth century. There's also an art book in the series; it was on sale too but I resisted buying it, and now I regret it! They also have a more interesting format. For example, with the Books edition, it's not just a list of books one 'should' read. It's a list of what the contributors consider the defining moments, so it might be a key character in literature (Atticus Finch) or the publication of a controversial book (Lady Chatterley's Lover) or the birth/death of an influential author. Defining Moments in History is comprises entries of key cultural and political events, as well as key discoveries. Defining Moments in Science has key inventions, discoveries, events, experiments, people and publications. I also received my package from Better World Books last week, with: HL Mencken The Diary of HL Mencken (missing a dust jacket, but I guess I can live that) Anne Sexton A Biography Virginia Woolf Hyde Park Gate News I was supposed to pick up a parcel of books today, but I'm flat out with work, so my mum has kindly offered to collect it for me tomorrow. Well, my tidy shelves didn't last long - I have more books to shelve already! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsgood Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 Re: Russell Ash & Brian Lake Bizarre Books: A Compendium of Classic Oddities Thanks Kylie! One more just got added to my Wishlist. I didn't look too closely at your latest lists because I'm sure I would have found many more and I'm trying very hard to stop adding books to my list, at least for a while. I've got far too many unread purchases and far too many on the Wishlist already. I'm quite positive I'm not the only one here with this particular problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vodkafan Posted October 23, 2012 Share Posted October 23, 2012 Hi Kylie just wondered have you seen an Australian war film called Beneath Hill 60? I have it to watch tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted November 6, 2012 Author Share Posted November 6, 2012 A few books acquired recently: Agatha Christie Postern of Fate Agatha Christie Towards Zero Don DeLillo White Noise Mary Durack Kings in Grass Castles Joseph Heller Good as Gold Matte Jacobson The Vanishing Act Paula McLain The Paris Wife I seem to be having trouble with my mail lately. Two books are long overdue from the Book Depository. I'm totally paranoid that someone is stealing them (the people who stole my mail before, or maybe my neighbours trying to make my life more miserable). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian. Posted November 6, 2012 Share Posted November 6, 2012 I'll be very interested to see what you think of White Noise. I read it last year and although it is highly rated by many people I just couldn't get into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted November 17, 2012 Author Share Posted November 17, 2012 I've had an awesome book week. I received two books from Poppyshake for Christmas (thank you!): Paul Auster Winter Journal William S Burroughs The Cat Inside I received a couple of books in the mail from the BD, which I bought during their recent 24-hour sale: Peter Cave How to Think Like a Bat and 34 Other Really Interesting Uses of Philosophy Brian Selznick Wonderstruck (I received this today, oddly; we never, ever receive mail on the weekend!) I received another book that I've been looking forward to for ages: Walter Moers The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books Today I went to Bondi Beach to check out a bookshop. It had a great selection and some quirky gifts (I really wanted the Lolita and A Clockwork Orange iPad covers!) but being in the trendy Bondi Beach area, it was part cafe too. The shop was tiny to start with, but once you add tables, chairs and lots of people wanting to work on their laptops or talk or do other non-book things, it becomes very difficult to browse! I wanted to tell them all to get the hell out and go and do their work at home (but of course, they couldn't be seen then) or go and do their talking on the beach or at another cafe. Ha. I'm such a grumblebum. Anyway, I just went climbing over them all and getting equally in their way, and I ended up with a great haul: Woody Allan Without Feathers (I had to send a staff member up a stool and get a guy up from a lounge and out of the way to get this one - the things I'll do for a book!) JG Ballard Concrete Island Simone de Beauvoir Letters to Sartre Marieke Hardy You'll Be Sorry When I'm Dead Jessica Mitford The Making of a Muckraker Georges Perec The Art and Craft or Approaching Your Head of Department to Submit a Request for a Raise Ayn Rand Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal Gary Shteyngart Absurdistan William Styron The Suicide Run Then I went to my favourite inner city auburb, Newtown, where the people are cool but relaxed and friendly, and went to one of my favourite shops. The selection was a little disappointing, but I still picked up two great (I hope!) books: John Keats You Might as Well Live: The Life and Times of Dorothy Parker Karl Pilkington Happyslapped by a Jellyfish To top it all off, I tracked down a pie shop I've been wanting to visit for a while. They have all manner of sweet and savoury pies, including their best known pie: 'the apple pie that ate Newtown'. I've included a pic below but it doesn't really do the pie justice. It's about 15-20 cm high. I don't find it all that appealing, but I believe it's their biggest seller, so it must be good (I would need a mountain of ice cream to go with it). I had a delicious classic mince pie (all the other selections were crazy things like 'butter chicken and green beans'...actually, that was probably the next most 'sensible'-sounding pie there). I bought two slices of sweet pie to take home. Yes, I'm being gluttonous, but I don't get to these areas very often, so I have to take advantage! (It took me about two hours on two trains, a bus, and walking [because I missed my bus stop] just to get to Bondi Beach.) I bought a Cherry Ripe pie, which I've mostly eaten, and a 'gooey caramel with milk chocolate ganache' pie. I haven't tried it yet, so no pic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted November 17, 2012 Author Share Posted November 17, 2012 Oh, and some more good news. I read nearly 100 pages of The Art of Racing in the Rain yesterday. It's probably been a year or two since I last managed to read that much in one day! Today on the train, I started reading The Vanishing Act by Mette Jakobsen (who I learnt lives in Sydney...cool!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julie Posted November 17, 2012 Share Posted November 17, 2012 (edited) Kylie sounds as though you had a great day,buying all those books then coming home with those slabs of pie ! Both sound really good . Edited November 18, 2012 by julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vodkafan Posted November 17, 2012 Share Posted November 17, 2012 Hi Kylie, sounds like a good day. You probably needed that pie just to give you the strength to carry that load of books. The only book from your haul I have read is Concrete Island, which was very good and is sort of an allegory too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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