Saturday, March 24, 2007

Good grief!! More books? Are you kidding?

My mother would have a cow if she saw what I brought home, this week. All but two of these books came from our library's perpetual sale and I paid $3.00 total, for those. The two which arrived in the mail, via Paperback Swap, are The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale and The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana by Umberto Eco. Not pictured is The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman, which arrived yesterday. The Goose Girl and The Mysterious Flame, etc. were placed on my wish list after reading positive reviews at favorite blogs; and, in both cases I had to stop myself from buying them outright. Book cravings, that's what they are. You hear about a fantastic book that swept someone away and you desire it like a dessert, the smell wafting from a restaurant door. Well, at least that's true of me. Can anyone relate?

If I was this weak around sweet stuff, I'd weigh 400 pounds. It may be time to go on a book diet.

24 comments:

  1. 'Book diet', ha! Good luck with that *giggles*. Great haul for 3 bucks! I'm so jealous. I went book shopping with hubby today and got only 4 books (3 mass market paper and one hard cover) but I paid 13 dollars total (and they were used), which isn't sooo bad, but dang, girl...good for you.

    And I'm glad you are feeling better.

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  2. What fun! I hope the "high" lasts for a good, long while. :) This kind of addiction is a worthy one, Bookfool. Enjoy them!

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  3. Anonymous3:27 PM

    $3 for that whole stack? Great shopping! One can never have too many books.

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  4. I know, I'm hopeless. I've tried book dieting, in the past, and failed!

    4 books for $13 is still terrific. When I order from PBS, I consider the cost of using a credit to be about $1.75 because that's around the average mailing cost to send books and receive a credit in return. I'm calling that a $6.50 stack. :) What did you get? I'll have to see if you've posted about them!!! We don't actually have a used bookstore, anymore. So, the library is the place to seek out used books.

    And, thank you. I'm much relieved to have awakened without a headache. Last night's was a doozy!

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  5. Joy,

    I'm going to get a lot of fun hours out of my new stacks. :) It's probably one of the few *good* addictions, right?

    Lynne,

    $3 for all but the two I ordered from PBS. About $6.50 total. Tell my mother one can never have too many books. She makes quite a show of wrinkling her nose at my personal library, whenever she shows up. And, then, she spends most of her time reading. LOL

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  6. With such great pricing, you don't have to have any guilt! I could never, ever go on a book diet. I don't believe in diets of any kind *wink*

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  7. Oh, it was a small purchase (for me), I got..

    'The Road to Wellville' by TC Boyle, 'Darwinia' by Robert Charles Wilson, and 'The Fourteen Sisters of Emilio Montez O'Brien' by Oscar Hijuelos because I loved these books and didn't own copies yet.

    And I picked up 'In This Our Life' by Ellen Glasgow because it won the Pulitzer Prize in 1942, and you can never go wrong with a Pulitzer Prize winner IMHO.

    Thanks for asking. My husband picked up a new copy of "Anna Karenina" because our was a little worn out. ;)

    No used book stores?! Ack! I'd go mad.

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  8. Wendy,

    The prices are definitely fantastic! We once happened across an entire series of books that we'd been buying for my son at full price, little by little. I think I bought him something on the order of 30-40 books for $8. It was so great; they kept him busy for ages and buying them at a quarter each saved us loads of money. Sometimes I have to restrain myself, though. You just never know what's going to show up.

    Kookie,

    Great titles!! Thanks for coming back to share what you bought!

    Nope, no used bookstores. We used to have two and they both closed within months of each other. Bwaaah! If not for the perpetual library sale, I'd probably be a nut case (and broke because I'd order, LOL).

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  9. There are so many used bookstores, op shops, new bookstores around my area, that sometimes it is all a bit too much, and I HAVE to stop myself from visiting/buying. Book overload! I like the look of The Goose Girl, but no, I'm going to be strong :-)

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  10. A book diet? What's that? Doesn't sound like much fun to me! :)

    Tammy

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  11. LC,

    You're fortunate. I really miss the used bookstores. But, we're quite lucky to have our perpetual library sale. I can easily overdo, obviously. There was one time I stacked up four feet of books - literally, four stacks about a foot tall, each (over a meter, if you're metric) - and, of course, there was no way I could come home with that many books, so I narrowed down. It was painful!

    Tammy,

    Well, yeah, miserable concept but if you saw my house, you'd understand. ;)

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  12. But new books, or new to you books, are always fun! And at such a good price- you shouldn't have any guilt! Besides, a book diet would probably just lead to more binges! ;P

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  13. WOW! Great haul, and for a great price :0) I rarely buy books anymore since I have NO money, but if I do, I love going to the used book store...I would die without it! Happy reading!

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  14. Nat,

    It's definitely fun bringing home new books. You could be right; deprivation often makes the cravings worse. Of course, it's a little like a cow saying, "I'm not going to go eat that lush grass across the creek, I'm not, I'm not," while surrounded by lovely pasture. Why covet the other grass when you've got that whole cool bunch at your feet? It's not like I don't have plenty!! ;)

    Kim,

    I know what you mean. Used bookstores are great for when you can only scratch up a little money. We're really so lucky to have our little library sale corner. You can hardly beat a quarter per inch, stacked.

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  15. I got a nice little pile of books at our library book sale this weekend too.
    happy reading

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  16. I just peeked at your pile, Juliann. You did great! Looks like you have some fun reading ahead of you. :)

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  17. Anonymous10:48 PM

    What a great sale! Isn't that true about hearing about a good book and immediately wanting it. That's why my TBR list has gotten out of hand after reading so many wonderful book blogs :)

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  18. Iliana,

    Oh, yes! Reading blogs has definitely made my wish list expand to the point of popping. :)

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  19. You will really enjoy "The Goose Girl" and the Jill Churchhill one. Haven't read the rest, so I don't know.

    Hey, have you written a blog on how you get all these books for so cheaply? If not, would you? And then tell me when you do it, so I don't miss it?

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  20. Tristi,

    Everyone seems to love The Goose Girl, so I'm really excited about that one. Can't remember if I've ever read a Jill Churchill . . . maybe one.

    I've never written a post specifically about how I find books cheaply, but I'll jog over to your blog and tell you. Coming over . . . watch for the funny-looking gal in the thinking cap. ;)

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  21. My mom wouldn't have a cow. She's just as bad as I am about overflowing bookshelves with unread books! AND, she gives me tons of hers when she's finished (or when she finds them at her library sales). I think I'm pretty lucky to have a husband and mom who love to read as much as I do.

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  22. Les,

    You're a lucky chick. My parents had exactly three shelves of books - one bookcase, that is - and nothing ever was really added during my entire childhood. And, I was one of those kids whose mom said, "You can pick out one book," but only on occasion, from Scholastic. I blame childhood book deprivation for adult gluttony. It's really funny how she tut-tuts over my books on her rare visits and then spends most of her time in my fat reading chair with a pile from my shelves. I think that's a hoot!

    David is exceptionally tolerant and has his own small collection - mostly Napoleonic nautical books (like Patrick O'Brian's), history and business. I probably got lucky roping him young. The books have simply grown around him like weeds, which he also typically ignores.

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  23. I love the library book sale. The one near my house had it's sale this past weekend - took everything in me to NOT go there. No new books until I finish the stack in my living room right now.

    But here's what I'm really looking forward to: the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at UCLA on April 28-29. Holy books Batman.

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  24. D.,

    If I finished all the books in my house before coming home with more, I'd probably be 80 or 90. So, you know, lost cause. I admire anyone who can keep book gluttony at bay.

    I'll have to look up your book festival. There's one that rotates from Memphis to Nashville (Memphis is just a 4-hour drive) and I've never made it but I'm determined to make my way up there, one year. I'd like to indulge in a few author readings and such. Toronto has one that sounds phenomenal. Sassymonkey went to it and met up with Ami McKay, author of The Birth House (which I really want to read, one day).

    I'll be watching for your posts around the end of April! Hope you have a blast!

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