What Book(s) have you just Bought, Ordered or Taken Delivery Of? Showing 801-850 of 2,344

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

Michele wrote: "BAM wrote: "If I could actually OWN every book I’ve ever read I’d pee myself. "

OK, that made my spit wine onto my keyboard, thank you so much lol"

Ha! You’re welcome indeed

[Aprilleigh]

I'd need a separate building for my private library if I owned every book I've ever read, nevermind everything on my TBR pile. What a lovely thought...

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

Isn't it though???

[Marina]

Aprilleigh wrote: "I'd need a separate building for my private library if I owned every book I've ever read, nevermind everything on my TBR pile. What a lovely thought..."

Ditto.

[Ella]

I have a recently imposed rule. ONLY if my library doesn't carry the book am I allowed to buy it, and ONLY if I honestly think I will read it soon. I do buy used classics but only w/ credit from the local used bookstore, so something has to leave in order for something new to come in. I still need more shelves though.

[Jess]

I'm a sucker for 99p books on Kindle. They're so easy to justify but boy do they add up! Some recent purchases are

Black Dog
Laurus (okay, that one's £1.36)
The Girl Who Fought Napoleon: A Novel of the Russian Empire
The Revelation Room
Henry James: The Complete Supernatural Stories (75p bargain!)

[Pillsonista]

I'm dying to get my hands on Laurus. I've heard/read tremendous things about it from people whose opinion I respect.

So that's a really good pick up and I'm more than a little jealous, especially at that price.

[Liz]

Kathleen wrote: "Congrats on the well-stocked shelf, Aubrey! I recognize a few from my own stacks. There's nothing like actual paper books--funny how looking at these pictures is much more fun than reading someone'..."

I totally agree, Kathleen. I love looking at other people's physical bookshelves. And it's a great point of contact. Once I caught a hotelier/chef who was visiting our house, looking in my fridge! He was obviously interested to know what I was cooking next! Well, I feel the same about other people's bookshelves - that 'what's cooking' feeling translates into 'oh, have you read that, did you like it, etc, etc.)

[Kathleen]

Liz, that is so funny--I think you're right! Nice to meet others here who read and enjoy physical books.

Jess, I'm jealous too about Laurus. Can't believe that price! I just finished it and it would be a fun one to own and refer back to. Plus it's so pretty:
Enjoy!

[Jess]

Kathleen wrote: "Liz, that is so funny--I think you're right! Nice to meet others here who read and enjoy physical books.

Jess, I'm jealous too about Laurus. Can't believe that price! I just finish..."

Well I won't benefit from the prettiness as it's an ebook but still excited to read it :)

[Allison]

Ella wrote: "I have a recently imposed rule. ONLY if my library doesn't carry the book am I allowed to buy it, and ONLY if I honestly think I will read it soon. I do buy used classics but only w/ credit from th..."

I, too, only buy books that I can’t find at any of the libraries near me and that’s only if I have a gift certificate. I don’t buy just to buy.

For kindle books, again it has to be books I can’t find for free at the library. Also, I don’t buy anything over $2.99.

[Kathleen]

Jess wrote: "Well I won't benefit from the prettiness as it's an ebook but still excited to read it :) ..."

Of course! Sorry. I just love plastering that image everywhere, I guess. :-)

[Pillsonista]

Aprilleigh wrote: "I'd need a separate building for my private library if I owned every book I've ever read, nevermind everything on my TBR pile. What a lovely thought..."

I'm living proof that 4,000 or so individual volumes can fit into a two bedroom duplex. Between my books and my furniture, there's only ever going to be one winner.

[Michele]

Ella wrote: "I have a recently imposed rule. ONLY if my library doesn't carry the book am I allowed to buy it, and ONLY if I honestly think I will read it soon. I do buy used classics but only w/ credit from th..."

Ella, I am impressed with your self-control lol

[Michele]

I went to a colleague's moving/garage sale and bought this:


How to Be an Alien: A Handbook for Beginners and Advanced Pupils

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

I’ve attempted to impose rules like that, but then I remember rules are made to be broken. You currently annoy sit in my couch or lie on the other side of my bed from all of the books I need to find home for. I like to sleep with my books when I just get them in the mail lol

[Ella]

Well, I've been pretty good with this rule so far, but as I said - it's recently imposed. I did it in February b/c this year I'm using a spreadsheet to keep track of books, and it includes spent/saved by month. I spent enough in January to shock myself and get very worried that my book buying had become less about reading and more about MORE STUFF I WANT/NEED. Now, some of the books from the library have been so good I purchased a copy to read again, but I decided I can only buy a book when I've read 3 or more I currently own (you see - I'm finding ways to break my own rules already.)

In any event, the rule helps me stay away from impulse buys just b/c something is on sale. Even those really cheap ebooks are often actually available at the library (via my very same kindle) so it makes me stop and think before buying something just b/c it's cheap and looks interesting. That's the point of the rule: stop, think, ask myself - am I going to read this soon? If so, can I get it at the library?

BTW - great chrome extension called Library Extension has really helped w/ this. It shows me if my library has a copy, the format & links me to holding it.

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

I’m very proud of you! That’s some fortitude and self control. I used to visit the library until I started working third shift. It just became more convenient to buy. Library hours are sleep hours. Then, like you said, I was buying books I wanted for my personal collection after checking them out. That happened a lot. I’m also getting g to the point where the only way I can find my books is on amazon or thriftbooks. Used stores and libraries don’t carry those what do you call thems? One offs or just odd selections?

[Ella]

BAM wrote: "I’m also getting g to the point where the only way I can find my books is on amazon or thriftbooks. Used stores and libraries don’t carry those what do you call thems? One offs or just odd selections?"

This *is* a huge problem. I find that even some classics or aren't available at the library. (My nearest branch has at least 20 copies of every single James Patterson novel though - and probably more copies online.) I'm lucky in that the online version of maryland's library is a consortium of all the libraries in the state, so by combining their collections, more is available to borrow via a couple apps. Then I am able to use another excellent library too - so between a bunch of libraries (all connected to my library extension), I know right away on GR or amazon whether it's available at any of the libraries I can use. I'm a bit shocked at the books libraries don't have sometimes.

[Luke]

Considering how threatened library budgets in the US have been of late, it's no surprise capitalism is dictating what they stock more than usual. Books may come from trees, but they don't grow on them, and one only gets what one pays for these days.

[Laurie]

It's true that my local library doesn't have some of the classics that I want to read. As Aubrey said, the library budgets have gotten smaller and they don't use those funds to replace worn out classics that need to be replaced. Unless there is a resurgence in interest in a book, such as 1984, the classics stocked are mostly relatively old copies. I am fortunate that so many are available for free or cheaply in ebook, and I don't mind reading them that way. If I really love a book after I read it, I will then buy a paper copy.

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

It's the same with their audiobooks. Calgary has one of the largest audio libraries in the world, and I used to have stealth access to it. Now I have 2 local options and have basically listened to everything or it's Nicholas sparks

[Darren]

Laurie wrote: "...If I really love a book after I read it, I will then buy a paper copy"

ditto

although in over 100 freely/cheaply available books that I've read in the last few years, I've only gone on to buy a hard copy in 10 cases, most recently:
1970's Folio Society edition of Cold Comfort Farm
1950's Nelson Classics edition of Pride And Prejudice

[Allison]

Ella wrote: "BAM wrote: "I’m also getting g to the point where the only way I can find my books is on amazon or thriftbooks. Used stores and libraries don’t carry those what do you call thems? One offs or just ..."

Yes!!! I’ve found maybe 5 classics at my library and you bet they have every bleeding James Patterson book ever written!! So disappointing in an otherwise awesome library.

[Pillsonista]

Some really, really good stuff today...



The Collected Stories of Machado de Assis


It All Adds Up: From the Dim Past to the Uncertain Future, a collection of Saul Bellow's non-fiction.


Stream System: The Collected Short Fiction of Gerald Murnane

It's hard enough to find Murnane's novels in any bookstore, new or used, so it's as surprising as it is exciting to see a collection of his short fiction finally be published.

[Michele]

Aubrey wrote: "Considering how threatened library budgets in the US have been of late, it's no surprise capitalism is dictating what they stock more than usual. Books may come from trees, but they don't grow on t..."

Sad but true :(

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

My birthday was Sunday, so I got a lison usb chargeable light to read in the dark and the following books:

Picking Cotton: Our Memoir of Injustice and Redemption
The Keeper of Lost Things
Pimp: The Story of My Life
The Death of Mrs. Westaway
Tequila Mockingbird: Cocktails with a Literary Twist
The Last Time I Lied
Spinning Silver
Dangerous Women 3
Sala's Gift: My Mother's Holocaust Story
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography

[Darren]

two "hoped for covers" arrived in good order today:
Shusaku Endo's Silence and Thomas Bernhard's Correction:

[Pillsonista]

Darren wrote: "Thomas Bernhard's Correction: "

A masterpiece. And he was just so damn brilliant; the greatest of the post-war German language authors.

[Allison]

Happy Birthday, BAM. Love that you bought a Python book!

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

BAM wrote: "My birthday was Sunday, so I got a lison usb chargeable light to read in the dark and the following books:..."

Happy Birthday and Happy Reading

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

Thank you!
Yes I own two Python bios: Cleese and now Eric. I got the audio. They both read their own work. Cleese laughs his ass off through the whole thing and it just contagious.

[Darren]

Pillsonista wrote: "Darren wrote: "Thomas Bernhard's Correction: "

A masterpiece. And he was just so damnn brilliant; the greatest of the post-war German language authors."

I read Extinction (my first Bernhard) a few weeks ago and was astonished.
I am now prioritising buying up/reading all his other books!

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

Ok someone cut me off!
I just used my last 4 banked Audible credits

The Heart Forger
The Monk , which is a fantastic study of temptation. I’ve already read the physical copy and rated I’d five stars 🌟
Circe
I own the ebook, but I figured I loved the audio of Achilles so much I’d like the audio of this one too.
We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses
Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese

Audible currently has a $5.95 sale on a couple hundred books.

Also I think I’m going to check out this Laurus a few of you discussed

[[deleted user]]

Laurus is a brilliant read - I highly recommend it too.

[Wreade1872]

I only just realised that the entire library system in my country has been connected. I used to be able to order a book from anywhere in my city, now i can do it from anywhere in the country so i requested 6 books from all over, hopefully they won't all arrive at the same time :) .
Back from the Dead by chris petit (1999)
The Yawning Heights by alexander zinoviev (1976)
The Dragon: Fifteen Stories by yevgeny zamyatin (1918)
The Birds of Paradise by paul scott (1962)
City of Spades by colin macinnes (1957)
I Sit in Hanger Lane by jack trevor story (1968) , also bought a secondhand Autumn in Peking by Boris Vian for about 40 cents but about €8 postage :P .

[Laurie]

Wreade1872, very cool to know you can order from the whole country. I can order from most of the libraries in my state, which is many libraries since I live in Texas. The thing is that I hardly ever do that and I don't know why. I hope your six books don't come in at one time so you can leisurely read each one.

[Pillsonista]

Darren wrote: "I read Extinction (my first Bernhard) a few weeks ago and was astonished.
I am now prioritising buying up/reading all his other books! "

The same exact thing happened to me, except it was Woodcutters. Now I own every single one of his novels.

[Wreade1872]

Laurie wrote: "Wreade1872, very cool to know you can order from the whole country. I can order from most of the libraries in my state, which is many libraries since I live in Texas. The thing is that I hardly eve..."
Well i'm from Ireland which is apparently about 8 times smaller than Texas :lol . Really 8 times... i mean i knew texas was big and ireland is small but wow... :) .

[Allison]

BAM wrote: "Thank you!
Yes I own two Python bios: Cleese and now Eric. I got the audio. They both read their own work. Cleese laughs his ass off through the whole thing and it just contagious."

I love that!

[Melanti]

Wreade1872 wrote: " i mean i knew texas was big and ireland is small but wow... :) ..."

I could jump in my car right now and drive in one direction for 12 hours and still not be out of the state. And I don't even live at the extreme edge. That Texas-wide ILL system is great. I rarely use it since the local libraries are so good, but it's great when I need it.

BAM wrote: "Ok someone cut me off!
I just used my last 4 banked Audible credits ..."

You still had credits left after the classics sale a couple of months ago?! I admire your restraint!

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name]

Melanti, if a book is around $6 I'll buy it outright. But I returned 4 books that the narrator was like poking my eardrum with a pencil. I got rid of the series. God it was terrible, which was sad because the story itself is great.

[Rosemarie]

I bought The Little Town Where Time Stood Still by Bohumil Hrabal at a book store that sells used and new books for really good prices today.
I live in Toronto and the library has 100 branches and a huge multi-lingual collection, with the languages available in branches where the population speaks those languages.

[Michele]

I just got two copies of The Unsung Heroes by Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick, about the caretakers and rescuers at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust's elephant orphanage in Kenya. One copy is for us, the other is for donating to our zoo's annual silent auction fundraiser :) There is also this lovely video that tells the story of how the book came to be.

(PS. If you're interested in buying the book, do please consider getting it direct from the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust -- that way they get 100% of the purchase price.)

[Darren]

two more "hoped-for-covers" arrived today:
Donna Tartt's The Secret History and
Alasdair Gray's Lanark

[ALLEN]

Two "travel classics" on order:


- and -

- both by Eric Newby -

LOVE AND WAR (1971) will be new to me --
A SHORT WALK (1958) replaces a beloved paperback I "read to death."

[Michele]

Darren wrote: "two more "hoped-for-covers" arrived today:
Donna Tartt's The Secret History "

Nice cover on that one. I love that book, have not seen that cover before.

[Michele]

For my summer session class on the Cold War and pop culture, I've got the following:

Cold War: An International History
Satchmo Blows Up the World: Jazz Ambassadors Play the Cold War
Cinematic Cold War: The American and Soviet Struggle for Hearts and Minds
1965: The Most Revolutionary Year in Music
Fall-Out Shelters for the Human Spirit: American Art and the Cold War

[Allison]

Was given a Barnes & Noble card for my birthday and bought: and

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

I have Outlaw but haven't read it. Thanks for reminding me I need to do that.