About a year and a half ago, I wrote a post about Couth Buzzard, the bookshop in my neighbourhood that was going out of business. It was a place I'd spent my childhood in, dusty, with stacks and boxes of books all over the floor; they had a canary when I was little. I was sad to see them go.
However, not that long ago a sign went up in the empty store front just around the corner from my house. Yes, Couth Buzzard is back. Not only back, but back and better than ever. Though not as charmingly haphazard and dusty as it used to be, it's better organized and the selection is better. They've got better lighting, and a little cafe sort of thing, replacing, I suppose, the bakery that used to be a couple doors down from the old location. Wednesday night is an open mic, Thursday is game night. You can walk buy at any time of the day and see people in there, now; it's cheerful and comfortable. And, a plus for me, they're honoring the old credit accounts, still in the same old binder on rather faded yellow paper.
I wasn't really intending to buy anything when I went in, but I did find another Barbara Pym novel (one I've been looking for specifically, though I don't remember why), No Fond Return of Love. And I got it for less than two dollars, too (that with my credit, which pays for half). So I'm thoroughly pleased with this turn of events, and so glad to see one of my favourite bookstores back in business.
Showing posts with label barbara pym. Show all posts
Showing posts with label barbara pym. Show all posts
Monday, February 1, 2010
Monday, December 28, 2009
The loot
This seems to have been the Christmas of books. I got eight books as presents, and bought four others in the days before Christmas. I'd better get reading.
I bought three of these at Goodwill, and one in a lovely little bookshop in Pike Place Market. The only other Barbara Pym I've read was Some Tame Gazelle. Civil to Strangers is her last novel and various shorter works. Mary Wesley is the author of The Camomile Lawn, which I read in February. I've never read any Umberto Eco, but I had a feeling he'd have interesting things to say about literature; this book is a collection of his essays. And I've never read Penelope Lively, but thought I ought to.
Most of these books came from my father, who dearly loves to buy me books (and he's good at it, too). I read Bill Bryson's book The Mother Tongue last summer, so I know whatever he says about Shakespeare will be pretty fascinating. Bardisms sounds entertaining, mostly as reference or novelty; it seems to be separated into sections like "Shakespeare on Fathers," "Shakespeare on Parties," and so on. I know there's a story about why my father decided I needed to read Parnassus on Wheels, by Christopher Morley, but I can't remember it. My mum got me that copy of Pride and Prejudice (which makes my total copies up to three if you count the collected works) purely because it's so beautiful; it's leather-bound. And The Children's Book, which I'm sure you remember me reading, because it's one of those books that I just want to own. Now I get to go back and replace all the post-its I had to take out of the library copy. The book below it, which you probably can't read the title of, is Authentic Victorian Dressmaking Techniques. I do need to do some more sewing, maybe that will help get me into the mood. Victorian Visitors sounds quite fascinating. It's non-fiction, and I have a feeling it's going to be the kind of non-fiction I find utterly absorbing. The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, on the bottom, is apparently about the Salem witch trials, alternating stories between modern day and the 17th century.
So my to-read stack has just about doubled in size, but what the hell. I'm looking forward to it all.
I bought three of these at Goodwill, and one in a lovely little bookshop in Pike Place Market. The only other Barbara Pym I've read was Some Tame Gazelle. Civil to Strangers is her last novel and various shorter works. Mary Wesley is the author of The Camomile Lawn, which I read in February. I've never read any Umberto Eco, but I had a feeling he'd have interesting things to say about literature; this book is a collection of his essays. And I've never read Penelope Lively, but thought I ought to.
Most of these books came from my father, who dearly loves to buy me books (and he's good at it, too). I read Bill Bryson's book The Mother Tongue last summer, so I know whatever he says about Shakespeare will be pretty fascinating. Bardisms sounds entertaining, mostly as reference or novelty; it seems to be separated into sections like "Shakespeare on Fathers," "Shakespeare on Parties," and so on. I know there's a story about why my father decided I needed to read Parnassus on Wheels, by Christopher Morley, but I can't remember it. My mum got me that copy of Pride and Prejudice (which makes my total copies up to three if you count the collected works) purely because it's so beautiful; it's leather-bound. And The Children's Book, which I'm sure you remember me reading, because it's one of those books that I just want to own. Now I get to go back and replace all the post-its I had to take out of the library copy. The book below it, which you probably can't read the title of, is Authentic Victorian Dressmaking Techniques. I do need to do some more sewing, maybe that will help get me into the mood. Victorian Visitors sounds quite fascinating. It's non-fiction, and I have a feeling it's going to be the kind of non-fiction I find utterly absorbing. The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane, on the bottom, is apparently about the Salem witch trials, alternating stories between modern day and the 17th century.So my to-read stack has just about doubled in size, but what the hell. I'm looking forward to it all.
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