Hay-on-Wye, once described as "a hospice for books that no-one can bear to see die in public" by Drif's Guide Ghastly place...
That's kind of what I'm expecting, Clive. Though I've had joy among concentrated bookshops before, by virtue of obscure taste. Got one or two rather hard to find things I'm willing to pay for too. Seen at least one on local listings. The eye-watering would quite possibly be ignored if actually holding the physical thing We shall see.
I never realised 'book fairies' was a previously established phrase. We've used it since eBay lost much of its bargain shine years back. So maybe fairies do exist, since people have apparently noticed their activities quite independently. It is interesting how the trade can attract curmudgeons. Always slightly surprising to get a chipper proprietor. And occasionally alarming...
The fairy got me today... Shopping in town - sat down to have a cuppa - idly browsing Ebay - chance upon economically viable original formation history - buy it now - so did! Plus the Mackenzie SAS history from Oxfam; fairly certain I haven't got that one.
34 Armd Bde - also reprinted by NMP. And it was 'idle browsing, honest. I wasn't really looking for something to buy. But, then, "Why look?" I hear you say.
Because it's fun to browse books! And you might hit upon that one volume you were looking for. I think your selection shows erudition and good taste, and what can we do but applaud?
I dunno what all the fuss is about. I can handle it. Just idly browsing is all. I can stop any time I like. If I wanted to...
Really you cant Stationery is another thing how many pens/paper etc do you actually need, Apparently 1930s retro Cross Calais ( Dunkirkish) which is sort of getting near to WW2 well in fact the lead up to it so the justification is buy it
Avoided buying from the military section of Oxfam Books in Chelmsford today by buying records in excellent condition. My wife was present, so this post probably doesn't count, but she did complain that I played them too loudly when I got home. This sounds much better on the vinyl but I marvel at the quality of the recording made so long ago. Later note: Four recently acquired volumes placed on a shelf together took up nearly ten inches of shelf width or 22.3 cm and weigh 4.343 kilograms ( two King's Regulations, two 21st century law books ) and cost between 0.58 pence per gram and 1.94 pence. Five records took up 1.3 cm of shelf width and weigh 1.15 kilo and cost 0.522 pence per gram. Weight of books is becoming a factor to be considered.
The focusing isn't going too well. Those supermarket charity book heaps can be evil. The 82nd one, 'Put on your boots & parachutes', looked 'proper'. Appears it is, despite some maniac shagging the cover slightly while trying to preserve it in clear plastic.
Does Marching With The Tigers have much/any on Hong Kong? I have 1st battalion there under 27 Infantry Brigade from April 1949 until they moved to Korea in October 1951 (or that may be leaving the UK in April). My notes also say they were at Norwegian Farm Camp from June 1949 and at some stage stationed with the brigade HQ in Kowloon.
Bought three new novels (two science fiction and one fantasy) yesterday and... I might just go look at the WW2 section of the big used bookstore now...
Ch.3: 1st battalion, Watchet, Hong Kong & Borneo 1962-64 34 pages. Looks to be a really rather decent 'linear' history by region. Happy to dig in & maybe scan a bit if you're after specifics.
Thanks, but I'm an idiot. I just clocked the dates on that book: I'll need the earlier volume (assuming one exists).
Not so much a book buying problem, but i have to complain about some t... that did some scribbling over many pages of STRAIGHT ON FOR TOKYO. The Story of the 2nd Battalion The Dorsetshire Regiment In Flanders Burma & Japan 39-47. I thought that it would be a rare original & rather good for the price that i paid for it. Did this chap not understand that you (don't) put a pen to a book. What a complete dick. Regards Stu.
One of my contemporary 'industrial pamphlet' immediately postwar 'we did this!' books has several pen annotations 'correcting' what certain vehicles in photos are. Often wrong... It's sort of sweet, but the thing was a fiver or so.
It me be wise that i send the book back to the chap that i bought it from. He not did advertise that a child had done some handwriting on the pages. Its not what you do in my eyes. I can understand if this chap had used a pencil. Anybody got a rubber? Stu.
Tower Armouries' beautiful I.33 C14th fencing manual that went on display at the Wallace a few years back appears to have some colouring-in done by a child's hand at some point in the last 700 years...