Haul

A few weeks ago, I spent a couple of days in Brighton for a conference – and, whilst I was there, managed to persuade my colleagues that what they really wanted was to visit a secondhand bookshop. To do them credit, they did seem to enjoy it, and even bought a book or two – though the armfuls I was carrying around rather dwarfed them.

The bookshop was called Colin Page, and it’s brilliant. Excellent stock, low prices, and a spiral staircase = bliss. Also, the name of the shop also turns out to be the name of an American painter whose work I really, really like, so that was a nice coincidence. But you want to know what I bought, don’t you?

It was quite a quirky and unusual stock, mostly older hardbacks, and I think that was reflected in the books I came away with… Do tell me which you’ve got/read/want/etc.

The Flower-Show Match by Siegfried Sassoon
I grew very fond of Sassoon while reading Anna Thomasson’s A Curious Friendship, and have bought quite a few non-fiction books by him since then – this is my first collection of his prose fiction. I think fiction?

The Author and the Public: Problems of Communication
This is an anthology of different people thinking about the unique relationship between author and public. I have the perfect shelf for this sort of book, of course…

The Writing on the Wall by Mary McCarthy
Literary essays by an author that I have yet to read anything by – but what got this off the shelf and into my hands was the fact that a couple of the essays are about Ivy Compton-Burnett. I will amass anything about Dame Ivy.

Adonis and the Alphabet by Aldous Huxley
SIMON. Read some of the Aldous Huxley books you already have. Yes, I know. BUT ALSO LOOK HOW PRETTY THIS ONE IS. (More book descriptions below the image, of course.)

The Art of Growing Old by John Cowper Powys
I’ve grown more interested in the Powys brothers now that I have father-is-vicar-of-Montacute in common with them; this looks unusual and intriguing.

Muriel Spark – John Masefield
I’ve read lots and lots of Muriel Spark’s novels, but I’ve never read any of her biographies – and have to confess that I’d forgotten she’d even written one of Masefield. It will be intriguing to see if her is similar here to her unmistakably Sparkian novels.

Max Beerbohm in Perspective
I can’t see who wrote this from the image, and the book is all the way across the room… but I keep piling up books by and about Beerbohm, based on having liked one novel and one collection of essays. Here’s hoping I continue to enjoy Max!

The Reading of Books by Holbrook Jackson
Try imagining a world in which I didn’t buy a book with this title. You couldn’t do it, could you?

Mainly on the Air by Max Beerbohm
And there he is…

Also in the bigger image are two books I bought in a charity – House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier (which I had thought I owned, but apparently didn’t) and The Condemned Playground by Cyril Connolly, to follow up my read of  Enemies of Promise.

I wouldn’t say I’ve gone on a spree, per se, but I have bought a few books since Lent ended and my book buying was permitted again. A few of those have been online, some were in Oxford, and some were on a trip to London yesterday. More on that trip soon, but – for today – the books…

The Reader Over Your Shoulder by Robert Graves and Alan Hodge
I’ve been meaning to read their book The Long Weekend for a long time; this one looks quite different but also interesting. It’s a handbook for writing, but the bit I’m looking forward to is where they quote their contemporaries (from Lytton Strachey to Cicely Hamilton) and point out where they’ve written badly.

An Irrelevant Woman by Mary Hocking
Mary Hocking Reading Week starts any minute, courtesy of Heavenali, and my book arrived just in time to kick off.

The Prose Factory by D.J. Taylor
I’ve bought a few new books recently – as in new-new, rather than secondhand – which isn’t very like me. This one is an overview of literature since 1918, recommended by Deborah Lawrenson on Instagram. I think I might take it on holiday at the end of April.

Moranifesto by Caitlin Moran
Another new book, this one with birthday voucher from my friend Malie. I love Moran’s columns, and particularly her book Moranthology, so I’m excited that another one is out.

The Charleston Bulletin Supplements
I have a vague idea that I already own this… but it’s supplements to Virginia Woolf’s childhood newspaper. Classic me. There’s no such thing as too much Woolf.

Cat’s Company by Michael Joseph
A lovely looking book about cats. I can’t remember quite what angle about cats, but… cats.

All the Days and Nights by William Maxwell
I think I’ve got all of Maxwell’s novels, though I’ve not read all of them by any means – but I didn’t have Maxwell’s short stories. Reading his letters makes me think he’ll be brilliant at the short story, and Rachel assured me he was on our podcast.

The Beginning of Spring by Penelope Fitzgerald
I have so many Fitzgerald novels that I’ve yet to read, but I can’t resist another one that matches the set I have… plus, I’ve loved two of the three I’ve read, which is pretty good odds.

The Hopeful Traveller by Mary Hocking
This is the first Hocking I ordered, but then Ali told me that it was a sequel to a different novel – one that seemed impossible to find. Well, no longer, I suppose, since Bello are reprinting it!

Miss Ogilvy Finds Herself by Radclyffe Hall
This is a collection of short stories; I’ve previously read the title story of the collection, as it makes for very interesting comparison to Lolly Willowes, but none of the others.

Limbo by Aldous Huxley
This is a sweet little copy of some Huxley stories. Or perhaps novellas. They all seem pretty long.

Evergreens by Jerome K Jerome
Some short stories from JKJ. Apparently I bought quite a few collections of short stories, particularly in relation to the number I actually read… but it’s been too long since I read Jerome.

What’s For Dinner? by James Schuyler
Waterstones Piccadilly has a lovely section of independent publishers’ books, and that includes a selection of NYRB Classics. I knew I wanted to buy one of them, and chose the Schuyler – having loved Alfred and Guinevere last year. And what a curious title.

Buried For Pleasure by Edmund Crispin
And another Crispin to enjoy, after having laughed my way through The Moving Toyshop.

And there we have it! There is another book or two on their way through the post, but I wanted to get the post up today. Plus, I don’t want you to know the depths of my post-Lent spree. Ok, yes, spree is what it was.

I’m back in Oxford now, and took the opportunity to go via the Bookbarn in North Somerset – where I have been many times before, and have written about here on several occasions. Every book is £1, though all the best books are siphoned off into the internet-only section of the barn complex (which wasn’t always the case – those halcyon days when all the books were browsable!) Truth be told, their fiction section is quite poor now, and I got very little there, but I got an awful lot of non-fiction. As you will see…

Lydia & Maynard: the letters of Lydia Lopokova and John Maynard Keynes
Ballerinas and economists aren’t top of my list of interests, but the Bloomsbury Group certainly are up there – and I love collections of letters, so here’s a corner of that group that I can add to my collection.

The Hare With the Amber Eyes by Edmund De Waal
So, LibraryThing tells me that I already have this. Oops. Lucky charity shop in Oxford!

Letters to Louise: Theodore Dreiser’s Letters to Louise Campbell
I haven’t read a word by Dresier, but couldn’t resist more letters – particularly since they promise to cover his writing process and drafts, which is fascinating to me. And I bought a novel by him over a decade ago, so maybe it will inspire me to read that.

Hassan by James Elroy Flecker
If you’re following those books in the photo above, this was a tiny Penguin slipped between two bigger hardbacks. I bought this entirely because he gets a bewildered mention by the Provincial Lady.

Unforgettable, Unforgotten by Anna Buchan (O Douglas)
I didn’t realise that Anna B had written an autobiography – this looks fab.

Brensham Village by John Moore
The sequel to a book I have yet to read… but do own. Fingers crossed I like it!

Woman Alive by Susan Ertz
I haven’t read Ertz yet, but she gets a glowing mention in Nicola Beauman’s A Very Great Profession, and this hardback is lovely.

Two Worlds by David Daiches
All I know about Daiches is some literary criticism I read years ago – which seemed a good enough reason to grab his autobiography about growing up Jewish in Edinburgh.

Evelyn Waugh by Frances Donaldson
If there’s something I love even more than biographies, it’s memoirs by people who knew famous people in a non-famous context. Niche, I know, but Waugh’s self-proclaimed ‘country neighbour’ should be fun.

Talking Heads 2 by Alan Bennett
Writing Home by Alan Bennett
National Treasure.

The Spirit of Tolerance by Katharine Moore
I’ve read a couple of things by Moore, and also read about her editing this collection in her letters with Joyce Grenfell.

Mild and Bitter by A.P. Herbert
I can’t remember if I’ve ever actually read anything by APH, but I read quite a lot about him – and anything collected from Punch in the 1930s is going to be fabs,

My Apprenticeships by Colette
This is the year I’ll read some Colette, promise, Peter.

The Best of Stephen Leacock 1
I suspect I’ve got all these selections in other books, but I’m not the sort of guy who leaves Stephen Leacock on the shelf.

Pomp & Circumstance by Noel Coward
This has been on my keep-an-eye-out-for list for so many years that I can no longer quite way – other than the fact that Noel Coward is a legend.

The Picnic and Suchlike Pandemonium by Gerald Durrell
Birds, Beasts, and Relatives by Gerald Durrell
The Garden of the Gods by Gerald Durrell
The Drunken Forest by Gerald Durrell
There were SO many books by Gerald Durrell and Laurence Durrell there – I was particularly pleased to find the second and third books in the My Family and other Animals trilogy.

Selected Essays by Hilaire Belloc
Since I use the word belloc to mean ‘hilarious’ – yes, I know – so I should read some essays by him, right?

I’ve been away in lovely Shropshire for a weekend at a stunning Landmark Trust property. For those in the UK (and mainland Europe too, I think), the Landmark Trust have a range of quirky and unusual buildings that you can rent, from lighthouses and castles to martello towers and a cottage in Frenchman’s Creek. We stayed in The White House, which is less quirky than some, but entirely beautiful. It’s half-Tudor, half-Georgian, and my bedroom was the servant’s quarters. It’s the far right of the first floor, if you want to look at the floor plans by following the link above. And here are some photos…

Six of us went, from my quiz team, and we mostly read books, quizzed each other, went on the occasional walk, and generally had a lovely, lazy time. It’s been quite difficult to get back to real life – and has confirmed how much I like Shropshire.

After spending a nice weekend (reading part or all of four books – more anon!) we went into Ludlow, where I was going to catch up with a dear friend. With a few minutes to spare, I popped into a so-called Renaissance Market, which had not-very-Renaissance secondhand books. (That reminds me of the time in Washington D.C. where somebody pointed me in the direction of the ‘Italian Renaissance building’, built circa 1900.) There was a really excellent selection, including oodles of Persephones – my housemate Kirsty picked up the seven I already had.

 Foreigners by Theodora Benson, Betty Askwith, and Nicolas Bentley (illustrator, of course) – having read their book about London, I thought it would be fun to see what they have to say about the rest of the world. A note in the shop warned that it wasn’t PC!

The Country Housewife’s Book by Lucy H. Yates
Consider the Years by Virginia Graham
A couple of Persephones I didn’t have – although I do have the Graham in another edition and reviewed it a while ago.

Ethel & Ernest by Raymond Briggs – I’ve been waiting to stumble across this graphic biography of Briggs’ parents ever since I watched a documentary about him. At last!

The Romance of Dr Dinah by Mary Essex – on the surface, this novel looks kinda trashy, but I’ve really enjoyed the other Mary Essex novels I’ve read. Fingers crossed that this is better than its presentation suggests!

Guess who’s bought some more books? Yes, you win, it’s me. These didn’t all come in the same shopping trip, though, if that helps you at all – not that many of you will frown upon the buying of books, I suspect. Here they are, and here’s why I got ’em!

Mr Darling Villain by Lynne Reid Banks

I hadn’t heard of this book by my much-loved author of The L-Shaped Room, but I suspect it is one of her teen books. The exciting thing for me is that it’s signed by her! To Tanya something, but… well, I can always change my name.

The Weald of Youth by Siegfried Sassoon

What fun this book looks – and ever since loving A Curious Friendship, I’ve wanted to read more by or about Sassoon.

First and Last by Victor L. Whitechurch
The Locum Tenens by Victor L. Whitechurch

I thought The Canon in Residence was fantastic, and curiously enough had been thinking about Whitechurch just before I came across these in a lovely little secondhand bookshop in Stratford-upon-Avon (Chaucer’s Head). Remind me to read these, please.

Mark Only by T.F. Powys

This came from the Oxfam bookshop that my friend Hannah runs (she being the reason I was visiting Stratford). They had lots of Powys novels, but I left the others behind. It was only later that I discovered that it is a perfect candidate for The 1924 Club!

A Writer’s Notebook by W. Somerset Maugham

I seem to have almost bought this dozens of times, and this time I was tipped over the edge.

The Life and Death of Rochester Sneath by Humphry Berkeley

The ‘e’s in the author’s name seem to be all out of place, but this caricature spoof looks like it should be fun. I’m using the words ‘caricature spoof’ because I don’t quite know how else to describe this. Maybe I will when I read it.

Various Voices by Harold Pinter

It’s been a while since I read any Pinter – about 10 years, probably – so it’ll be interesting to discover in an undergraduate fervour is required to appreciate him.

Caroline by Richmal Crompton
Portrait of a Family by Richmal Crompton

Thank you Bello for these reprints! I have the rest of the Cromptons they’re reprinting (this time around) already, though quite a few are unread, but these two have alluded me for years – I’m delighted to have them.

In consecutive weekends I’ve been to Cambridge and London and thought, on the whole, that I wouldn’t buy any books. Obviously that bit is a lie. I bought some books in both those places, and here they are – along with one which arrived in the post this week.

Virginia Woolf and the Raverats ed. William Pryor
I looked at this covetously when it came out, but it was super expensive – thankfully I stumbled across a heavily discounted copy. It’s such a beauty of a book, woodcuts inside and all, and I will never have enough books about Virginia Woolf.

Brief Candles by Aldous Huxley
I want to keep up my reading of non-sci-fi Huxley, and this was a lovely copy. Other than that, I know nothing about it. Oh, Wikipedia tells me that it’s short stories. What does it say about me that I probably wouldn’t have bought it if I’d known that?

Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmah
Remember what I said about Virginia Woolf back up there? Also, my book group is doing this next year. Because I suggested it.

About Time: an aspect of autobiography by Penelope Mortimer
This sounds fun – particularly as I want to know more about the background to The Pumpkin Eater.

H.G. Wells and His Family by M.M. Meyer
I have no idea who Meyer is, but apparently he/she knew H.G. Wells and his family. I’m always more interested in memoirs by people who knew the greats than I am in scholarly biographies (much though I also like those).

Confusion by Stefan Zweig
I have been meaning to read some Zweig for ages. Not this one particularly, but the Pushkin Press editions of his books that I found in the London Review of Books bookshop were so beautiful that I wanted to buy one. And I basically picked it at random from the few that were there.

A Monstrous Regiment by Richmal Crompton
This one came through the post. I get abebooks wants alerts for obscurer Richmal Cromptons, and this was the first time A Monstrous Regiment came up in over a decade. (Also: hurrah for Bello bringing lots of RCs back!)

Death Leaves A Diary by Harry Carmichael
I don’t know anything about this, but a Golden Age detective novel with a title that fab? Yes please.

By the way, which in London I also had a nice catch-up with Rachel – who now has the internet, finally, so ‘Tea or Books?’ will definitely be back soon. The hiatus has been so frustrating for us! (She didn’t buy any books, despite my tempting her. Wise woman.)

I’m on a little holiday in Somerset, spending time with Our Vicar and Our Vicar’s Wife some of the time, and spending other chunks of time looking after beautiful Sherpa with Colin. I haven’t seen Sherpa (my parents’ cat) since Christmas, and have missed her like crazy, so she’s been getting lots of hugs from me today.

But yesterday I went to Clevedon and Taunton, and bought myself some books. If you’re ever in the vicinity of Clevedon, Somerset, can I recommend that you check out Clevedon Community Bookshop? There is a good selection of books, very reasonably priced, and the staff are super friendly. I bought four books there, two in a bookshop in Taunton, and another couple in Clevedon charity shops. So, what were they?

The Last Tresilians – J.I.M. Stewart

Karyn loved this book back in 2011, and I’ve been keeping an eye out for it ever since – and was thrilled to see it in Clevedon Community Bookshop’s nice bookcase of Penguins (Karyn, you need to visit!)

How To Suppress Women’s Writing – Joanna Russ

I felt bad as this title was being read by one man to his colleague, to write down in their sales book – and I felt obliged to point out that it was ironic, and a feminist work. I saw it mentioned on Twitter recently, I think, and was chuffed to discover a copy so soon afterwards.

Circular Saws – Humbert Wolfe

I mostly know Wolfe as a book reviewer from the 1920s, and can’t quite work out if this is a selection of essays, stories, or arbitrary thoughts – but it certainly looks fun and 1920s-y.

Dear Austen – Nina Bawden

About Bawden losing her husband Austen in a railway accident.

Looking For Alaska – John Green

I liked The Fault in Our Stars, and Green is very engaging on YouTube, so I thought I’d try another of his books for teenagers (I totally refuse to use the term ‘young adult’ except when referring to young adults, rather than younger-than-adults).

The Gallery of Vanished Husbands – Natasha Solomons

I really liked Mr Rosenblum’s List, so grabbed this book. An intriguing title!

Tommy & Co. – Jerome K. Jerome

Did you know that JKJ had written this book? I didn’t. I would have done if I’d ever gotten around to reading the biography of JKJ that I have – which I WILL DO ONE DAY.

Still Missing – Beth Gutcheon

A Persephone novel that I don’t yet have, for £1.95?! Yes please!

Hope you’re having a lovely weekend, and reading lots. I’m knee-deep in Martin Edwards’ The Golden Age of Murder right now, and loving it.

I’m back! Thank you for your lovely comments on my previous post – and for those of you who emailed/Facebooked/tweeted because of Blogger being so hopeless with comments. Any sort of communication is always a delight :)

I had such a wonderful time in Washington DC (and bits of Virginia and Maryland too). I’ll be writing more about the trip soon, including meeting up with a whole heap of bloggers, but I’ll start with what you really want to know: the books I bought.

Well, dear readers, I bought a heck of a lot. 34, I think. And, since I’d brought 7 books with me, that meant carrying more than 40 to the airport – and a substantial percentage were crammed in my hand luggage. It was quite the feat. And… here they are, with a little bit about why I bought them. As always, do comment (or email/tweet etc.!) if you have read any, want to know more about any, etc. etc.

The World in Falseface – George Jean Nathan
I was partly drawn to the prettiness and neat size of this book, but (less shallowly), it’s about the theatre, and I always love that.

The Small Room – May Sarton
Big-time May Sarton fan Thomas (from My Porch) wasn’t even with me when I picked this up – but it seemed like it could be a fun one.

Last Leaves – Stephen Leacock
A Leacock I didn’t own, to join the piles of Leacock books I’ve yet to read… In fact, I don’t think I’ve read any for about ten years, so must get onto that.

Nabokov’s Butterfly – Rick Gekoski
A book about books – specifically book dealing with 20th-century classics. Called Tolkien’s Gown in the UK, I think.

The Pilgrim Hawk – Glenway Wescott
Someone recommended this… Anyway, an NYRB Classic and an intro by Michael Cunningham sold me on it.

Alien Hearts – Guy de Maupassant
And another beautiful NYRB by an author I’ve been intending to read.

Portrait of an English Nobleman – E.F. Benson
Janet – E.F. Benson
Two in a series EFB wrote about different periods in London, with beautiful dustjackets.

The Shelf – Phyllis Rose
Non-fiction, about an experiment where Phyllis Rose decided to read everything on the LEQ-LES shelf of the New York library. I read this one while in DC, and it’s BRILLIANT. More soon.

Soap Behind the Ears 
Nuts in May
The Ape in Me 
Dithers and Jitters 
Family Circle – Cornelia Otis Skinner
I really loved Popcorn by Cornelia Otis Skinner (and I’m going to write about it soon) but she’s quite tricky to track down in the UK. So I had a parcel of Skinner books delivered to my friend’s address, to take away with me…

Barrel Fever – David Sedaris
Naked – David Sedaris
Sedaris is another one who is readily available in the US, and a little less so here.

Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House – Eric Hodgins
This one went on my Amazon wishlist ages ago, and I can’t remember why. But this edition is a beauty, and the two things combined made it irresistible.

Classics for Pleasure – Michael Dirda
Book about books = sold.

Why I Read – Wendy Lesser
…and another.

Benefits Forgot – G.E. Stern
A really beautiful copy of one of Stern’s memoirs – which are piling up on my shelves now.

Bookends – Leona Rostenberg and Madeleine Stern
I enjoyed their book about friendship and book dealing, and, well – this one seems to be about the same thing.

The Ironing Board – Christopher Morley
Morley is everywhere in the US, and I nabbed this fun-looking collection.

By Nightfall – Michael Cunningham
On the plane, I read the Cunningham novel I bought last time I was in the US (A Home at the End of the World) so I thought I should replace it with another!

Mr Whittle and the Morning Star – Robert Nathan
The Enchanted Voyage – Robert Nathan
And last time I bought, read, and really enjoyed Robert Nathan’s Portrait of Jennie – so, this trip, I took the opportunity to buy a couple more.

Absence of Mind – Marilynne Robinson
I’ve never really tried any of Robinson’s non-fiction works (and am rather daunted by them). This one is on theology and science, and maybe one day I’ll be brave enough to give it a go.

Family Man – Calvin Trillin
Remembering Denny – Calvin Trillin
Trillin is another author to be found everywhere in the US, and these two caught my attention – particularly the intriguing Remembering Denny, about a high school star who came to nothing.

Literary Feuds – Anthony Arthur
I can’t lie, I love a literary feud…

Letters from the Editor – Harold Ross
I also love a collection of letters, and this one from the man who set up the New Yorker promises to be the best of the literary 1920s.

The Year of Reading Proust – Phyllis Rose
Another book by Rose that I bought and read while in America. It’s even made me think about give old Marcel a try…

The Faithful Servants – Margery Sharp
Despite intending to only buy books that were hard to find in the UK, I couldn’t leave this lovely Sharp behind.

Two-Part Invention – Madeleine L’Engle
This is another one that was on my Amazon wishlist for ages and I don’t remember how it got there – but now it’s all mine!

More on the bookshops, people, and activities soon – but, for now, let me know your thoughts on my purchases!

The Thomases had a very lovely time in beautiful Pembrokeshire. We were right by the coast, and in a gorgeous area – a house about every half a mile, and nothing else but unspoilt, craggy countryside. So we spent our time reading, walking, and playing games. Here we are…

Our Vicar and Colin did rather more walking than me and Our Vicar’s Wife; we turned our attentions to painting instead. We have curiously different styles – Mum does beautiful, accurate watercolours. I go for bold colours and slapping it on and seeing what happens… here is what happened.

We went to Haverfordwest in search of secondhand books (well, the others may have had different reasons for going, but that was mine); sadly the two the town had were now closed, but I bought a couple in an Oxfam. Then we headed over to St. David’s, a city with fewer than 1800 residents (my kind of city!), and stumbled across this bookshop. It’s tiny, and crammed to the rafters – including one wall of books which all seemed to be from the early 20th century. That sort of faded red hardback that calls to me… and all very cheap, which helped me add another eight to the pile for less than £8 in total. And here they are:

Dames of the Theatre by Eric Johns
I remember seeing the name May Whitty on the front, and now I forget who else was there (and I’m sat in a different room now…) but it’s dames of the theatre from the generation before Maggie and Judi.

My Dear Timothy and More For Timothy by Victor Gollancz
I keep buying biographies and autobiographies about publishing sensations, but have yet to read any of them… Gollancz addressed his to his grandson Timothy, which (as a concept) could be brilliant or mawkish…

The Loving Friends: A Portrait of Bloomsbuy by David Gadd
I can’t resist a book about Bloomsbury now, can I?

The Knox Brothers by Penelope Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald’s biography of Charlotte Mew was astonishingly good, and I’m sure she’ll be equally adept turning her hand to the Knox brothers.

House in the Sun by Dane Chandos
I very much enjoyed Abbie by Dane Chandos, so would love to read more. ‘His’ (it was a duo) most famous book seems to be Village in the Sun, so I’m assuming this one is related?

The Humbler Creation by Pamela Hanford Johnson
I’ve read two books by PHJ – loved one, disliked the other – so I need to try and third and settle the score one way or the other.

O, The Brave Music by Dorothy Evelyn Smith
I read one of Smith’s novels a couple of years ago and enjoyed it, so it seemed wise to nab another.

Adventures of Bindle by Herbert Jenkins
I’ve got four Bindle books now, so I really should get around to reading one of them.

The Mystery Man by Ruby M. Ayres
How do I know about Ruby Ayres? Not sure, but the name rang a bell and it was 20p, so how could I go wrong? Anybody read her?