*(Nichols, of course – who else?!)
I have resigned myself to bookmania – it’s no good denying that I love to hunt for book treats and as many people have told me, I could have much worse habits! This week has not seen too much shelf space disappearing at the Ramblings, but I did discover a couple of treasures at the weekend!
The first was the Unexpected Beverley in the form of a paperback copy of “A Case of Human Bondage” (£1). There is a story behind the acquisition – a hardback copy was in Claude Cox books for some months and I resisted buying it because I really wasn’t sure whether I would enjoy the subject matter (the marriage of the Maughams). However, since that time I’ve read some Maugham and more Beverley and so I decided to go back and get it, by which time it had been sold (grrr). So I snapped this copy up when I found it. I’m not sure if I *will* enjoy the subject matter, but it’s a Beverley so I shall give it a try.
The second find is this nice Heron hardback of Colette, containing “Gigi” and “Cheri” (which you probably can’t see well because of the rubbish photo). Heron did a whole set of Colette books and although I only have a few (and don’t particularly intend to collect them), one of my volumes contains “The Last of Cheri” so I felt I should have the matching volume. Plus it was only 50p…..
The Heron volumes are very nice, apart from the fact that the binding is prone to split as it gets hard and brittle with age – which is most annoying. However, I have a couple of Russian Heron volumes and they *are* surprisingly eclectic in their choice of author, so worth watching out for.
And finally a vintage Penguin (which I sent away for – you don’t get that many in the local shops!) There’s a motivation behind this too, as I was browsing the Penguin catalogue this week, looking at forthcoming releases, and noticed that “Conversations with Stalin” was being reissued. The appeal of a shiny new Penguin was great, until I noticed that the foreword was by Anne Applebaum….
All I knew of Applebaum until recently was that she was the author of “Gulag” (which lurks on Mount TBR) – then I saw she’d brought another book out, on the Iron Curtain. I thought that might be interesting until I had a look at the reviews online, where some very erudite commentators had pointed out a mass of factual errors, stating the she is a very biased right-wing historian. Frankly, I had enough of that with the Robert Service biographies of Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky, so I have decided to steer well clear of anything Applebaum. I do wonder, also, why Penguin have chosen a right-winger to write the foreword to this? Anyway, I decided instead to pick up a pretty old Penguin and so I have done so! What to read next, as I have finished Perec’s “Life”? I suspect it may be Beverley…
(Then there are the library books – let’s not go there……..)
Kaggsy's Bookish Ramblings 
Jan 20, 2014 @ 11:01:09
I didn’t realise he wrote sort of kiss-and-tell books – I imagine it is a pretty high class one though! Very interesting find.
Jan 20, 2014 @ 11:27:35
Yes, being Beverley it’s peppered with references to Noel Coward and the like! It *is* intriguing…..
Jan 20, 2014 @ 13:08:25
The Djilas book should be interesting, he was one of the few to disagree with Stalin in person and live to write about it.
Jan 20, 2014 @ 13:20:58
Yes, that’s some achievement, isn’t it? I’m intrigued and looking forwardto it!
Jan 20, 2014 @ 15:19:28
Have you read ‘Wartime’ by Djilas ? It’s about his relationship with Tito and other partisans during WWII.
Jan 20, 2014 @ 15:45:12
I haven’t – but I may well have to track down a copy!
Jan 20, 2014 @ 17:23:20
Also, Robert Kaplan interviewed Djilas in the late 80’s in his book ‘Balkan Ghosts’. It’s a travel book, but with a focus on the political history of the region, rather than on the arts and culture.
Jan 20, 2014 @ 17:26:49
You’re having a very bad effect on my wishlist here!!
Jan 20, 2014 @ 18:05:39
Balkan history is a recent interest of mine for some reason!
Jan 20, 2014 @ 19:20:33
I see – that explains all the detailed knowledge you have! 🙂
Jan 20, 2014 @ 18:11:34
Ok last one! I may have told you about this one already, I’m not sure.
‘Eastern Approaches’ by Fitzroy Maclean. It’s a memoir about his time as a diplomat in pre-war Moscow, his war experience in North Africa, and his work as a wartime liaison between Churchill and Tito in Yugoslavia. The opening section in Moscow is particularly good.
Jan 20, 2014 @ 19:21:37
Pre-war Moscow – that’s definitely one for me!!
Jan 20, 2014 @ 18:11:09
Your copy of Colette is stunning, and I very much enjoyed Appelbaum’s ‘Gulag’! I hope you do too when you get around to it.
Jan 20, 2014 @ 19:21:06
Thank you! The Colette Heron books *are* very lovely – maybe one day I will have a complete set!
Jan 21, 2014 @ 18:16:28
Oh gosh, yes – that would be wonderful! 🙂 I’ve not seen any of them before, but part of me is very much wanting to begin my own collection now…
Jan 21, 2014 @ 19:05:31
🙂 They can be found online but the prices and condition vary. I *have* been lucky to find a few locally!
Jan 22, 2014 @ 13:30:42
I’m trying to fight the urge to purchase some! That is very lucky, I agree! Most of the books in my local charity shops are just battered paperbacks, sadly.
Jan 22, 2014 @ 13:56:31
I’m obviously very blessed with local charity shops! 🙂
Jan 20, 2014 @ 19:47:14
Karen, book-buying is important.:) We are in the process of doing “book rescue.”
And then somebody reads blogs and does more book rescue, right?
Certainly you would never find that Beverley Nichols here, but I’ll keep my eyes open just in case…
Jan 20, 2014 @ 20:17:32
Exactly! Books *need* to be rescued in this digital age. And I couldn’t possibly have left that Beverley book there for somebody else…. 😉
Jan 22, 2014 @ 15:20:15
Oh, it’s Beverley, I’m sure he’ll make it entertaining, if highly partisan and inaccurate! I’ve not read it, but I’ve read about the furore it caused, so I’ll be interested to hear how you get on.
Jan 22, 2014 @ 15:23:38
Yes, being Beverley it *is* very readable – review will follow!!
Jan 22, 2014 @ 19:02:55
Yay nice to know someone is buying books – I have been ridiculously good.
Jan 22, 2014 @ 19:37:31
I’m impressed! I’m sure you will crack a little on Saturday though…. 😉
Jan 22, 2014 @ 19:38:50
erm yes possibly 🙂
Jan 26, 2014 @ 08:26:00
A good haul – I like it when I see the wide range of interests my fellow book bloggers have and how their batches of purchases reflect them!
Jan 26, 2014 @ 11:27:38
Yes, I was very lucky. I always think I’m eclectic when it comes to books, but probably I’m just greedy and want to read every sort of book going!!