Any second hand bookshop addicts here?

[Flip Martian]

I did actually manage to stay away until yesterday. Quite proud of myself.

Except I came back with 12 books...

[cherie171]

I was the model of restraint in the Book Barn yesterday, I only bought one book!

I'm not going mention the 6 new books I picked up whilst we were in Birmingham, bought mostly using a combination of vouchers and in sales.

[Flip Martian]

cherie171 said:

I was the model of restraint in the Book Barn yesterday, I only bought one book!

I'm not going mention the 6 new books I picked up whilst we were in Birmingham, bought mostly using a combination of vouchers and in sales.

You were in the Astley Book Barn? I got there about 2pm, it was rather busy. I remembered why I usually try to go in the week! I've never managed to only buy one in there - I think the least has been 4

Edited by Flip Martian on Sunday 26th February 22:15

[lucido grigio]

I saw some really good car books in a local charity shop window ,did nothing ,went back few days later

and they'd all gone.

I always look at book vendors at car shows, bought a Ferrari book and a Lamborghini book on Friday

total 20 GBP.

[Flip Martian]

Charity shops are always worth a browse for stuff like that.

[cherie171]

Flip Martian said:

You were in the Astley Book Barn? I got there about 2pm, it was rather busy. I remembered why I usually try to go in the week! I've never managed to only buy one in there - I think the least has been 4

We were there from about 3pm, had a spot of late lunch, and left around 5pm when they were closing up. It's the first time I've been there at a weekend, and I was surprised how busy it was.

[mrtwisty]

If any of you ever find yourselves in Buxton, make time to visit this place:

http://www.scrivenersbooks.co.uk/

Eclectic, eccentric, a tad chaotic (in a good way) and very friendly. My favourite bookshop in the country. Easy to spend an hour or so in there (and a fair few £'s) threading yourself through the shelves and up the many winding staircases. A great place.

[Flip Martian]

cherie171 said:

We were there from about 3pm, had a spot of late lunch, and left around 5pm when they were closing up. It's the first time I've been there at a weekend, and I was surprised how busy it was.

I finally got in the cafe for my late lunch about 3.15 so I broke up my browsing a bit. Finally left about 4.45. Just as well they'd expanded the car park. I think many go for the cafe - food is always decent in there. I much prefer it a bit quieter though.

[Flip Martian]

mrtwisty said:

If any of you ever find yourselves in Buxton, make time to visit this place:

http://www.scrivenersbooks.co.uk/

Eclectic, eccentric, a tad chaotic (in a good way) and very friendly. My favourite bookshop in the country. Easy to spend an hour or so in there (and a fair few £'s) threading yourself through the shelves and up the many winding staircases. A great place.

That sounds like I might need to take a trip up the M1 one day soon. Thanks for that

[cherie171]

Flip Martian said:

I finally got in the cafe for my late lunch about 3.15 so I broke up my browsing a bit. Finally left about 4.45. Just as well they'd expanded the car park. I think many go for the cafe - food is always decent in there. I much prefer it a bit quieter though.

How bizarre, if only we'd known other PHers were there! We were sitting on the right as you face the counter. Our Audi A2 was in the corner in the car park, private plate & PH smiley on the back.

[droopsnoot]

mrtwisty said:

If any of you ever find yourselves in Buxton, make time to visit this place:

http://www.scrivenersbooks.co.uk/

Eclectic, eccentric, a tad chaotic (in a good way) and very friendly. My favourite bookshop in the country. Easy to spend an hour or so in there (and a fair few £'s) threading yourself through the shelves and up the many winding staircases. A great place.

I had a look in there on the way back from visiting the one in Brierlow Bar. Very interesting shop. There used to be a shop of a similar layout in Shrewsbury, but it closed down. There is (or was, last year) a similar one still there.

[Flip Martian]

cherie171 said:

How bizarre, if only we'd known other PHers were there! We were sitting on the right as you face the counter. Our Audi A2 was in the corner in the car park, private plate & PH smiley on the back.

Indeed! I was sat on the right too - nearest table to the counter, I was sat on my own. I went in the Focus - when I arrived there was just the one space on the side on the way in. Small world! Just sorry you only found the one this time

[Flip Martian]

droopsnoot said:

mrtwisty said:

If any of you ever find yourselves in Buxton, make time to visit this place:

http://www.scrivenersbooks.co.uk/

Eclectic, eccentric, a tad chaotic (in a good way) and very friendly. My favourite bookshop in the country. Easy to spend an hour or so in there (and a fair few £'s) threading yourself through the shelves and up the many winding staircases. A great place.

I had a look in there on the way back from visiting the one in Brierlow Bar. Very interesting shop. There used to be a shop of a similar layout in Shrewsbury, but it closed down. There is (or was, last year) a similar one still there.

There's a similar layout shop in Rochester in Kent, which is worth a visit. Very much long windy passages and little nooks and crannies.

[cherie171]

A whole day in Hay-on-Wye, and only 5 books bought. I could have bought many, many more, but I limited myself to some older hardbacks, one signed hardback, and a slightly more random old scifi paperback.

[Flip Martian]

cherie171 said:

A whole day in Hay-on-Wye, and only 5 books bought. I could have bought many, many more, but I limited myself to some older hardbacks, one signed hardback, and a slightly more random old scifi paperback.

Sounds very restrained! I would like to spend a full day there (rather than the couple of hours I ended up last year doing), just to see if my experience of it would be more positive. The large, well organised shop with the initials RB (ahem) rather put me off with the snotty attitude but plenty of other shops there I didn't get to last time.

I've not been able to get out as much in recent months but did visit Harrowden in Finedon and The Old Hall in Brackley again last week and came back with a few things. 3 hardbacks totalling £11.50 in Finedon - only charged a tenner, which was very generous. Astley Book Farm tend to offer a discount of about 10% if you spend over 40 quid I think. The Brackley shop I don't think does (unless I just haven't spent enough in there).

[Flip Martian]

Found a new shop, which promises a lot - used books, new books and local authors featured. They're The Booksmith, who have opened a branch in Weedon Bec, just off the A5 in Northants, north of Towcester. http://www.thebooksmith.co.uk/?page=shop/disp&...

They're in the Napoleonic era former Royal Ordnance depot in Building 1 - a reasonable selection now despite being only recently opened but plan to expand over the next few months across the whole of the 1st floor and stock over 80000 books, according to the owner when I visited recently. A big room with high ceilings and sofas. Reasonable coffee and cake too (with expansion on the refreshments due too). Prices not bad on the whole on the used stuff - I spent 22 quid on 5 or 6 books I think, after receiving about a 10% discount without asking.

Open 7 days a week but be aware the lift doesn't work currently so accessibility might be an issue for some. There's also a separate "antiques and collectibles" shop downstairs and the area itself is rather cool to have a wander around - the buildings are really impressive. Worth a visit if you're anywhere nearby.

[ChrisPackit]

I hear the groan from the Mrs as we pass any good second hand book shop!

I collect, and have done for many years, the Ian Fleming / James Bond first editions, and a few tie-in John Gardner books. Prices have started to go a bit bonkers now though, but luckily managed to get all 14 books in various states before the boom happened.

Anyone in the Manchester area, can find a few bargains at the Didsbury book shop in the back of the Art of Tea tea shop.

Cheers

[Flip Martian]

The Bond prices are daft, now. Still, nice to have knowing you can make a profit you need to ever sell... I collected the Pan paperback editions, for no other reason than I read my Grandad's copies as a boy and I love the artwork. Thankfully most of them are relatively cheap...

[Oliver James]

I went to university in a small Welsh town called Aberystwyth and they had this amazing second hand book shop. It was three floors, wall to wall, floor to ceiling, covered in books. They had everything from your Game of Thrones to your Machiavelli and your Dr Faustus. I got so many great finds there and all very cheap.

Honestly though, I just loved to be there. It smelt of books and you never knew what you'd find in the towering stacks of literature. Whats in this pile, is it a treaty on cooking or is it a Gideon bible? Only one way to find out

[Flip Martian]

Yeah I have to say the 2 main lures for me are never knowing what you might come across, and the smell. Not quite so pleasant when you realise that actually its just the smell of decaying books...but still!