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The Works (books, stationery etc) have opened a new shop which is much larger than the one near the Market Square. The new one is in the Victoria Centre on the ground floor next to Greggs.

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Good to know Dave. There's many a bargain to be had there.

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Go back to the 90s and there were quite a number of bookshops in the city centre which sold cheap, warehouse-clearance books. The Works had several branches in those days, but there were other names operating as well.  I could spend a long time - and quite a few pounds - in those places.

 

The best was this one at the junction of Carrington Street/Canal Street. Derelict for years, it's now being renovated along with the whole Broad Marsh area.

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Got to admit don't read as much nowadays,,,,but still love bookshops,,,the hardest thing about my recent move was moving all my books. I was going to donate many to a Charity shop,,,but in the end just couldn't do it,,and must admit they look good in our new home.

                       The Works always have some bargains and have purchased many from them,,. Enjoyed over the years seeking out the local Bookshops when on holiday or working away,,and i tend to write a little note just inside the book with the place and date,,,many memories were re-kindled when setting them up at the new place. Plus i tend to slip receipts and odd newspaper cuttings into them,,,was amazed at some of the shit ive saved,,,,,

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An eccentric bachelor neighbour of ours is an avid collector of books, most if not all purchased on Amazon these days.  He buys several old books a week, mostly history, war, climbing, Shakespeare, but all pretty heavy-going for a simple soul like me.    I’d never been beyond his hallway until the other day when I’d done a bit of shopping for him. He’s 79 and was still climbing until a recent shoulder operation.  Well he invited me in and I couldn’t believe the amount of books he has.  Thousands!  All on cheap melamine bookshelves and covering EVERY available wall space.  All his sitting room and dining room and all up his staircase. His collection would seriously rival Bromley House Library.  I asked him what will happen to his books when he dies ...... he said he didn’t care, it won’t be his problem!   He showed me one book written in German about an expedition about 100 years ago.  He’d then found it written in French and then just recently discovered it on Amazon in English.  All 3 are lined up on his bookshelf.  

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I agree with Jill about books, especially old books and I, too, have a quite large collection. The french are avid bibliophiles and there are loads of bookshops around the whole of the country including a lot devoted to secondhand books (livres d'occasion). I think I wrote on here last year about buying an English book in a backstreet bookshop in Nice or Cannes called 'The Industrial Archaeology of the East Midlands'. This was something of a surprise to find such an esoteric volume in the window of a general secondhand bookstore.

 

I dip into the book periodically to reminisce on things from my past - nottstalgia defined, perhaps.

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Sod Kindle, there's nothing like the real thing.

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Must admit only buy second hand books now,,,and do most of my reading on holiday,,,can't wait to get out to Nerja again.

             Seems a long way off at the moment,,,great second hand bookshop there,,,you get 50% of the price back when you return it,,,brilliant system for holidaymakers,,,mind you still usually return home with 2 or 3,,,

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FLY.   Books are good if you can see well, but with my eye condition, a Kindle/iPad is much better because the screen is bright.    I still try occasionally to read a book or even a newspaper but it's not really a pleasure - in fact it's hard work!

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Margie, audio books (livres audio) are very popular here. Are they common in England? Depends on whatyou want to read, of course but there is a of stuff available.

 

It's nice to be read to and not taxing on the eyes.

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6 hours ago, LizzieM said:

An eccentric bachelor neighbour of ours is an avid collector of books, most if not all purchased on Amazon these days.  He buys several old books a week, mostly history, war, climbing, Shakespeare, 

 

Does he actually read them  ?    I'm always intrigued by people whose houses include a large library/book collection.  I assume there are those who just collect books as objects - not necessarily to read.

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When my dad died in 76, I took over 300 paperbacks from mums house, ranging from Virgil, Homer and the like, to Penguin novels, and a multitude of war books. I've since read many, but most now have gone on car boots or charity shops.

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Can honestly say iv'e read or referenced all my books........got no fiction,, all factual books,,,tend to get rid of most paper backs,,,had a mate who has as many books as me,,,and all Hard backs that look beautiful in his room,,,but he's read only a couple,,

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Never have bothered with fiction books at least since leaving school. If I have a book its because I want to know something.

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There's been some magnificent fiction written over the years. My favourites are Fredrick Forsyth things such as The Odessa File, The Day of the Jackal etc. Also some good forensic detective novels, especially by Patricia Cornwell. 

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I’m convinced that my neighbour has read every book that is crammed into his house.  He could pull any one of his books from a shelf and discuss it.  My problem is that I’m kind to him and show interest so he jumps on that (mild) enthusiasm and brings books round for us to read and unfortunately, as I’ve previously said, they’re not subjects I’m particularly interested in so a bit heavy going.  

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My main subjects of books I currently possess / buy are locally themed railway books, or biographies of musicians / groups that interest me, such as Ginger Baker, Jeff Beck, Tim Hardin, Rory Gallagher, Rod Stewart /  Faces, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers, and many on the blues and Rock Festivals. 

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I don't buy books 'by the yard (or metre)'. All my books are here because they have some instrinsic interest. Many are reference books and I use them for exactly that.

 

I do know people who buy multiple books just to act as a sort of wall-covering. I suppose a book wall would provide good insulation in the winter.

 

Isn't there (or wasn't there) a place in Wales which specialises/specialised in selling box quantities of books on random subjects purely for this purpose?

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The only 'for show' books we've got on the shelves are the complete works of Dickens which I bought on impulse from an antique shop in the wilds of Lincolnshire some years ago. I've not read them because I find Dickens, with his descriptive paragraphs, incredibly tedious. We have many reference books but it's so quick and easy to extract the information you want from the iPad. I think the days of the hard copy book are coming to a close. I threw out our writings on tablets of stone some years ago.

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I love fiction and this poem by Julia Donaldson sums it up. 

 

I opened a book and in I strode.

Now nobody can find me.

I've left my chair, my house, my road,

My town and my world behind me.

I'm wearing the cloak,  I've slipped on the ring,

I've swallowed the magic potion. 

I've fought with the dragon,  dined with a king  

And dived in a bottomless ocean. 

I opened a book and made some friends, 

I shared their tears and laughter 

And followed their road with its bumps and bends

To the happily ever after. 

I finished my book and out I came,

The cloak can no longer hide me. 

My chair and my house are just the same, 

But I have a book inside me.  

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Essences of NS in there Kath. Wonderful.

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Many moons ago I began dating a lady and when I first visited her house I was mightily impressed, verging on intimidated, by the breadth and depth of her reading, if the contents of her heaving bookshelves were anything to go by..

 

It was only subsequently, after a little browsing, that I realized how few of the books had ever been opened.:cool:

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Back in the 80s I was living in Cromford, Derbyshire.  If any of you know that part of the world you'll doubtless know the wonderful book shop there.  If you don't know it, they mainly sell second hand books.  Well I was working there (Thatcher's time so needed two jobs to help pay the 16% mortgage rate) and one day a customer came in and asked about antiquarian (rare) books.  "Oh, yes", says I airily pointing him in the direction of the books relating to fish and aquariums.....oops.

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I love to read but it has to be a 'real' book I can't get any pleasure from  staring at a screen. I was encouraged from a very young age to read, a visit to the library was a treat for me. My grandmother used to say I would read the label from a jam jar !!!.  

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