Monday Book Hunt

Last Monday I had a day off work so I decided to do some book hunting.

First I met with Jenny, a stall holder from The Mountain Of Books Bookfair which was held a few weeks ago.  We organised to meet at a local shopping centre where she sold me two Ian Fleming related paperbacks - "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" from 1968 and "All Night At Mr Stanyhursts" from 1965 both published by Pan Books.

Next I visited a few second-hand stores.  The first was as a result of a visit to the South Melbourne Market a couple of Sundays ago.  "The Merchant Of Fairness" has a large stall there and this time I found a few Bonds on the shelf.

They also had a second-hand store in Balwyn which closed a few years ago.  But after speaking to the stall holder at the market it appears they have another store which has been open for almost two years now.  Little did I know.  So this Monday I paid the store a visit... and it was closed !

 

- The Merchant Of Fairness - Balwyn (second hand) - This store is located just near the Balwyn Cinema.  I managed to grab a snap through the shop front window and can't wait to visit it again... when it's open. 

- Canterbury Books (second-hand) -  This store has been around for ever.  A great store to visit with a very friendly owner behind the counter.  She allowed me to take a few photos of her store as you can see above although I didn't take one of the four Bonds books on the shelf.  But as you can see there's plenty of other books on the well organised shelves.

- Mailing Road Shops (antique goods and books) -I couldn't find any Bond books today although that's not saying there weren't any on the shelves.

- Bradstreet's Books (second hand) - Ok, I picked the wrong day of the week to go book hunting.  This store was closed too.  A recent newspaper article mentioned that this building could be redeveloped in a couple of years and this store closed.  Let's hope not.  There were plenty of students hanging around at the cafe next door grabbing a bite, chatting and listening to the music.  It's a perfect location for a great book store like this one.

 

 

- Camberwell Books & Collectibles (second-hand) - This book store has stood opposite the Rivoli Theatre for 25 years but unfortunately retirement beckons for the owners and this store will soon close to become a cafe.  That's a real shame as I've purchased a few Bond books from here over the years, but the owners seem to be happy to be finishing up.  Meanwhile all books in this store are 50% off as part of their "Farewell Sale" so if you're after a bargain make sure to visit soon.  They also had the seven Bond books shown above.

 

- Sainsbury's Books (second-hand) - The final store on Monday's book hunt was this one and I was glad to find it open and without indication of it closing down in the near future.  There were no Bonds today but I'll be sure to visit again soon.  It's always well organised and with a wide range of books.