"Quantum Of Menace" Paperback Available

I recently discovered online that Australian book stores were listing the trade size paperback of Vaseem Khan's "Quantum Of Menace" as now available.  So Thursday after work I visited my local "Dymocks" and "Cook & Young".  Neither were physically stocking it yet.

Next I visited "QBD", which had already closed for the day, and though their security roller-door I could see copies on their shelves.  I managed to grab this photo.  The book in question is left of centre, featuring a red cover with a large white "Q".

It felt like I was getting closer...

Then I visited the books section in "Big W"...

... and couldn't believe how many copies were available for sale.  Two separate stacks existed in different locations on their shelves.  I counted 20 copies !

I can't recall the last time I saw so many copies of one James Bond related novel in a store.  I checked and as suspected this edition was printed in Australia.  Expect to see an update to the Australian Editions page soon.

Either the publisher has high hopes for this novel, or there was an ordering mistake, but regardless I hope "Quantum Of Menace" does well in Australia.

Book Store Visit And New Addition To The Collection

It's been a while but yesterday I visited Helena's Curiosity Shop in Bentleigh again.  As I entered the store Helena recognised me and said 'James Bond books' and I commented on her amazing memory.  Unfortunately she told me she had no Bond novels at the moment but I still had a hunt through her huge collection of paperbacks and hardbacks just in case.  No luck for me this time but I will be back.

Next my wife and I travelled to the City.  We visited Dymocks and I touched a copy of Kim Sherwood's novel "Double Or Nothing" for the first time.  This book is set in the world of James Bond and features other Double-O operatives.  I now have a new paperback title to add to the PizGloria.com website.

We also visited the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) to attend a Picasso Exhibition.  It was always intended to be a visit accompanied with my wife's sister but sadly it wasn't to be.  At least it felt like she was there with us and we knew she would have liked the art on show.

There were no direct James Bond references in the exhibition however there was a painting titled "Invisible sleeping woman, horse, lion" by Salvador Dali...

that reminded me of the dust jacket designed by Tom Adams for the Robert Markham (Kingsley Amis) hardback "Colonel Sun" published by Jonathan Cape in 1968.

And finally, here's a couple more photos from the Picasso exhibition:

A Victim Of Lockdown ?

When lockdown ended in November it meant that I could finally return to bookstores again.  But on my first visit to Southland Shopping Centre in Cheltenham I was shocked to discover the Dymocks' store has been replaced by Cook & Young during my absence.

I'm not sure if the Dymocks' store was a victim of the lengthy Melbourne lockdown or a pre-planned closure but as one of the oldest book store chains in Australia I was saddened to see the store gone.  I'm uncertain at this stage if other Dymocks' stores have also been affected.  

Fortunately the store looks very similar inside with the same stock and layout.  So I'll be visiting again when new Bond novels are released or re-published

City Book Hunt Before Comedy Show

Last weekend my wife and I visited the City for the final weekend of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.  We saw a fantastic show and can't wait for the festival to begin again next year.

While in the City we also visited a couple of book stores.  The first was Dymocks where I found copies of Anthony Horowitz's new paperback format version of "Forever And A Day".  I couldn't purchase a copy at the time as we were about to have dinner before the show so I had to leave my copy for another time.

Then we visited Kay Craddock Antiquarian Bookseller.  There were no James Bond novels on the shelves however I did find a first edition of Kingsley Amis' "The James Bond Dossier".  I always enjoy visiting this book shop.  It's definitely a quality store.

No books this visit but it was great to have a quick City book hunt.  I would have liked to have visited Basement Books too but unfortunately it had closed earlier in the afternoon.  Next time I guess...

A Couple More Additions

In the last week I've acquired two new James Bond books for my collection.  One I received in the mail.  The other was a surprise discovery during a routine visit to Dymocks bookshop in the City.

The first book which arrived from the UK was a hard back copy of "Forever And A Day" written by Anthony Horowitz and published by Jonathan Cape.  This edition is sold exclusively by Goldsboro Books, has blue edges, includes the author's signature and is limited to just 750 copies.  It's a lovely copy and is the third copy I now own of this title.  My previous blog entry includes the other two.

The second book was a paperback version of Ian Fleming's "Dr No" published by Vintage Books.  It was reprinted as part of a new "Heroes And Villians" series.  The cover is a little unusual, as is the size of the book, but it looks great when shown with other matching covers from different authors.  This is the only Bond title included in this set.

And finally, here's a photo of the entrance to the City Dymocks store which is undergoing renovations and I might say already looking great.  I was in the City with my wife and sister-in-law to see a fantastic performance of "The Wizard Of Oz" at the Regent Theatre.  No relevance to James Bond but I've included some photos anyway.

"Forever And A Day" Appears In Oz

Less than one month ago, on May 31st, the latest James Bond continuation novel "Forever And A Day" was released in the UK.   Published by Jonathan Cape it is the second Bond novel written by Anthony Horowitz following the success of his "Trigger Mortis" in 2015.

It always takes a little longer for UK titles to reach Australia and last week I noticed paperback copies of "Forever And A Day" starting to hit the shelves here.

Then on the weekend at my local Dymocks store I noticed a large display of the same books for sale so purchased one for myself.

Today a signed hardback copy of the same novel arrived in the post.  Purchased from Waterstones in the UK it has yellow edges and is signed by the author.

And finally here's the hardback and paperback editions together.  I've already scanned the cover of the paperback and added it to PizGloria.com here.  I think the cover looks great and very modern.

I'm hoping for further editions to arrive in the post, as well as some promotional material to display here on this blog, but only time will tell.

Weekend In The City

I've just spent a relaxing weekend in the City with my wife.  Although 'relaxing' probably isn't the most appropriate word to use considering we rarely sat down.  We spent one night with some friends, visited the optical illusions ArtVo, walked around the City, ate at some great restaurants and attended the closing night of the Melbourne Comedy Festival.

On Saturday we visited the Astor Movie Market where I saw a few nice Bond items for sale, although I didn't purchase anything.

Yesterday (Sunday) we visited the Dymocks store on Collins Street.  There were plenty of Bond novels on the shelves although no copies of the "Casino Royale" that cross promotes the new Bond novel by Anthony Horowitz "Forever And A Day".  I'll have to keep my eyes open closer to the release date.  It was also good to see some major work being done on improving the store.

We also visited City Basement Books.  They had a Cape hardback version of Gardner's "For Special Sevices" and a paperback Faulk's "Devil May Care".

Finally, here's a couple more snaps of Melbourne...

Etihad Stadium in the Docklands

The Yarra looking toward the lights of the MCG (an AFL game was in progress)

The Town Hall clocktower from our hotel window

Looking toward Bolte Bridge, again in the Docklands