My wife and I are currently in Adelaide after driving the long trek from Melbourne last Sunday.
1) O'Connell's Bookshop, Adelaide
On our first day in Adelaide I walked up Rundle Mall, and then a little further, to O'Connell's Bookshop. On entry, Ben (and Oscar the dog) greeted me, and after mentioning I was hunting for James Bond books he explained by strange coincidence he was just in the process of setting up a display of Bond paperbacks in his front cabinet.
A lone Pan Books “Casino Royale” movie tie-in from 1967 was already sitting on the glass shelf awaiting more books to accompany it. Ben also said he’d just sold a Jonathan Cape “Dr. No” first edition, with others still on display in a standing glass cabinet close by.
As always, O’Connell’s Bookshop had a pile of James Bond books available. There was also this Len Deighton “Action Cookbook” with a cover designed by Raymond Hawkey which I’d never seen in the wild before.
On our way back to the hotel we passed New Morning Books on Frome Street, however we’ll have to return as it was closed on the day we visited.
Here's some additional photos. Firstly a mural down a lane way near our hotel in central Adelaide
O’Connell’s Bookshop celebrates 70 years of business next year with Ben, a third generation of O’Connell, currently managing the store. They have thousands of second hand titles for sale catering for many different tastes, and is a must visit if you're ever in Adelaide.
4) Mockingbird Lounge, Glenelg
2) QBD Books
Next stop was QBD Books on Rundle Mall which only sells new titles. They had lots of great books including “Quantum Of Menace” by Vaseem Khan.
3) Dymocks Bookstore, Glenelg
Later that morning we drove to Glenelg, a short drive from the City centre. First we visited the Dymocks Bookstore which was full of potential customers. Like QBD Books, they only sell new titles, and also had copies of Vaseem Khan’s novel.
A short drive from Glenelg is the Mockingbird Lounge. I normally don’t like mixing food with books but this cafe is definitely an exception. Every room has shelves of second hand books on the walls. And one room is set up specifically for book club patrons who’s taste (sadly) appeared to not extend to Ian Fleming as I couldn’t see any Bond novels among the piles of same titles on the shelves.
5) Rotary Bookmart, Woodville West
On our return to Adelaide we passed this Rotary Bookmart in Woodville West. So many second hand books for sale at bargain prices, and all really well organised by the volunteers. No luck for me but my wife picked up a few bargains.
And some photos from Glenelg.
Stay tuned for Part 2...
