Saturday Book Fairs

Last Saturday my wife and I visited two book fairs.  The first was an annual event at an Anglican Church in the Melbourne suburb of Oakleigh.  We managed to find a Christopher Wood "James Bond, The Spy Who Loved Me" and a James Bond "Fact File" released around the time of the film "Licence To Kill".

 

 

We then drove about an hour and a half to the town of Yarragon, where they also have an annual Book Fair over the weekend.  At a guess I would say there were about 2 to 3 thousand books for sale at a price of $1 for paperbacks and $2.50 hardbacks with all money raised going to the local fire brigade.

Looking from the main road toward the building on the right holding the book fair.  The locals in Yarragon are very friendly !

 

 

 

The main room.

The back room.

The only Bond we found at the book fair.  My wife found this one but unfortunately I already had this edition.

Overall no luck at either book fair, but the Yarragon Bookshop was next stop for a visit.  To be continued...

Saturday Afternoon - Northcote / Thornbury Book Hunt

Following my book hunt in Camberwell last Saturday morning I drove to Northcote and spent the afternoon hunting books there.

First up was Howard Bolton Bookseller.  This is certainly a quality store for any book collector/reader.  Really well organised, great condition books and a few Bonds on the shelf too.  Howard's always behind the counter, and this time he went out the back and brought out a few 60's Pans.  I even bought the top copy of "From Russia With Love" as it was in such good condition for an early Pan paperback.  If you do happen to visit this store, don't forget to ask Howard about his secret stash of Bond books.

 

Next up wasn't Thornbury Secondhand Books but this store always get relegated to last mention on my blog when I've visited them in the past, so I'm going to include them here instead.  Constantly busy, this store also gives off really positive vibes.  The owners are always smiling and it's got a real friendly feel to the store.  They also always have Bond books, and as I've said in the past they even have a "Spy-Fi Thrillers" section.  There's also a section "Bond, James Bond" in the "Film" section.

After Howard Bolton Bookseller I visited Brown & Bunting Bookseller.  I last saw an incarnation of this store as a stall at Clunes Booktown 2013.  This store seems to have a constant turnover of Bond books, so it's always a good one to visit.  None today for me though.

I made a quick stop at The Book Grocer as it's only a few shops from Brown & Bunting and the next second hand store.  I noticed a new copy of "The Moneypenny Diaries" on the shelf, but no Flemings.

The final store I visited in Northcote was Allsorts Secondhand Books.  The only Bond I could find was a Faulks "Devil May Care".  But this is the store where I found my most recent great find (a misprinted Pan cover of "On Her Majesty's Secret Service") so I always shuffle about the books a little to see if there's anything else hidden on the shelves.

So my afternoon book hunt ended successfully with the purchase of a replacement copy of "From Russia With Love". 

Saturday Morning - Camberwell Book Hunt

Last Saturday morning I visited some second hand book stores in Camberwell.

The first was Sainsbury's Books.  This store is for the professional collector and often has the harder to find Bond books.  This time it had a copy of Deaver's "Carte Blanche" plus a copy of Higson's "Blood Fever" (not pictured).  But it also had a copy of the more difficult to find hardback "How 007 Got His Name" by Mary Wickham Bond.  No purchases made though.

Over the road from Sainsbury's Books is a Salvation Army Opportunity Shop (aka Salvos Op Shop).  They have plenty of books, and ever optimistic I had a quick look.  I managed to find a Faulks "Devil May Care" and a Higson "By Royal Command", but no new books for the website.

The final bookshop on my Camberwell visit was a store just over the road from the historic Rivoli Theatre.  Camberwell Books has a large number of books, many of which are on-line.  I've purchased a few paperbacks from here over the years.  Today they had two Gardner's "GoldenEye" and "Nobody Lives Forever" and two Flemings "OHMSS" and "From Russia With Love", all of which I had.

 

 Overall no new purchases, but it's always good to be out there. 

Another Visit To Chapel Street

Yesterday afternoon after attending The Astor Theatre with a friend to see a 2K projection of "Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade" I made a quick visit to Penny Syber's Books just a short walk up Chapel Street.

I haven't visited this store since March so I was hopeful of finding some new Bond paperbacks in stock... and there were.  Four books from my last visit still remained (two Gardners, a Faulks and a Markham), but this time there were also five new Raymond Hawkey Flemings (as can be seen in the photos below).  There was also a copy of the harder to find paperback "Double O Seven James Bond: A Report" by O.F. Snelling.

 

Unfortunately I had a copy of all books available but it's great to see 60's Bond paperbacks still out there circulating.

World Book Night 2013 Edition Of "Casino Royale"

On April 23 of this year an event titled World Book Night occurred in the UK.  The event was designed to "celebrate books and spread the joy and love of reading".  Copies of 20 different book titles were given away by volunteers on the night for free.  One of those titles was "Casino Royale" published by Vintage.

While I knew that "World Book Night" was going to occur in the UK in April (thanks in part to John at The Book Bond) I was oblivious to the fact that a special edition of "Casino Royale" was going to be printed for the event.  Then a few weeks ago I received an email from a fellow Bond collector, Reuben, who explained that a special edition was available, and after a bit of searching I managed to find a copy for sale on the web and quickly purchased it.

Today the book arrived in the mail, and fortunately it was very well packaged because I think someone must have dropped a couple of bricks on it.  Luckily there was no damage to the book.

Here's some photos, and I've also already scanned and added it to the PizGloria website.

(No, it's not a consignment of drugs !)

Weekend Bookhunt

Last weekend my wife and I took a friend shopping at Maling Road in Canterbury as she'd never been there before.  Maling Road is almost an historic shopping strip with many quality stores.  The buildings themselves are relatively old for Australian standards (circa early 1900's) and you can always pick up plenty of great gifts and Australian souvenirs from there.

 

 

Tim's Bookshop, a quality store selling new books, can also be found there.  I was surprised to see them still selling Penguin Bonds as well as the newer Vintage 007 covers.  Unfortunately I had all the books for sale in the same condition but it's good to see them still available on shelves.

 

 

There is also an arcade selling antiques and second hand items including books. The arcade building was actually the old railway station before the station was moved.  I found no Bonds on the shelves though.

And finally, a minute walk around the corner, is Canterbury Books selling second hand books.  This compact store has been in this location for years.  They had two movie tie-ins - "Live And Let Die" and "The Man With The Golden Gun" (I think) both from Pan. 

 

Unfortunately overall no luck on the Bond front, but that's just part of the hunt !

"Blood Fever" Proof Arrives

Another Charlie Higson Young Bond novel arrived in the post today. An uncorrected proof of "Blood Fever" published by Puffin in 2006.  This is the second uncorrected proof of a Higson Young Bond novel I've received in two months, having also received a proof copy of "SilverFin" last month.

 

I'm also indebted to a fellow Bond collecter who recently sent me some photos of his Higson Young Bond novels, thus allowing me to determine which novels I'm missing in my collection.  Thanks for the heads up Darren.  Much appreciated !

I'll scan this cover and add it to the website ASAP.