Book Haul: From cheap paperbacks to Folios

This book haul is pretty special.Three dearly-priced books (you’ll soon discover which) and some other stuffs left me quite broke.Consequently,I had to buy some very cheap paperbacks.When things got better,I still got back to buying Folios.Here is what I bought since my last book haul:

1.Cheap Paperbacks
Aphorisms on Love and Hate and The Meek One are part of the 80 Little Black Classics published by Penguin and sold at 80p each to celebrate its 80th birthday.I bought only two,because the other 78 were rather lacklustre.In fact,what bugs me is that these classics are not really classics.They are not so known and are part of a greater work.Aphorisms on Love and Hate,for instance,is merely a selection from Human,All too Human.I’m not saying the books are not great,but they are not what I expected.But still,they are priced at 80p and I’m looking forward to reading the two I bought.Maybe I’ll buy more in the future.

Then I bought 4 collections of short stories.A collection of short stories can be a hit or miss,so I didn’t want to invest much money in buying fancy editions of the titles above.I bought these Wordsworth Classics at £1.99 each,and was presently surprised by the quality; the books are not as horrible as I thought – notwithstanding the hideous covers.

2.The Mandarins – Simone de Beauvoir

I bought this book shortly after my last book haul.As I said,I was eyeing it and hoping I would get it for cheap.One guy made a bid,but didn’t react when I outbid him,so I managed to get the book for £11.82,which is not bad for a book of this size.Simone de Beauvoir was a monumental French intellectual whose sphere of interests included feminism,existentialism and politics.Moreover the book is hugely autobiographical,as we see characters representing herself,Camus and Sartre,among other French personalities,discussing their roles in France after the Second World War.Given its subject,the author’s reputation and the fact that it won France’s most prestigious literary award (Le Prix Gongourt),it was hard to ignore The Mandarins.I didn’t expect to buy this book this year or anytime soon,but I might read it during holidays.

3.The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame

Believe it or not,but I hadn’t heard of The Wind in the Willows until two years ago.It happens to be the favourite story of many readers when they were kids,and several members of the Folio Society said the Folio edition of this book is very special.So I bought a sealed copy for £25 when it popped up on eBay.I was really impressed when it came home and certainly didn’t regret spending such a hefty amount on it.The illustrations are on thick artistic style paper, a far cry from other Folios in which the illustrations are printed on glossy paper,and the book even has its own personalised slipcase! It doesn’t surprise me that it has been a best-seller at the Folio Society ever since its publication.If you’re fond of this book,you won’t regret buying it.

4.The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Galaxy – Douglas Adams
This little book has been on my wish-list for a while,and I only wanted the Folio edition because I caught a glimpse of the sparkling cover in the past.I bought it,sealed,at £25,as it was near impossible to get it at a better price.The illustrations are fabulous and I just love the glitter in it.I don’t how they did it,but the sparkles do not rub off on your hands! I’m currently reading the book and taking all my time doing so,for I’m really enjoying it.I’ll now try to get the other two in the series,which have also been published by Folio.

5.The Collected Stories – Nikolai Gogol
I needed Gogol’s short stories for my Russian Folio collection,but the book was all too often sold at a price higher than what I was ready to spend.So,once I saw this book popping on eBay for £12.50,I wasted no time to buy it.It looks incredibly great,and the artist who illustrated it is the same one whose works feature in the Folio version of Master and Margarita.Gogol’s short stories are highly rated on Goodreads and he is the man considered to have inspired the likes of Chekhov,Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy,so I’m really looking forward to delve into his world.

6.A Folio Anthology of Poetry
I want to better appreciate the art of poetry,and I think this anthology might help me do it.It comprises 400 beautiful poems from various authors,some well-known,others not so much.I bought it at £27.50,which is half the price it is being sold at on the Folio Society’s website.It arrived in impeccable condition,save a bump on the lower right of the spine – which you can see in the picture.If I really like it,I might buy another copy one day.Also,I’ll definitely buy more poetry books in the future.

7.V for Vendetta – Alan Moore
This one has been on my wish-list for a while.My friend and I were discussing graphic novels,and this conversation of ours prompted me to look for one such book on eBay.I then saw this new hardback copy being sold for £8,which is the price of the paperback version.I was a bit disappointed when the book arrived,as it merely has a dust jacket; there is no big difference between the hardback and paperback,if not a harder cover,some extras and a dust-jacket.I guess I’m too used to reading Folio books.Nonetheless I’m very much looking forward to reading V for Vendetta.In fact,it is next on my reading list.

8.Anne of Green Gables – L.M.Montgomery
Another children literature book I’ve never heard of when I was a child.I was in class when I bid for this book.I was at first bidding for a sealed copy of Pompeii,but got outbid in the dying seconds.I was quite annoyed,but was notified that bidding on another item I was watching – which was this book – was going to end soon.I bid for it successfully and got it for £12 in total.The book was sealed,and given that it is no longer available on the Folio Society’s website,I’m glad with the price I paid for it.I think I now have a decent childhood literature collection in my library.

Also happened:
I also bought a sealed Folio copy of The Name of the Rose for a superb £9.99! It surely is one of my best buys so far.I bought it as a replacement ; I wasn’t satisfied with the other copy I owned,as the seller failed to point its flaws to me – when I pay for a fine book,I expect it to be so.I will sell the flawed copy on eBay.If I make £10,I’ll be happy.
In mid-March,I thought I was doing a great transaction when buying an as-new copy of The Good Soldier,but the book was soiled and bore many scratches.I ended up returning it and recovering the amount I spent.Ha,this was my first real bad experience on eBay.