Friday 8 June 2012

What Types of Books Do You Like to Collect?

In my line of work I am constantly amazed at the weird and wonderful types of books people like to collect. You always come across the bibliophiles who collect things like modern first editions. These collectors are the norm. It’s the offbeat ones that always raise an eyebrow for me. I’m intrigued to know why they collect what they collect, and how their obsession started. Today, for instance, I had a customer call who wanted me to compile a list of books we had available that had blue spines. Seems he was collecting them to create some sort of arty wall feature slash bookcase. And, only last week I fielded an enquiry from a lady who collected children’s books that had butterflies on the cover. Turns out she collects them so that she can cut out the illustrations for craft projects. Sacrilegious, I know! My favourite of all time though is the guy who collected books with the last page missing. I don’t mean the blank endpapers at the end of most books. I mean the last text page! He collected them because he found it amusing to read a book and not know the real ending. I never quite worked out why he didn't just rip out the last page of every book he came across. Each to their own, I guess! It got me to thinking what other crazy book collecting habits are out there in the book-o-sphere.

My own book collecting habits are of the more mundane kind. When I was a teenager I collected the Trixie Belden detective books. I’m still fuming that my mother consented to lend them to a friend and they were never to be seen again. I then went through a funny phase of collecting any books that had my name in the title. How very self indulgent of me? Again, I was just a teenager and in my defence had recently fallen in love with the novel Forever Amber, so it seemed only logical that I’d be just as smitten with every other book with ‘Amber’ in the title. This theory was soon debunked after I read Elizabeth Lowell’s, Amber Beach (apologies to all Elizabeth Lowell fans out there). The Hare with Amber Eyes is the next title on my book club list and it’s got rave reviews, so there may be life left in this particular book fetish yet. It won’t surprise you to know that now-a-days I collect books written by people who run, or have run, second-hand or antiquarian bookstores. You’d think this would be a fairly narrow sub-genre, but actually there are quite a lot of books out there on the topic. It seems nearly every second-hand bookstore owner puts pen to paper eventually. I also collect books written by the great sporting coaches. I’m a netball coach myself and am always looking to be inspired by the words of the masters. I collect them because the good ones seem to be few and far between, and because I’m always inclined to re-read them when I’m low on confidence. Last but not least, I collect any books that deal with the history and current social plight of Aboriginal Australians. For me, this last obsession is all about trying to fill the gap that my white Australian education created. Sorry to end on such a serious note!

So fess up! What types of books do you like to collect, and why? Or, dob in a friend! They’ll never know.

Wednesday 6 June 2012

June Book Giveaway - The Secret Lives of Dresses (Erin McKean)

This month we have a copy of The Secret Life of Dresses by Erin McKean to give away. The Secret Life of Dresses is "A captivating and enchanting novel about vintage frocks and new experiences for every girl who knows that the right dress can change your life". The book is written by Erin McKean, the author of the blog www.dressaday.com.

To enter our book giveaway just leave a comment on our blog. And don't forget to increase your chances by checking out how to gain bonus entries!!

Bonus Entries
+1 Entry = Follow our Blog
+1 Entry = Liking the Reading Habit Page on Facebook (Click here to do so)
+1 Entry = Following us on Twitter (Click here to do so)
+2 Entries = Provide a Link to our Giveaway on Your Blog
+2 Entries = Join the Reading Habit Community Network (Click here to do so)
NB: If you're eligible for bonus entries, make sure you let us know when you leave your comment!!

Entries are open until 5pm EST on Saturday 30th June 2012. The competition is open to residents of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and the UK. The winner of the competition will be announced on Tuesday 3rd July 2012. Good luck to everyone!!