A Very Booky Xmas - Part 2 - Bath Book Caddy!!

For those of you who follow this blog regularly, you will remember that I have been without a bath for almost 6 months due to a very slow bathroom renovation. On Xmas Day I was not only lucky enough to take my first bath in my new bathroom, but I also received a bamboo bath book caddy as a gift. I don't normally take photos of myself in the bath, but after months of bath withdrawal, this moment had to be captured!! My wonderful husband bought me this priceless gift after he saw me salivating over it in a magazine. It definitely ranks up there as one of the best presents I have ever received because it allows me to do several of my favourite things at once - taking a bath, whilst drinking some wine and reading a good book. Needless to say, I've spent many an evening soaking since Xmas and am looking forward to many more nights of bliss!! Stay tuned for more tomorrow - Part 3 - Four Books From My Wishlist!!

A Very Booky Xmas - Part 1 - The Cue Cat!!

After a holiday hiatus I thought it was about time I re-entered the blogosphere and what better way to do that than to brag about some of the great gifts I received for Chrissy. To say I had a very booky festive season would be an understatement, so this week you'll be treated to a grand tour of the best of my book related gifts. Todays instalment is all about the Cue Cat pictured in this post.

I've been a member of LibraryThing for over 12 months now. For those of you unfamiliar with the website it's an online community for serious book lovers where you can catalogue and review your books and share your obsession with other bibliophiles. My personal book collection numbers over 500 titles so it was taking me quite some time to even make a dent in cataloguing them on LibraryThing.....until the arrival of the Cue Cat on Christmas Day. This fabulous little tool reads the barcodes of books with one simple swipe back and forth and then automatically populates your catalogue with the stored information about the book. In only a few days I have managed to catalogue over 200 books in my collection. It's only a little thing, but it has really made me smile!! The only fault with the Cue Cat is that there are some bar codes it doesn't recognise, but the majority it does.

I'm hoping to have my entire book collection catalogued within the next month or so and would love to connect with any fellow members of LibraryThing. My profile name is ReadingHabit, so send me a friend request when you get a chance. Stay tuned for more tomorrow - Part 2 - Bath Book Caddy!!

Thanks For Your Input Into Our Packaging Debate!!

Our new business name has also meant new stationery and we've had lots of fun designing it!! We particularly wanted to mention our brand new packaging sticker. Following many thoughtful responses to an earlier Reading Habit post ("Book Packaging - Brand New or Recycled - Help Please!!") we decided to take your advice and stick with our recycled packaging policy. We also listened to suggestions from our blog fans as well as our customers across the twitter, facebook and Book Blog communities. Among these suggestions was the idea of creating a little sticker to go on our book parcels that would explain our use of recycled materials. We loved the idea and ran with it, the result being the sticker you see on your left, complete with a cute little verse. So a BIG THANKS from Reading Habit to all those who commented. Your feedback has been invaluable and we really appreciate it.

New Giveaway - Blackout (by Connie Willis)

Refreshed from my brief sojourn in New Zealand, I return to Australia and the blogging universe in a generous mood. Up for grabs this month is a BRAND NEW copy of "Blackout" by Nebula and Hugo award-winning author, Connie Willis.

Set in 2060 "Blackout" is a science-fiction novel that involves time travel back into the heart of World War II England, and specifically the world of Oxford University historians. It has been a good eight years since Connie's last novel and this one promises to be just as entertaining, though I should warn that it's only the first installment in a two-part series that concludes with "All Clear".

To enter our book giveaway just leave a comment that includes a time in history that you'd most like to time-travel back to. Read the following information to see how you can earn bonus entries.

Bonus Entries
+1 Entry = Follow our Blog 
+1 Entry = Liking the Ambire Secondhand Books 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
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 Friday 3rd December. The competition is open to residents of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and the UK. The winner of the competition will be announced on Wednesday 8th December. Good luck to everyone!!

Our New Business Name and Logo - Your Thoughts???

After 10 years operating as Ambire Secondhand Books, we've decided to spice things up a little and revamp our brand. As of November 2010 we will be trading under the new business name of Reading Habit with the short but sweet slogan 'Feed Yours'. We love our new look logo and slogan so much that we thought we'd get your thoughts on it early in this blog post. Let us know what you think!!

New Giveaway - Mr Darcy, Vampyre - Amanda Grange

Mr Darcy a vampire??? I'm not sure how the concept sits with me, but following the recent vampire trend Amanda Grange has continued the classic tale of Pride and Prejudice in Mr Darcy, Vampyre and we're giving away a brand new softcover copy of the book. The book picks up exactly where Jane Austen left off, on the morning following Elizbeth and Darcy's marriage. From here on in.....things get pretty strange!!

To enter our book giveaway just leave a comment that includes your suggestion for what classic novel should next be turned over to the blood suckers. Read the following information to see how you can earn bonus entries.

Bonus Entries
+1 Entry = Follow our Blog 
+1 Entry = Liking the Ambire Secondhand Books 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
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 Tuesday 2nd November. The competition is open to residents of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA and the UK. The winner of the competition will be announced on Wednesday 3rd November. Good luck to everyone!! 

Please Tell Me Chivalrous Males Aren't Just Romantic Fiction??

Yes this is a grotesque picture!! And you may be wondering what it has to do, if anything, with chivalry let alone books. I promise I'll get there. I was trawling through some old photos the other day and came across this beauty, taken long before I was ever blogging. Just looking at the picture had me seething because it reminded me all to vividly of what I can only describe as one of the worst book buying experiences I've ever had. So I thought I might share it with you.

I go out book buying to replenish stock for my online store about once a fortnight. Normally this involves going directly to peoples homes in my local area. Quite often I am purchasing large libraries of second hand books that require packing into boxes and transference into my van. I will acknowledge that for the most part the clientele I see are older men and women who I would never expect to help me with heavy lifting. What I do expect is for 30-something males, or females for that matter, to at least offer assistance. Given the following experience, I am clearly delusional.

Last year I frequented the home of a local male in his 30s who appeared to have all four of his limbs. His house was built on a very steep incline and after much wheel spinning I succumbed to the realisation that I was never going to get my van up the driveway. I went through the usual transaction process of buying books, packed them into boxes, and then proceeded to start carrying the books down to my van, wrongly assuming that said 30-something male would grab a box or two himself. For 30 minutes I lugged over 800 books up and down the driveway. It was hard yakka, including at least 30 steps, and a slippery driveaway on a 45 degree angle. Not once did said male offer a helping hand, but he graciously watched me, keeping up a running commentary that included me falling arse over tit down the driveway with a box full of books. The result = above photo.

One would think that after incurring the above injury said male might come to my rescue. Wrong again!! He proceeded to watch as blood poured out of my hand and then handed me a dirty rag. Would you be shocked to know that despite still having 10 boxes to carry down to the van, said male still did nothing? By this time I wasn't. So me and my chundered finger stoically finished the job, eyes glazed over in fury, and drove home.....totally bemused. My only consoling thought was that I had the strength not to cry through the whole ordeal. My husband was horrified when I told him the story. I even considered taking him on a drive-by the clients house to demonstrate the sheer ludicrousness of that god-awful driveway. One year on, my finger has healed, and I now sport a scar reminiscent of a sailing boat that will forever remind me that chivalry, not to mention plain old good manners, are definitely taking a nose dive in the 21st century. Thank god I'm married to one of the good ones who still understands the concept.