Your Book-Buying Habits

[SOteric]

Kephra's post in Lounge v. 1.0 got me thinking about this.

I often shop in used books stores. I also shop in stores for new books and I really do spend time in local libraries. Occupational hazard.

Every now and again, probably in an attempt to chat me up or be friendly, someone will observe my pile of purchases and say "Oh, -are you into (for example) Carpet Weaving?" And I'll be required to say "I don't know, I really don't know anything about it. That's why I'm getting the book."

I get the oddest looks for that statement, and my cow-orkers have made it clear that they think this is strange.

Is it really so rare to purchase or borrow books on subjects you're curious about rather than already slavishly devoted to? What types of purchases do you make, and why?

[quispquake]

1. I collect paperbacks...

...and I collect paperbacks with lurid covers, so it's always funny if someone is checking out what I'm buying, and it's some JD paperback like "The Golden Spike"...

[solinvictus]

2. Books

I tend to purchase them used at one of the two local stores we have. Just for some examples: "Road to Wigan Pier" by Orwell for $.50, "The Quiet American" by Graham Greene for $.35, a hardback on the Spanish Civil War for about a buck. GREAT prices because they have a high volume of trade/sale come through. I look for books on my interests: politics, guns, H.P. Lovecraft, hiking, etc. I try to look at the used store before buying. For new purchases, we usually shop at Amazon.com because they have great service at reasonable prices.

[Armstead]

3. I go to the remainders or library

I used to impulse buy a lot of books...Or buy books on a subject I think I might be interested. But eventually I realized I had too many books with unbroken spines about esoteric subjects I really didn;t have the inclination to read about...And with the price of books these days, I realized I could have bought a new car with all that money.

So now I go to the library for the "might be interesting" stuff. Or look in the $3.95 bins in bookstores.

[SOteric]

5. Hmm.

Silly me, I have no books with unbroken spines. :shrug: I guess I see your point, though. I tend to take my 'no longer thrilling' pile down to a place like Half-Price in the U-District and sell them back.

On the bright side, All those books lined up around the walls of my place make really great insulation.

[TheBigGuy]

4. Actually ive done that.

I checked out a bunch of books on fashion once...and also got a bunch of fashion mags from the local bookstore/newstand for a about a year.....just wanted to find out about fashion...thats how I learned the differnce between Dior and Chanel and Commes et Garcons.

Ive done that on some other things too...these are usually magazine purchases (like low rider car mags, british"hertiage" or royalty mags, etc...stuff I really am not into, but just wanted to explore).

For books. thats pretty much what the library is for. Actualy book purchases are pretty specialized for me...usually in the realm of art, architecture/design, militaria, and maybe history and geography, if its interesting.

My partner has a bit more eclectic tastes.

[Deege]

6. I believe it is part of the erosion of reading...

One day I was sitting in the lunch room, reading, and a coworker came in and said, "Oh are you taking a class?" It just so happens I was reading Vonnegut's "Breakfast of Champions"...a book I reread whenever I find myself taking myself too seriously. I looked up from my book and replied, "No. Why?" His response was something about assuming I was taking a class or something because no one just reads...for fun. I was stunned.

There's so much competing for our time and attention that a lot of people just assume people don't read for pleasure, for finding out something new, gaining a different perspective...whatever. It just boggles my mind.

Vonnegut once said that reading is western meditation. He talked about that phenomenon where you’ll sit down with a book and suddenly realize you’ve reading for hours, but have no sense of the time passing. That’s because you’ve jumped into the book and your imagination has carried you away. You can’t get that from a movie. If pressed for time there are many things I’d give up long before I’d give up reading. There’s a lot of people that don’t understand that.

[SOteric]

7. On some level I realise that's true.

But for me, I have to admit, I've read prolifically all my life, and I surround myself with others who read as well.

The idea of a nation that doesn't read is at least as frightening to me as a nation of mindless, conservative fundies and Bush-groupies. And the 2 notions may not be entirely unrelated.

[Deege]

14. I Agree With You Completely

I think the reason we have the monsters and moron that are controlling our government is because far too many in this country don't read. They don't what anything that might challenge their simplistic way of thinking.

I think readers are taught to cherish it as children because their parents are readers, or in somecases, lonely children learn that with books you can always escape and find friends. I do believe that once you start reading, as a child, it's with you for your entire life.

Of course, not all parents encourage reading, nor model it themselves. Their children, then, are only exposed to reading in school. To them it becomes a task that's forced on them and they want to play, not work. They resent it and stop doing it as soon as it's no longer required. As adults the tend to read only what they need for there job and happily plant in front of a television and zone out.

[izzie]

9. Itry not to buy new. So costly and I do over do it.

Wells, Maine is known for its book stores. Used etc so I do buy there.I tend to read things that run along one line. The library sort of knows this. I will read every thing I can by Paul Scott, then branch out and read every thing I can find about India.Which then may set me off on a line of how British ruled places.If I get bored with this I will read the old stand by once more, classic stuff, I will say it does get some what crazy at times because it turns into a study on some thing like how they lived and what they wore in say Henry the 8th day. I then have to go interstate lib. loans. I had the same trouble in college. Would go off on a do-loop and not have time to do the things I should. The stacks are where I left my heart.

[lazarus]

20. Bill Hicks did a bit on this

Talking about his UFO Tour through the south. From memory: He was sitting in a Waffle House reading, and the waitress asked, "What are you reading for?" Not, "what are you reading, but "What are you reading for"

He replied, "Well, one reason would be so I don't become a Waffle House waitress."

I get that "taking a class" crap all the time. So I like reading history books, big deal.

What gets me is people who can sit and eat an entire meal alone, with no book or anything. Or just wait in an airport for a couple of hours without a book. Just sitting there alone....

[Deege]

23. First, Bill Hicks Was the Best...

I miss him greatly. I also agree with you. I've never understood people that don't carry books with them. I always have a book with me because you never know when you'll have time to fill, as you said while eating or waiting in the airport, and I can't think of a better way to fill time than reading.

[Rabrrrrrr]

8. It's always weird in America to expose that you like learning

At least, that's been my experience, much as yours.

"Why are you reading that book?"

"Curiosity"

"That's just weird."

I love reading and learning about stuff I don't know anything about.

Like the old Bill Hicks routine, about reading a book at a Denny's, and the waitress asks him, "What are you reading for?" Not "what are you reading" but, "What are your reading FOR?"

Yep.

[MaryBear]

10. I try to convince myself

that I don't need to own every book I read, and borrow them from the library.

I like used books that have a sense of character about them, but I'm allergic to dust, so don't stay long in used-book stores.

I love books. Just being in a bookstore or library can be an upper for me. Especially when I leave with several.

[no_hypocrisy]

11. As a classic bibliophile, the bane of my existence is Strands Bookstore

in NYC (8 miles of books!). I always wind up purchasing another book that I "can't live without". I don't know where to put my growing family of books.

Other than this harmless obsession, I love yard sales, library book sales (which I've never understood with taxpayers picking up the full tab and then the same books are sold for a dollar or less), and flea markets.

[LWolf]

12. Help!

I'm trying to reach my computer over the top of another pile of books that won't fit on the shelf. I have approximately 4-5K books. I quit trying to keep track years ago.

The only kind of shopping I really like is for books. Independent books stores if available, used books stores first choice. In my area, there is one used books store collecting cast offs from locals. Not the best selection, as I don't live in an area that favors anything intellectual. But I drop in regularly anyway. There are no independent books stores left. So if I need books and need them now I order them from Amazon. Or I get my mom, a former independent used book store owner in another state, to find them for me.

I have a stack of unread books on my end table right now. As I read them, I sort them. Books I have to keep, and books that I can pass on. I pass them on at bookcrossing.com .

As for reading material...entirely eclectic. Large collections of books about particular passions. Large selection of professional books, philosophy, poetry, classics, and plenty of light fiction, too.

[SOteric]

13. *LOL*

I'm following in your footsteps. Just remember: if you stack them just right and toss a throw over them, you can use your books as furniture.

[LWolf]

21. Aha!

:think:

No more shopping for furniture, and I don't have to "weed" the collection so ruthlessly! Now where can I find a spot for another end table around here?

;-)

[curse10]

15. No, I do that all the time

I decided I was going to read all about the French revolution last summer. So I just went to my favorite used bookstore (Ichabod's) and bought a bunch of stuff. I didn't get through all of them, but now I have a bunch of cool books about France.

[Nicholas_J]

48. Vive

La France...

[ZenLefty]

16. I have a collection of antique books

I specialize in old schoolbooks, preferably science oriented. I have old physics books from 1900-1920 (they thought they had the whole world figured out, and they were quite proud of themselves). Some of these old books have pics or illustrations of a classroom from back then. Neat stuff.

In addition to that, I get books from everywere - used stores, new, buy them from the local coffee shop, etc. I usually buy books that interest me or I want to learn about. So yeah, it's not uncommon that I know nothing about the subject I just purchased.

[VOX]

17. I tend to purchase books on subjects which I feel passionate about...

And borrow those on subjects which are unfamiliar (but could become passions, who knows?).

Books are something of a minor "vice," inasmuch as significant monies are diverted into maintaining the habit of bibliographic acquisition in the areas of art, art history, native arts, folk art, first editions, leather-bound editions, signed editions, American history, modern fiction, classic fiction, WWII-era publications, classics, humor, politics, philosophy -- to name but a select few.

My place is so stuffed with books that it's time to "thin the herd" a bit, as it were. Either that, or spring for built-in shelving!

[DemBones DemBones]

18. Oh, I definitely have a book-buying HABIT. . . More and more, I do

my book shopping online, often for remaindered books because I hate to pay full price. I often wait for new fiction to come out in paperback, unless it's an author I especially like. Besides being cheaper, paperbacks are easier to hold and carry around. I'd like to buy from a good independent bookseller but there isn't one near me (and by "near" I mean within fifty miles or more.) I used to buy used books but now the dust and must get to me too much. I still go to the libray and, best of all, trade books with friends who read! Usually, I only buy books that I plan to keep for some time.

[SOteric]

28. Have you visited

http://abebooks.com ?

I love them. I, too, have taken to buying books online, but many online stores like Amazon and Barnes & Noble only sell new books (though Amazon has started a used book purchase segment).

abe (advanced book exchange) connects a lot of small dealerships and otherwise not online booksellers and finds used, new and even rare & out of print books online.

[Lorien]

19. I don't know if it's rare

but I do the same thing- buy or borrow books on anything and everything. There are a few areas where I have vast collections; Natural History, Art, Classics, Mythology, and Children's Illustrated (my business). Every time I pass a used bookstore on my travels, I have to stop. So I end up with books on spirituality written in 1642, or a book on Napoleon published shortly after his death.
I swear, sometimes I think my home is just going to sink into the earth under the sheer weight of them all!

[GOPisEvil]

22. "No, I'm using the book to educate myself."

That statement invariably leads to one of two reactions:

Reaction 1 - "Huh?" Usually said my mouth-breathing, knuckle-dragging idiots.

Reaction 2 - "Cool!" Usually said by people who "get it".

I am much partial to the folks who "get it". I can get lost in used bookstores; I lose all track of time. If that used bookstore has a rare and old books annex (like mine does), that goes double! :-)

[SOteric]

29. If I ever go missing

my friends and family will wisely search all the book stores in the area before alerting the authorities.

One of my favourite local used book stores, has big, overstuffed, comfy old furniture, coffee & tea, and official store cats, who'll come over and inspect your reading material free of charge.

[GOPisEvil]

33. Our big independent bookstore is like that.

Sans feline friends, though.

[SOteric]

34. We're talkin'

beat up old furniture you can definitely put your feet on?

[GOPisEvil]

35. Yep...I have before, and no one's said anything.

www.bookpeople.com

It's actually a lot like the big chains, but they are locally owned, and a lot more relaxed.

[SOteric]

36. Well that's

a fine thing. Add cats and good cuppa coffee and it'd be hard to beat.

[GOPisEvil]

37. They have a coffee shop similar to B&N inside.

Cats? I'll send them an e-mail suggesting that. :D

[SOteric]

38. This isn't

a coffee shop. Jamie puts out really good fresh coffee and miscellaneous teas for her browsing patrons. She encourages folks to pick up a volume, read a few chapters, hang out & talk, -whatever. No purchase required. (Though most of her regulars are book-junkies and keep her in sufficient business that she'd got three local shops now.)

The best part is that we're talking about some funky old Victorian architecture, unusual nooks, dark, strange little side rooms, floor to ceiling and some flying buttresses lined entirely with books. It's like some sort of dark, dusty little library out of a Harry Potter story. Add near perpetual rain, a hot mug of beverage and a couple of hours to kill pouring over used science-fiction and you've got one very happy SOteric.

[GOPisEvil]

39. OK, OK...you win!

I like your book store better!

Any news on the adoption front? ;-)

[ulysses]

24. I'm dangerous to myself

CatWoman and Terwilliger can attest, but even they haven't seen what's stored in the attic.

Pretty much all subject matter - Brandeis University does an enormous used book sale here every year, from which much of the collection (or amorphous mass) has come. The programming references hit the attic a few months ago, while the textbooks and teaching references came back down. I got into John Gardner (Grendel, etc) a few years back, and found a nifty little used bkstore in Little 5 Points from which I bought a bunch of nice 1st ed. hardbacks of his.

I made the mistake my senior year in college of selling my Greek lexicon - bought a new one when I went back for our 10-year reunion in 2001. :)

[SOteric]

31. On the bright side

stacks of books really do make excellent insulation.

The university where I teach has a similar book sale. I've picked up many a volume there, and there's a trip every other month or so down to Powell's in Portland.

I have a really hard time letting go of anything that might be described as reference material or classics. I suspect I would have mourned the loss of a Greek lexicon.

[The Lone Liberal]

25. I display eclectic tendencies in selecting reading material

I have books and more books. A subject catches my attention I attack it by reading everything I can find on that subject.

[inthecorneroverhere]

26. my faves

I love books, but I limit my purchases to used books or sale books. I also love to share my books with friends, or if not with friends, trade them at the local used bookstore.

I don't like to keep more than one shelf's worth of books in the house because I have too much clutter already. If I kept every book I got, it would be a serious impediment to mobility.

My faves are all non-fiction stuff - travel, history, photography.

[Coffee Coyote]

27. I buy off, I mean bite off, more than I can chew

I am a member of 3 mail order book clubs, and allowed a 4th to expire, lol. I will rejoin that one(maybe) once I get caught up.

I read mainly history, politics, classic literature, and science. I prefer hard covers whenever possible, and I love non-profit "special project" publishers like the Library Of America. They produce cloth-bound covers, with acid-free paper, sewn-binding....mmmmmmmmmmmmmm. These things matter!

I never worried about the Internet fully supplanting books, the way radio did not wipe out the theater, or television did not end radio.

Nothing beats the actual feel of the book while you absorb the printed page.

One of the simple pleasures in life is to get a good book, make a cup of tea, and if able, build a nice fire to enjoy with my tome.

Or in the summer, find a nice shady spot outside and get some fresh air to go with it.

Time is the most precious commodity with reading for me these days. I never have enough.

[greatauntoftriplets]

30. I have this friend who keeps recommending esoteric books.

They are great, but piling up. :evilgrin:

[SOteric]

32. *LOL*

I hear that!

[ForrestGump]

40. Not much of anything, lately

In the last few years I've bought a few books that were at least peripherally related to my career and places and activities that touch on it (and a couple about music), but otherwise I haven't been doing a lot of book-buying. A few years back I bought quite a few books, again mainly related to my career interests, from a couple of places that had them at close to (perhaps even below) cost. I like that.

Most of the books that I've bought lately have been paperback novels, in airports, for long air journeys and, back at Gump Base, I mainly read the same kind of not-too-dense fiction as a counterpoint ot the heavy stuff that I take in on the job. Otherwise I'd never sleep.

[SOteric]

41. I assume

then, that your field of employment requires a certain amount of continuing education. Do you keep those books, or do you resell them at consignment shops?

[ForrestGump]

43. I keep almost all of them - never know when they might come in handy

Unfortunately, it makes moving a real hassle. Some of them books're big. I mean, even bigger than Curious George.

EDIT: I basically just trade the paperbacks around with people, or give them away, but I keep a lot (the ones I know I'll want to read again some day). Gives me lots of light reading without having to go out and buy the things, though you still can't keep me out of bookstores (dangerous palces! )

[SOteric]

44. Ya see!

If worse comes to worse, we can defend ourselves against the Republican hordes with literature! - We'll drop big boxes of books on 'em.

:7

[ForrestGump]

47. They wouldn't know what hit 'em

Literally (and, really, there was no pun intended there).

All they see is fuel for a fire.

[gate of the sun]

42. I usually buy books I'm pretty sure I want to keep

that is new. I also buy from thrift stores and check out a pile from the library each week. Some to read and some to just check out what's in them.

[shugah]

45. bookstores! dangerous place

when on a tight budget! a fun memory--one afternoon on the way home from somewhere i said to my husband, "let's stop at the bookstore so i can buy just this one book." it was the second book in a then trilogy. he was into a series at the time, so he said he thought he would pick up just one book as well.

so! we had a deal--quick stop, one book each. well, i went to my section, and he went to his. i grabbed the book i was after, and saw the third book of the trilogy next to it on the shelf. i decided i was just going to get both of them, because i knew i wanted to own it, and why make another trip, right? as i was going over how i was going to justify the purchase to my husband, he appeared next to me.

"well, i'm just going to get both of these books. i know we said only one, but i'm going to buy this one, too, so...well, i really want it..." i fumbled as he smiled at me, him standing there with one book in his hand.

"we said one book," he said.

"i know, but..." he just kept smiling at me. i started feeling a little bit guilty. i looked longingly at the cover of the third book, then hopefully at my husband. no change of expression there!

i reached to put the book back on the shelf, and what do you think? my husband pulled his other hand from behind his back, and i'll be damned if he didn't have another book in his series too!

we love books! i used to go to a previously owned bookstore, but there are none near where i live now. i check out the book offerings at yard sales, too, when i go to them, but the selection is almost always crap. i understand that, as i would happily unload my read and discard books for a quarter a peice, but i'll be damned if i'll part with any of my good books! ;-)

[Ramsey]

46. I buy books all the time

I am even worse, I will buy brand new books, sometimes even hard covers, about things I may or may not know anything about, just because they caught my eye and looked interesting. I am pretty good at picking books I will want to read. That's how I found many authors I read consistently.

I may be anomalous in today's media society, but I love to read. When I was a child, if I dared to whine about being bored, my dad would simply say: "Go read a book". I was reading way beyond my grade level before I went to grade school. My dad had a huge collection of books, lots of science fiction and scientific nonfiction, as well as classics. My mom was an English Lit teacher and has all the classics, especially English and American authors. The reading habit stuck.

On my bedside table are at least a dozen books. Now, I don't like to read more than one book at a time, or maybe one fiction and one nonfiction. The others are on the upcoming pile. I like to devour each book whole. Although I will often be reading both a novel or nonfiction book with chapters along with either short stories or poetry. That's because many nights I go to bed late and need to get up early, so I want to only read for about 30 minutes.

But there is nothing better than getting a whole luxurious day to simply read. I give myself reading projects. For example, one year I decided to read contemporary female authors. I also like to do book clubs with my friends. We pick a book, all read it, and then discuss it. My husband and I have have done the same as a twosome. Makes great dinner conversation!

Having sais that, I am often influenced by things I am already interested in. For example, I have been reading ll the different versions of Arthurian legend over the years, which led me to read a number of nonfiction books on the history of King Arthur. Same thing for vampires; I have read both a number of fictional versions as well as the historical texts.

[catpower2000]

49. Once, I read an entire book on handwriting analysis in the store...

So, yeah, I know what you mean. Last week, I bought a book on origami, just because I think it's interesting.

I agree with you and think your co-workers are strange. :)

Cat

[peacefreak]

50. I'm so spoiled

I have access to a lot of advance copies of books, so I always say I read 6 months ahead or two years behind. I can sometimes tell if it's going to be a good one or lay there like a dog. Sometimes I read something that SHOULD be noticed, but slips by. I also hit yard sales & have a couple of library sales that are the best around. I still haven't found out what "enough" books are. I don't think there is such a thing.