Bound Words

If you're a 'girlsowner', there's nothing quite like the feeling of walking into a new-to-you second-hand bookshop and discovering it has an extensive collection of vintage kidlit.

It's always a bit like time-travel finding shelves full of titles by authors like Elinor M. Brent-Dyer, Angela Brazil, Enid Blyton etc. Especially when there are plenty of hardbacks!

So I was delighted to discover Bound Words in Hampton over the weekend. It contains the best selection of vintage kidlit I've seen for a while. There was even a Girls Gone By title in there - The Mystery at the Chalet School with the short story, Robin Heeds the Call. It is water damaged, but still a perfectly good reading copy, and only $7 should anyone reading this be interested in buying it.

The children's books are in the very back room of the three-room bookshop. Non-fiction (including art, music, history and education, as well as - somewhat incongruously - plays) is in the first room, with general fiction in the second.

There are lots of eateries and shops in Hampton, and Bound Words isn't far from the beach. I'll definitely be heading back there over the next few months.

Little libraries

I really enjoy coming across little libraries and looking to see what's in them. Recently, I had a run of finding books I wanted and then having to return the next day to replace what I'd taken. So now I've taken to slipping a book in my bag or the car, just in case. (And, of course, sod's law - I haven't found anything I want since I started doing that!)

I'd quite like to set up a little library outside our house, but until then there are a few favourite ones that I check out when I'm on my travels. Locally, there is one near Lilydale Lake, outside Lilydale Aged Care, and another in the Alchester shopping area in Boronia. The Boronia one is outside the Koko Lime Cafe, which I haven't been to, but it seems very popular, indicating the coffee is good. 

Little library near Lilydale Lake

Little library in Alchester, Boronia

I'll start adding little libraries to this blog, when I come across them. They're a great way of both coming across second-hand books and passing on books you don't want to keep.

Wee Warbee Bookshop

Yesterday, we visited Warburton and dropped in on the Wee Warbee Bookshop. As the name suggests, this is a tiny shop - and it's made even smaller by the chaotic piles of books that tumble over half the room.

As you'll know if you've read my blog before, bookshop chaos prompts me to walk out rather than hunt. However, I enjoyed a brief chat with the friendly owner while my husband explored some of the piles.

Wee Warbee Bookshop sells new as well as second-hand books, with the new books on the shelves and the second-hand stock in piles. Other than that, nothing is divided into sections, and there are no prices on the books - you ask the owner and he tells you what it is.

Book lovers willing to spend a long time fossicking will like this bookshop. Note that most of the second-hand stock appeared to be relatively recent (1990s onwards), so I'm not sure that you'd find any early to mid twentieth century gems tucked away.

Warburton is located on the Yarra, and there's a beautiful walk you can do along the riverbanks, with suspension bridges to take you over to the other side. There are plenty of eateries nearby.

And finally, apologies for taking such a long time between posts. It's been a busy time and we haven't been out and about very much.

City Basement Books

It's been a while since I posted - and that's because it's been a while since I visited any second-hand bookshops. November was a busy month for our family - our son finished school (and had Year 12 exams) and we also spent some time showing off parts of Melbourne and Victoria to overseas visitors.

But I'm back on the bookshop trail now, starting with the brilliant City Basement Books in Melbourne's CBD. As you can tell from the name, City Basement Books is below street level - it's also much bigger than you expect, with an enormous amount of stock.

The usual suspects like crime, fantasy/sci fi and general fiction are well represented, and there's also a large history and travel section. But there's also a section for plays and books about the theatre, and even a shelf just for books about bushrangers. There's a cute little separate room for children's books, which at the moment has a bookcase dedicated to Christmas.

This is a place you could lose yourself in for several hours and the staff are helpful and knowledgable. It's conveniently located in Flinders Street, close to both trains and trams.

Mountains of Books

The great thing about the Mountains of Books book fair is that it gives local bookworms a chance to arrive early without setting the alarm for the crack of dawn. So, after a leisurely breakfast, I turned up not long after the doors opened.

There didn't seem to be as many stallholders as in previous years, and one stall was mostly devoted to trading cards (mostly footy and cricket). But there was a good crowd of people, which was great given the heavy rain will have put a few tourists off coming up the mountain today. Readers and collectors will find a diverse range of books at the fair, including a wide variety of Australian history books.

But the drawcard for me and many other visitors is Jilly Bookworm's stall. Her books are mainly 'girlsown' and 'boysown' hardbacks, all in great condition. Because she operates online, this is a rare chance to drool over her amazing stock - and hopefully find something you want to buy. I completed my Chalet School collection with a purchase from her stall a few years ago. Today I spotted heaps of Blytons, some Brent-Dyers and Savilles, as well as titles by Ivy L. Wallace, Antonia Forest and Dorita Fairlie Bruce.

 The book fair is open till 4 today, and again from 10 till 4 tomorrow, and it's an indoorsy thing to do on a wet weekend - so get along there if you can.  Details here.

It's Mountains of Books time again

The annual Mountains of Books book fair takes place again this weekend. Held at Ferny Creek, it always attracts great stallholders and a good crowd of booklovers. I'll certainly be spending part of my weekend there. Say hello if you see me.

Beach bookshops

Today has that air of summer about it, reminding me that we'll soon be able to swap reading by the fire for reading in the hammock or on the beach.

If you're heading to the Mornington Peninsula this summer and want to pick up some beach reading, a great place to head is Books by the Bay in Mornington. Right opposite the beach and conveniently next door to a cafe, Books by the Bay has lots of crime fiction, including contemporary trade paperbacks for $7.50 each. It also has a bookcase full of vintage crime, including 1970s Agatha Christie Fontana and Pan paperbacks for $3.50 each.

Note that they're all $3.50 regardless of condition. I found two copies of Cat Among the Pigeons, and one was in much better condition than the other, so it pays to check these shelves carefully if there's a title you particularly want.

Inside Books by the Bay

 
The bookshop is well stocked with true crime, including drug crime, corporate crime and scandals, and has great sections on history (especially World War II), fantasy and exploration. The owner is friendly and knowledgeable.

Mornington has another second-hand bookshop, Chapter House Books, in the town itself. Unfortunately it was closed when we visited. I always find this annoying, especially on a weekend, when you expect shops in tourist towns to be open. It doesn't help that many second-hand bookshops don't list opening times on their website (if they have a website at all). Anyway, a peek through the window showed that they sell contemporary romance, biographies and thrillers, as well as popular children's fiction from the 1990s. I'll have to review this bookshop another time.

Finally, Mornington has a gorgeous contemporary bookshop, Farrell's, which boasts an excellent children's section and is well worth a browse if you're in the area.