Favourite Edition?

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by Bethberry

You didn't happen to remember the going rate, did you? Not that I would buy it for Squatter. A bidding war, though ....

Davem remembers the price as being about £1500, which is not that bad considering how few copies there are available!

Originally Posted by Lalaith

The edition I love the most is my first edition copy of the Silmarillion, bought with my very own saved-up pocket money from a little bookshop which is now, I believe, a Subway sandwich joint....

Are you from the UK Lalaith? I can't believe how difficult it is to find little bookshops these days; where I live seemingly every little shop is being turned into take-aways, restaurants or bars. Those large, well-known chain bookshops just aren't the same (and seem to be being eaten up by coffee shops themselves...). I tend to find most of my unusual books from charity shops or ebay these days, though the 'remainder' bookshops can sometimes turn up a treasure, as I found the very rare Tolkien Family Album in one of these.

[Aiwendil]

Are you from the UK Lalaith? I can't believe how difficult it is to find little bookshops these days

In the U.S. too. The little holes in the wall where long ago I found UT and the first three volumes of HoMe have all disappeared. I must confess, though, that I think there is something quite wonderful about a truly huge bookstore.

[Formendacil]

Originally Posted by Aiwendil

In the U.S. too. The little holes in the wall where long ago I found UT and the first three volumes of HoMe have all disappeared. I must confess, though, that I think there is something quite wonderful about a truly huge bookstore.

In this day and age of the internet and cellphone (and, indeed, the Barrow-Downs), and enormous, department-store type of place devoted entirely to books and reading is an awesome wonder to behold- and to think about.

It's such a pity though, that it comes at the cost of a cozy little bookstore.

To add my contribution to the "editions" topic, I have no hardcover copies of the LotR. Not of any of them. It's all paperback.

Which isn't such a bad thing, although I DO hope to get myself a good, fancy, hardback set one of these years. But that's after I finish accumulating all the History of Middle-Earth for myself, as well as all the other miscellaneous Tolkien-related books of other natures.

In the meantime, I am an inveterate collector of used paperbacks. I pretty much can't pass up a copy of any Tolkien book if I come upon it in a thrift store or used bookstore. Fortunately, such visits are rare and such sightings rarer, because although I already have three sets (none complete) and several extra copies of the Fellowship, I would be hardpressed to not buy another copy, if I came on one I did not already have.

I'm much like Child in that respect...

[Hilde Bracegirdle]

You know, living in the countryside, it is about 40 minutes ride to any bookstore. So I tend to depend on the Internet for books and music, (though I do browse titles in thrift stores and library sales locally.). I have felt guilty about this, for even though it is often easier to find what I am looking for on the computer, I felt as though I was helping kill little bookstores left and right. Just the other day though, I ordered a used CD that I found through Amazon, and imagine my surprise when I found it came from a familiar used bookstore in Baltimore called Secondstory Books! It gives me hope that Internet sales might help the little guys out there too.

Still, I do miss thumbing through actual copies of things, and unfortunately I have yet to come across anything Tolkien at a ‘Book Sale’.

[Lalaith]

Yes, Lalwende, I'm in the UK, London to be precise. I spent a lot of my childhood sitting on the floor of that bookshop that is now a Subway, reading all sorts of stuff off the shelves, it was one of the great things about little bookshops like that, you were allowed to do that...
We do still have an independent bookshop within cycling distance and I try to use it as much as I can. But the local Waterstones is of course often all too handy, not to mention Amazon.

But Hilde's point about the internet and second-hand bookshops is an excellent one. I frequently use abebooks, and I like to telephone the bookshops that come up with the volumes I want to make my purchase, rather than just order them impersonally through the net.

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by Formendacil

I pretty much can't pass up a copy of any Tolkien book if I come upon it in a thrift store or used bookstore. Fortunately, such visits are rare and such sightings rarer, because although I already have three sets (none complete) and several extra copies of the Fellowship, I would be hardpressed to not buy another copy, if I came on one I did not already have.

Another rescuer of forlorn books, eh? I do this myself to be honest. I can feel comforted in the knowledge that all books which enter my house get a good home.

Originally Posted by Lalaith

I spent a lot of my childhood sitting on the floor of that bookshop that is now a Subway, reading all sorts of stuff off the shelves, it was one of the great things about little bookshops like that, you were allowed to do that...

They don't seem to encourage that sort of thing in the big chain bookshops, which is one of the reasons I don't find browsing in them all that pleasurable. Yes, you can be almost certain of getting what you want, but there is not that surprise factor that you would get in the small bookshop of suddenly discovering something you had not thought about before. That factor is one of the reasons I especially love second hand bookshops. We used to have one here that was full of chairs to sit in, they even had a cat who would sit on your knee.

Up in Scotland, the small (tiny) town of Wigtown is worth a visit as it is devoted to bookshops, and my father thinks Hay-on-Wye is another good place for books, though I haven't been there yet. York used to be good but only has one good second hand bookshop now sadly. Southport up the coast from Liverpool has lots of wonderful second hand bookshops, including the best one I've ever been in, and Whitby has two lovely little bookshops. I do judge towns on the quality of their bookshops, as I couldn't see myself living in a bookless town, even if it is a chain store. There's something about the tactile quality of browsing books that I would miss.

[Mithalwen]

I am going to have to say something in favour of chains The independent bookstore in the town where I tend to shop was absolute rubbish. It is so much better in every respect now it is Ottakars and they had most of HoME in stock as standard. The others and "The Road goes ever on" they obtained with great efficiency.

[Hilde Bracegirdle]

Originally Posted by Lalaith

I frequently use abebooks, and I like to telephone the bookshops that come up with the volumes I want to make my purchase, rather than just order them impersonally through the net.

Now, that is a wonderful idea, Lalaith!

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

They don't seem to encourage that sort of thing in the big chain bookshops, which is one of the reasons I don't find browsing in them all that pleasurable.

Ah, things are different in the US! The truly big chains have very comfortable chairs and coffee shop so you can read to your heart's delight. You don't even have to leave for lunch. My daughter even read half of one of the Lemony Snickett books aloud to me at Borders one snowy afternoon. It is a lovely memory. But I think it is a good choice. I know that I have yet to leave a Border's without making a purchase, even if it is small one.

The only thing that might be an improvement would be to have a used book section, treasure trove filled with books you wouldn't normally see in stores with only new ones, (and perhaps the addition of a few cats).

Sorry Mithalwen, I did not see your post. Good to see that not all big stores are bad there as well!

[Mister Underhill]

The best thing about a good used-book shop is the smell -- that musty, musky, ancient spice smell of aging books. I imagine the archives at Minas Tirith smell much the way my favorite used bookstore down on San Fernando smells.

There's also nothing like unearthing a buried treasure from the stacks, some old volume by a favorite author that's long since out of print. I have several old collections of Robert E. Howard stories and a handful of Max Brand westerns, each purchased for two dollars or less a throw.