You know how I’m not buying books this year, except for special trips? Well – this Saturday I’m off on one of those trips, back to Astley Book Farm. It’s not been super long since I was last there, and I don’t know how quickly they replenish their stock, so who knows what I’ll come back with. But I suspect something. And I also think this might be the second and final bookshop trip of the year! I’d planned them both last year, which is why they were the caveats.
While I’m there, I hope you’re enjoying your weekends – and here’s a book, a blog post, and link to help you do just that:
1.) The link – is an ingenious idea for an article from the Guardian. They contacted five people who won ‘lifetime supplies’ of different things, from toilet roll to chicken, and learned how this affected their lives (and what ‘lifetime supply’ means in practice). Guys, one of them is books!
2.) The book – I keep going back to WhichBook (after testing out lots of book recommendation websites) and writing down book titles and not buying them – but I was particularly intrigued by Madame Verona Comes Down the Hill by Dimitri Verhulst. I can’t remember what I put in the sliders, but it did seem very up my street. Find out more! (Has anybody read it?)
3.) The blog post – Moira makes The Strange Case of Harriet Hall by Moray Dalton sound pretty appealing, but the main reason to visit Clothes in Books this week is those lovely pictures of 1930s clothes. Heaven!
I haven’t read Madame Verona but it looks intriguing (and also handily has a name in the title…)
A visit to a bookshop is always good news. I am spending a long weekend on the Assynt peninsula (Lochinver-Ullapool) and intend to seek out the famous Achins Bookshop and Coffee Shop at Inverkirkaig. Weather is pretty dreich so I think I have a good excuse for being indoors :)
I hope the Book Farm is fun Simon. And I agree, plans made before resolutions don’t count – any more than bookshops on holiday do. One must remain flexible!
The name definitely helped put it up my pile! Also great use of ‘dreich’ ;)
I read Madame Verona ten years ago and I see I summed it up thus: “a wise and lyrical modern fable on the theme of enduring love, this distinctive novel has both an earthy charm and a poignant delicacy.” I can’t remember a thing about it, though!
Ha! I am both encouraged and put off by that ;) Great description and yet not memorable!
I love the post about Moray Dalton, what a fantastic blog – thank you for the introduction! You’re right, those clothes and the descriptions. Silk dresses for tennis!!
Madame Verona was a beautiful book. I’ve read a couple of other novels by Verhulst and loved them too.
Oo, excellent!
Madame Verona looks like an interesting book, thanks for telling us about it.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Strange Case of Harriet Hall too, I missed Moira’s post, so will have a look.
Thanks for the shoutout. Finding great pictures of 30s dresses is a joyful occupation anyway, but even nicer when people appreciate it.
I live nowhere near Astley Book Farm but am planning a trip there, it sounds so fabulous.