I am definitely someone who loves to browse in bookshops - they are really quite a dangerous place for my bank account... which has had some damage done to it recently! I spent last weekend in London, and looking back now, I realise that the weekend was actually structured around bookshop visits - I went to my favourite Daunt Books, as well as Foyles, The School of Life shop, Oxfam books and a few other independent places too. Needless to say I purchased quite a few interesting looking books, and I have decided to put them together in a collection with some other books that I bought recently too (outside of London), and share them with you here.
I will start off with the things I bought at Daunt Books. I absolutely love to read the little 'Great Ideas' books from Penguin - and have several now on my bookshelf. Each one is very short, maybe only a hundred pages long, and each one by a different great writer or thinker, writing on one specific subject. I find them really enriching and as they are so short, they are not what I would call heavy reading at all. I think the blurb that Penguin puts on the back to describe the series says it perfectly;
'Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves - and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. The have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives - and destroyed them. Now Penguin beings you the works of great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilisation and helped make us who we are.'
The books that I went for this time were The Painter of Modern Life, by Charles Baudelaire, and An Apology for Idlers, by Robert Louis Stevenson. This would have been all that I came away with from Daunt Books, but unfortunately (or fortunately) a book jumped out at me on the way to the cash register - Freya, by Anthony Quinn. As my name is Freya I couldn't NOT get it! From what I gather about the book, it is set in England in May 1945, and is a post-war romantic story about a woman named Freya - a full review is sure to be posted here soon!
Now since I was buying three books, and Freya is quite a fat one, I simply HAD to buy a Daunt Books book bag to put them in! I have owned these in the past and find them really great as they are sturdy and can hold loads of stuff so are perfect for travelling.
Next onto my two purchases from Foyles. I was really attracted to these cute little illustrated books by the Ladybird Penguin Series. Each one focuses on one type of person, is simply titled after this person and portrays their extreme characteristics in an almost poetic way. Some titles include The Husband, The Vegan, The Vlogger etc. On every page are a few words on one particular characteristic, written in a very funny way, and these are accompanied by wonderful illustrations. As I said, it was almost like reading humorous poetry, and if you know someone who fits into one of these categories of people, these books would make very sweet gifts - I bought The Hipster for my boyfriend and he thought it was hilarious!
I also picked up a very interesting looking book by Murakami called The Strange Library. I don't know a lot about this contemporary author, except that he is becoming well known for innovative and avant-garde ideas for his books. I have been recommended one of his novels called 1Q84, which is apparently his ground-breaking take on the original 1984 by George Orwell which I love. The Strange Library is a book that is designed to look like a library book, and each page is totally different - the story is evidently told through many different illustrations and powerful images, and different styles of writing on every page. I am very much looking forward to reading this.
The next two books I actually bought second hand from someone who was selling them in Hannover - good books in English, or any at all, are not easy to come by here so I just snapped them up. The first is Lunch in Paris, by Elisabeth Bard, and seems to be a romance that also has a theme of food running through it. A review on the back of the book says, 'Love, food and Paris - an irresistible combination...a witty, readable and touching book'. I feel that this could be quite a good holiday read, so I am looking forward to taking it with me on my travels.
The second one I got is called The Accidental, by Ali Smith. Again, I don't really know anything about this author, but this book has some fantastic reviews and awards so I think it promises to be good. The blurb on the back says, 'The Accidental explores the nature of truth, the role of fate and the power of storytelling.' It feels like this might also be a great one to take on holiday.
Lastly, but by no means least, is a book that I got recently from a great English bookshop in Berlin called Dussmann - I really recommend checking it out if you are there. The book that I got is from The School of Life series and is called How to Find Fulfilling Work by Roman Krznaric.
The School of Life is a brand that I have been following for a while, primarily on YouTube, where they make wonderful and creative videos about aspects of life that we don't get taught in school. From relationship issues to career issues, there is really something for everyone here and the videos are not only insightful and consoling, but are also entertaining to watch! I was thrilled to find The School of Life has a shop in London and I spent a long time browsing in there. They have a whole series of books on many different topics, and each one written by a different writer in their team, and they also sell games, stationary, candles... lots to look at!
It was actually in Berlin though that I got this book. If you saw my blog post on the Comparison of F**k Books, you might know that I have recently been very interested in the topic of work, and how to live by doing what you truly love. For me, as a musician, this is a very real and often difficult issue to handle. As I am a big supporter of The School of Life I am really excited to read their take on the work issue, and hopefully to getting some enlightenment, as they have given me in so many other areas of my life.
So that is a full collection of my recent book purchases - hopefully it should keep me going for a while.... I really hope that this could maybe give you some inspiration, if you are looking for something to read. I would always welcome more recommendations for books too!Labels: Culture
