Comments | schemeness: Indulgence, for richer or poorer

schemeness

Indulgence, for richer or poorer

Jan 29, 2007 23:35

365 days ago, I would've been about $1700 richer. Perhaps it could be said that I'm also over a hundred books richer, of which 22 of them are signed by their respective authors, and many more of them first editions. All of these would be under the category of 'pleasure reading', or, at least, I didn't buy it because it was required for school or ( Read more... )

shopping, academics, books

Comments 7

(The comment has been removed)

Seeing my library? schemeness February 2 2007, 06:42:42 UTC

Heh, you've asked to open the Pandora's box on that one - Here's some snapshots of my previous year's acquisitions:

( ... )

Book recommendations schemeness February 2 2007, 07:10:33 UTC

Hrm, I'm reading a lot of stuff that has social contexts in it (or, I collect them, at least). By social context I mean stuff that mention economics and class conflict (like "Londonstani" by Gautam Malkani). So, I don't know if I might be out of depth by recommending some of these books to you. I do take great appreciation into contemporary styles of representing narration, beyond just the plot alone. I usually like my narration to be observant in an unusual way, it allows me to sink into a sympathetic frame of the character, more than just the frame of the story. So, without further ado:

1. "Hey! Nostradamus" by Douglas Coupland
This is about a few students whose lives become intermingled through a high-school shooting. It's witty, ironically funny and tragic, with its tinges of suspense. There's romance, friendship on a spectrum from true to false. It's observant, and Douglas Coupland actually might have other books that you might be interested in - though I only know of those through recommendation. Coupland always seems to make ( ... )

Book recommendations II schemeness February 2 2007, 07:29:05 UTC

Okay, the pdf file is downloadable here: http://www.4shared.com/file/9897971/f5733f8f/2007-02-01_compilation_sm.html... )

Thread 7

phalanstere January 31 2007, 00:04:10 UTC

I agree with the above comment: that's not a *huge* amount of money for 12 months' worth of book-buying, for a bibliophile.

I gave myself the excuse of throwing away money because it could be an investment of wisdom, and was therefore not vanity.

Do you really think that your 'buying' into it--in its literal and colloquial sense--is due to vanity? Couldn't it be that you really are interested in books, materially and for whatever intellectual/emotional/whatever stimulation you derive from them, whether or not you've gotten around to reading all of them?

Still, I empathise with what you say. I try not to buy from the big chains, and my tastes already run to the non-bestsellers, but...I do feel guilty about buying so many books.

schemeness February 2 2007, 07:45:02 UTC

I probably find it shocking because 170-plus volumes (most of them hardcover novel binding) takes up such a large wall over the course of one year. Perhaps I didn't tally in an additional $200 or so of cash expenditures as well ( ... )