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How many book cases can you buy for £18,000?

Here in the UK the major news this week has been about MPs fraudulently claiming things on their expenses, which the UK taxpayer has to foot the bill for. The latest scandal is that Labour MP Tam Dalyell is said to have claimed £18,000 for book cases. The thing I was most shocked about is that you can actually spend that amount of money on a book case, and so I decided to look into how what you can buy for that amount of money.

Cost: £27.99

Number you could buy with £18,000: 642

Cost: £49.99

Number you could buy with £18,000: 360

b-pop-up-kartell-8005
Cost: £329

Number you could buy with £18,000: 54

Cost: £659.99

Number you could buy with £18,000: 27

 

flexa
Cost: £1529

Number you could buy with £18,000: 11

b-pop-up-driade-frame-pCost: £8163

Number you could buy for £18,000: 2

I don’t know what he spent his £18,000 on. All I can say is that I wish I had that amount of money to spend on book shelves, and a home big enough to put them in.

Do you like any of these book cases?

What is your idea of the perfect book case?

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Booking Through Thursday – Book Gluttony!

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Mariel suggested this week’s question
Book Gluttony! Are your eyes bigger than your book belly? Do you have a habit of buying up books far quicker than you could possibly read them? Have you had to curb your book buying habits until you can catch up with yourself? Or are you a controlled buyer, only purchasing books when you have run out of things to read?

I think the best way of demonstrating my book buying problem is to show you my TBR pile:

tbr3

It is quite hard to see, but all the books are double stacked, so there are probably nearly 400 books there…..plus…

tbr5

…..over 100 here, stacked very precariously!

Apart from the 5000+ books I have for book business, I also have another couple of hundred books in the garage,  which although aren’t technically in my TBR pile often migrate into it!

On the positive side I am very disciplined when buying new books, especially hardbacks. If I splash out on a newly released book then I am very good at reading it straight away, and then selling it on as quickly as possible, so I don’t lose much (any) money on it. For example, I have already sold my copied of The Thing Around Your Neck, Little Stranger and Burnt Shadows, which I read earlier in the month.

My TBR pile consists almost entirely of books bought second hand, whenever I happen to come across a book I’d like to read cheaply. It is expanding much faster than I can ever read them, normally at a rate of 5 – 10 books a week.

Does your TBR pile look anything like mine?

How quickly is your TBR pile expanding?

Do you see any books in my TBR pile that need to be read immediately?

Or any that need to be culled?

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Book Awards III Challenge

Click to sign up

I loved the Book Awards Challenge so much, that I had no hesitation in signing up for this one. I think it is very appropriate to sign up on the day I finished the Book Awards Challenge II.

The Book Awards III Challenge is slightly different to the previous award challenges. First of all, it will only last for 5 months, from July 1 through December 1, 2009. That is because Book Awards 4 will be from February 1 through December 1, 2010. 

The challenge is to read: 5 books from 5 different awards

This itself is too easy for me, so I’m going to try to make it more difficult by seeking out some of the lesser known awards, and banning myself from including Bookers, Pulitzers or Orange Prize winners in this challenge.

My plans so far are:

1. The Long Goodbye – Raymond Chandler (Edgar, 1955)

2. The Secret Scripture – Sebastian Barry (Costa, 2009)

3. The Graveyard Book – Neil Gaiman (Newberry, 2009)

4. Sabbath’s Theatre – Philip Roth (National Book Award, 1995)

5. TBD – any suggestions?

 

Can you recommend any award winning books from the more obscure prizes?

Or forgotten winners from the more well known ones?

Wish me luck!

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Book Awards Reading Challenge – Complete!

I’ve completed the Book Awards Reading Challenge, and also managed to complete my self imposed challenge of ensuring each book was a winner of a different award.

BINGO!

TEN DIFFERENT BOOKS FROM TEN DIFFERENT AWARDS!

..

  • The Blind Assassin – Margaret Atwood  stars3
    (Winner of Booker Prize, 2000) completed 29th October 2008
  • Out Stealing Horses – Per Petterson stars3 
    (Winner of IMPAC Dublin Prize, 2007) completed 20th November 2008
  • The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay – Micheal Chabon stars4
    (Winner of Pulitzer Prize, 2001) completed 27th November 2008 
  • The Fingersmith – Sarah Waters stars51
    (Winner of the CWA Ellis Peters Dagger for Historical Crime Fiction) completed 14th December 2008 
  • We Need to Talk About Kevin – Lionel Shriver
    (Winner of Orange Prize, 2005) completed 14th January 2009 
  • Blindness – Jose Saramago stars51
    (Nobel Prize, 1998) completed 5th March 2009
  • The Secret River – Kate Grenville
    (Winner of Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, 2006) completed 19th April 2009
  • Theory of War – John Brady stars4
    (Winner of Costa/Whitbread Award, 1993) completed 11th May 2009
  • Mudbound – Hillary Jordan 
    (Alex Award, 2009) completed 8th January 2009
  • The Giver – Lois Lowry
    (Newberry Medal, 1994) completed April 11th 2009 

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    I love reading prize winning books, so this was my favourite challenge. The books were of a very high standard, and I can recommend all of them (even though Out Stealing Horses and The Blind Assassin weren’t my favourites I think I’m in the minority, so wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to others). I rarely give five stars to books, so  please note that Fingersmith and Blindness have both been given this special accolade, and ensure that you get round to reading them at some point, if you haven’t already.

    .

     

    Have you managed to complete this challenge?

    Which is your favourite challenge?

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    Theory of War – Joan Brady

    Winner of the Whitbread Prize 1993

    The Theory of War is story of a white child sold into slavery in post-Civil War America. At just four-years-old Jonathan is sold to Alvah Stokes, who treats him terribly. Alvah’s son George taunts Jonathan, and it is hatred for him that lasts throughout his lifetime, and leads to Jonathan tracking him down to seek revenge.

    The Theory of War is based on the true story of the author’s grandfather. I actually found the author’s note at the end of the book one of the most interesting sections. In it she explains how four of her grandfather’s seven children (including her father) committed suicide. She blames their deaths on the emotional scarring of slavery, and wrote the book in an attempt to understand what he went through. It is this emotional attachment to the text that makes this such a good book.

    The book switches between Jonathan’s difficult live as a slave, and the story of his grandaughter learning about what he went through for the first time. At just over 200 pages this isn’t very long, but there are a lot of strong messages contained in it; not only about the importance of compassion for everyone, but also discussions on disability and war.

    A war between two people is not all that different from a war between two countries.

    I loved the ending – I didn’t see it coming at all, and thought it gave a fitting finish to this book.

    I have to admit that the book lost some of it’s momentum in the middle section. Jonathan’s life as an adult didn’t have as much appeal to me, and I thought the book could have benefited from concentrating on his experiences as a slave. This is only a minor complaint though, and think this is a deserving winner of the Whitbread prize.

    Recommended.

    stars4

     

    NB. There is a lot of strong language in this book, which may offend some people.

    I haven’t actively followed the Costa/Whitbread prize, although I have read and enjoyed a few, most notably The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman.

    Do you enjoy reading Costa/Whitbread books?

    If so, which has been your favourite?

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    Look what the postman has just delivered!!!

    I’m so excited!! I have just received Sarah Water’s new book, The Little Stranger! I was going to say how impressed I was that it made it all the way from America in just 6 days, but the even though I ordered it on Amazon.com it was posted second class from the UK.

    Despite the fact I am half way through reading two books at the moment, all other reading is going to stop until I have read all of Sarah Water’s new book!

    I’ve noticed that a few other people are reading it at the moment – I look forward to comparing notes with you!