Great find at the senior's thrift store

delliott101

Okay, so I'm lamenting the fact that I only have a handful of Bond novels left... want to have a set again...

I went to a used book store last week and they want $1.99 each for them. Barnes and Noble has the new editions for $14.99 each ?!?!?!? FOR PAPERBACKS!!!!

So my wife suggested we go to the senior citizen thrift shop here in town to find stuff to sell on the bay and make some $$$ as we are broke.

What do I find?

CR, DAF, GF, FYEO, TB, TSWLM and TMWTGG... all for 25 cents a piece!

Life is good... now I have some reading material for my trip back to New Jersey next week!

DAWUSS

so lucky

Smoke_13

That's a great find! I read the novels in bits and pieces when I was about 13ish -my friends dad had the set. Some 25 years later I really wanted to read the series again, plus collect them in hard cover.

I read Casino Royale -bought it in paper back. (LeChiffre seems twice as ominous in the novel IMHO) however, when I went to buy Live and Let Die -couldnt find it anywhere.

Only the second book and I already cant find it, -not even in paperback. I may have to actually break down and buy something on line.

I was able to get my hands on Live and Let Die, but I cant keep it. At least I can read it and then continue on with the series.

delliott101

You know, that's something I find with the Bond novels... they are usually out of print.

I can get them easily on ebay, but part of the fun is collecting and buying them when you find them.

I'm going to look for used book stores in Jersey, as well as thrift stores...

Loeffelholz

Good for you, delliott101...my brother has found a place online where he's getting them for a song...right now, he's reading OHMSS for the first time, and I'm sooooo enjoying the chance to enjoy it anew, vicariously...

My congratulations on a great 'score' B-)

Fleming Rules... :007)

Golrush007

delliott101 wrote:

I can get them easily on ebay, but part of the fun is collecting and buying them when you find them.

I absolutely agree with you there. I got all the Fleming novels that way: car boot sales, markets etc. It was a most rewarding process, and when you found one of the novels you really felt good! I have since also bought a complete set of one of the more recent reprints as some of the ones I got earlier were quite tatty, and as much as I love tatty old books, a nice clean set does look much better in the bookshelf!

Scribe74

Golrush007 wrote:

delliott101 wrote:

I can get them easily on ebay, but part of the fun is collecting and buying them when you find them.

I absolutely agree with you there. I got all the Fleming novels that way: car boot sales, markets etc. It was a most rewarding process, and when you found one of the novels you really felt good! I have since also bought a complete set of one of the more recent reprints as some of the ones I got earlier were quite tatty, and as much as I love tatty old books, a nice clean set does look much better in the bookshelf!

Whenever I go to a used bookstore, the first thing I do is check for any old Fleming editions. It's like going on a treasure hunt. I collect both paperback and hardcover copies.

I have seven of the original Jonathan Cape hardcover (first print) editions. I've become something of an addict . . .!

Barbel

Scribe74 wrote:

Whenever I go to a used bookstore, the first thing I do is check for any old Fleming editions. It's like going on a treasure hunt. I collect both paperback and hardcover copies.

It's like reading my diary! I do exactly the same thing, only I also collect Gardner, Benson, etc. The Gardner hardbacks are fairly easy to find, although many of them are book club editions. Benson hardbacks are much rarer in used bookshops, though, at least in my area.

Scribe74

Barbel wrote:

Scribe74 wrote:

Whenever I go to a used bookstore, the first thing I do is check for any old Fleming editions. It's like going on a treasure hunt. I collect both paperback and hardcover copies.

It's like reading my diary! I do exactly the same thing, only I also collect Gardner, Benson, etc. The Gardner hardbacks are fairly easy to find, although many of them are book club editions. Benson hardbacks are much rarer in used bookshops, though, at least in my area.

In the UK, the Gardner hardcovers were originally published with artwork very similar to the original Fleming titles. I believe they were done by the same artist, Richard Chopping.

I have all the American paperback printings of Gardner's books, as well as a few hardcopies. But I'd like to get my hands on the UK editions.

I haven't bothered collecting Benson . . . I was never able to get into his books. What I'd like to find is a first-printing of COLONEL SUN . . . the best of the continuation novels!

Ice Station 0

I bought all of mine off Ebay. Many I picked up for a couple bucks. I refuse to pay $16.95+ for the new softcover additions even though the cover art is very cool.

Apocrypha23

Have to echo previous responders. I frequent used bookstores and always check for Fleming titles. It's turned into a compulsion though. After I got the full-set of Bond novels I started buying other editions (of which I now have several). Also found copies of Thrilling Cities and The Diamond Smugglers.
The Best find, by-far, was a hard-bound copy of Kingsly Amis's James Bond Dossier. It was part of a home interiors display at Pottery Barn. When I inquired they were nice enough to just give it to me.