Saturday, October 30, 2010

Bookworm...

Marko pointed out the location of the local used book store here in Upper Cryogenica, and suggested I stop in when I had a chance. "Don't believe what you see from the street," he swore, "it's like a clown car; a lot bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside."

And he was right. This bitty little town has a slammin' used-book-o-rama.

Added bonus? There was, misfiled in the SF/Fantasy section, a pristine copy of Florence King's rare and valuable historical bodice-ripper, Sex and the Saxon Churl The Barbarian Princess. I already had my own copy, but I snatched this one up by pure reflex, since you never know when you'll find one.

I figure it will make a suitably eccentric gift for my host & hostess. (After all, the Latin is correct: Remember, it's not "Desiste!", it's "Desistite!" because gang rape takes the plural.)

12 comments:

benEzra said...

"it's like a clown car; a lot bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside."

It's probably a measure of geekitude that the first analogy that came to my mind was "you know, like the Tardis."

Bubblehead Les. said...

Did it have that wonderful smell that comes from the slow decay of decades old paper sitting on the shelf waiting to be taken home? The Barnes and Noble Mall Shops with their coffee bar in the corner while NPR puts out the latest Marxist Propaganda really don't cut it for me.

Chris said...

I just finished that book. Lydda was the Forrest Gump of the late Roman Empire.

Tam said...

Wasn't she, though?

Surprisingly educational for a torrid "sweet savage" novel, I thought.

Roberta X said...

You know, I have never read that particular work. Where is your copy?

WV: "undolard." Too easy. Way too easy.

Firehand said...

Haven't read that one; I've loved her other stuff I've read.

Anonymous said...

If you find yourself in the Twin Cities, Uncle Hugo's is well worth a visit. I have a problem maintaining my David Drake library, books keep disappearing.

Steve Skubinna said...

Damn, I've never found a copy of that particular work. I recall a hilarious passage Miss King quoted in another book.

Fuzzy Curmudgeon said...

"6 used from $18.88"

Drang said...

I have nothing useful to add, except that the WV is "dishi."

phlegmfatale said...

Someone borrowed my copy and I begin to doubt I'll ever get it back. If I do, I'll never lend it again.

Dr. StrangeGun said...

totally OT, but tangential;

"it's like a clown car; a lot bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside."

last night I finally got around to 'tubing two of my autocross videos from back when I had the Daewoo. (youtube is mfree80286).

Afterwards I was poking around and found an old Motorweek video covering the introduction of the 'woos stateside in 1999. I was shocked I'd forgotten one of the most impressive things about those cars, particularly mine... they were, indeed, like clown cars.

If you're in a funny mood, the Lanos (their tiniest) part of the segment has a chuckle... the guy they're using to walk around the car showing the interior room and amenities opens the back door and sits down and almost... or maybe he does... have a look of awe on his face. He'd just sat down in the *back seat* of a wee tiny car, and not only wasn't brushing his knees on the seat in front of him, but he actually looks up and reaches for the roof. *reaches* for the roof, there looked like a good foot of airspace over his head.

Aye, clown car. I'd had 4 of us and a WEEK worth of luggage AND party supplies crammed into my Leganza once, with nobody cramped up and nobody holding anything.

Too bad some of the cars actually looked the part as well...