Now, part of the purpose of my recent three weeks in America was to shed stuff – and I did, lots of it, but that will be the subject for a longer post next week once I’ve shaken off a bit more of my jetlag- and heatwave-induced sluggishness.
It seems inevitable that when I set foot inside a bookstore, even if my primary reason for being there is to sell back loads of books, I’m going to spot some that I want to buy, too. I had some terrific finds this time around, especially at two branches of Dollar Tree. If you’re not regularly hitting up the dollar stores near you for book bargains, you’re missing out! (I always check Poundland when I’m in town here, but haven’t found anything good for ages.)
Dollar Tree / 2nd & Charles stack (not pictured: four books from Dollar Tree that I’ll give as Christmas gifts)
Wonder Book stack (all bargain books, 95 cents each; one memoir on top and the rest fiction)
Dollar Tree haul #2 (the last thing I needed to do on the day before I flew back was acquire three more books, but I couldn’t resist these, and they fit in my suitcases!)
Free books acquired on this trip (three review books [the bottom two come out in October] plus a Rebecca Brown novella swiped from a Little Free Library)
Book-themed gifts from a family friend (pencil case and cushion)
My mom paid for a second suitcase on my flight back as an early birthday present. Even so, fitting everything in was quite the challenge. I was pretty impressed with what I managed to get back in my two cases, backpack and purse, including 49 books – a mixture of favorites I want to reread, signed copies, review books, recent acquisitions, and stuff I’ve been meaning to read forever; if you want to be technical, since the Baker is two books in one and the Updike is three, I actually got 52 books over – as well as a selection of mementos, gifts and useful stuff, a lot of which didn’t even make it into the photo.
Review books waiting for me when I got back (Red Clocks for Nudge; How to Build a Boat for TLS; the rest for blog reviews)
What can I say? I’m happiest when surrounded by stacks of books.
Bookish Beck = Rebecca Foster. American transplant to England. Freelance proofreader and book reviewer.
Bookish Beck 
You must have thrown out all the shoes and clothes from your luggage to be able to fit this all in and still not go over the weight limit 🙂
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Funnily enough, I did actually throw away two pairs of shoes, but that was because they were falling apart anyway and my mother made me 😉
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Wow! I’m impressed – and now wondering whether I can manage with one small suitcase on my upcoming trip to the US in October 🙂 As an academic, I’m intrigued by Publish and Perish, and Anne with an E is feeding my love of Green Gables at the moment, so it’s nice to see that somebody has written a Marilla prequel, as I love the way she’s interpreted in the Netflix series.
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I flew Air Canada and was resentful that I was made to pay for each checked bag — something that wasn’t made sufficiently clear before I bought the ticket. But it was necessary this time. If I’d managed with just a carry-on size suitcase, that would have been free, so that’s something you might want to try for on your trip. Where are you headed in the States?
I haven’t gotten to see any of Anne with an E. I’m glad it gets your approval. Maybe one of these days I can catch up. I hope the Marilla prequel doesn’t let me down.
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Yes, I’ve booked Virgin Atlantic, same deal 😦 I’m considering taking a carry on one way, then paying for a checked bag on the return (would obviously have to buy bag in US, but I need one anyway) to halve the cost but allow me to bring back books!
I’m going to Providence for a conference but then spending some time in Boston and DC. My sister is joining me in DC. I can’t wait!
Anne with an E gets mixed reactions (it’s a ‘dark’ reinterpretation of the novel) but I absolutely love it. The actress who plays Anne is incredible.
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I am green with envy at your purchases in the dollar/ thrift stores. What bargains! I presume you carried yo9othing and toothbrush in your backpack!
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Indeed, some great bargains this time around. My backpack is always absurdly heavy what with a goodly stack of books and my laptop.
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That’s some haul! Did you buy more than you sold? Very much enjoyed the Julia Glass.
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Oh no, I sold boxes and boxes of books plus some other stuff. I wish I’d kept an exact tally of the numbers, but I have some photos that give an idea.
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I’m guessing your weight restriction was ….. unrestrictive …..
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It was a standard 23 kg/case. I was about 0.5 kg over in the one case, but actually several under in the other!
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Wow! I can’t believe you got all that in two suitcases and carry-on. You must be a light packer otherwise. I really liked Glass’s The Whole World Over.
I am curious to see how you feel about Red Clocks. I really liked it, it was more thoughtful and literary than I anticipated.
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I didn’t need too much with me while I was there. I packed just over a week’s worth of clothes and washed them several times, and I left behind little presents for my niece and nephews and a birthday gift for my mom.
I’m glad to have two votes for Julia Glass. I’ve never read anything by her, but the foodie theme of the blurb won me over. (At 95 cents, why not?!)
I’m going to start Red Clocks tonight. Looking forward to it!
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Reading this was delightful. It’s always fun to learn about your shopping.
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But…you were there for most of this! 🙂
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I’m just on my way back to Scotland from 2 weeks in America, and I’m coming back with a stack of books as well!
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I’m not surprised! I’m sure you got some good bargains, and stuff you couldn’t have found in the UK.
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Ooooh. Amateur looks so good, as does The Way Of All Flesh.
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Good ol’ Canongate!
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Wow–well done! I never think to check the Dollar Tree for books. Thanks for the tip! I’ll be especially interested to hear about the Guterson, as I loved his _Snow Falling on Cedars_. Happy reading!
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I don’t know about other dollar store chains, but these two branches of Dollar Tree were very good to me.
I’ve never read any Guterson, but story collections were really calling to me that day, and a few of his stories seem to be winter-themed so will be perfect for me to pick up in December.
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Excellent haul! I’m super impressed with your suitcase packing skills too!
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I’ve had a lot of practice over the years 😉 (Usually two transatlantic flights per year.)
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I’d be interested to hear about Marilla of Green Gables. I love the Green Gables books.
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I’ll be reading it by October and will be sure to post my reactions.
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I’m the other way round to you Rebecca, I visit family in England and I always overload on books I can’t get from the library here, especially in charity shops but I always find I have to leave some behind. How lovely to find yet more books waiting for you when you got home!
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It’s quite the temptation. I’ve had book collections in both countries for about 15 years. Whether the two will ever be joined, I don’t know!
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This made me smile! I used to bring back so many books from America, ones you just can’t get here, and those lovely slightly bigger paperbacks with the matte covers. Look forward to hearing about these bit by bit – enjoy!
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Whereabouts in America did you tend to go, and why?
I expect I’ll be working my way through these for years…
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I went to Albuquerque I think three times (to see a guy I was in an LDR with), Madison, WI a couple of times to visit a good friend, and Birmingham / Atlanta the last time (didn’t buy any books in Birmingham as was there for work, but did in my free time in Atlanta). I have a weird pattern of travel in the US for a British person, I think!
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Oh definitely, those are very unusual destinations! Most Brits only go to Disney World or NYC 😉 I have only been to New Mexico the once — Santa Fe and Taos for a week — but loved it there and would be keen to go back to the Southwest. I’ve never been to Wisconsin, but my dad is from Georgia.
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[…] American Book Acquisitions by Bookish Beck – I really enjoy all of Rebecca’s posts, but I identified with this one super hard […]
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I haven’t had any amazing hauls lately so I enjoyed looking through yours. For just a moment, because I mis-read your statement about the last thing you needed to do on your last day there, I really thought it was like an item on your to-do list, that the last thing you needed to do really WAS buying three more books. See, that’s my kind of to-do list. Glad you had so much fun gathering up these bargains. Have you read any of them yet? Or even gotten them all onto shelves yet?
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Hmm, let me see. I actually read 3 of the 2nd & Charles purchases during my trip, which I was proud about. And I’ve read one of the American review books so far, Eye of the Shoal, and will read the two others by their October release dates. I will try to get through some short stories in September, so might put the Bender collection on my reading stack. And a few of the shorter books have gone onto the growing stack for Novellas in November. Everything is indeed shelved — I had some handy gaps on the bookcases.
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So want to read How to Build a Boat.
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