My Never-Ending Poetry and Used-Book Adventure
January 17th, 2012 § 4 Comments
The poetry part of today’s post:
It’s snowing again, second day in a row. And I’m procrastinating again. I’m supposed to be reading like fifty pages of really technical stuff on meter for my poetry class. So far it’s been a swell day trying to figure out how to upload my poem on a learning site do-oh, why am I so thick sometimes? I also have to read some famous dead-guy poems and compare their moods and the way they sound, and give written feedback to the other poets in my class on their work.
The used book part of today’s post:
If you love used books and if you don’t know about them already, get your ass on over to Abebooks and check them out. I don’t have any affiliation them in case you’re wondering, and I do believe it’s important to support your local booksellers and thrift shops whenever you can.
BUT if you’re short on cash like I am and your local bookseller doesn’t have used titles you need/want, then you go to plan B. Say, Abebooks. Last week I found two books there among Graywolf Press’s outstanding series “The Art Of” (The Art of Subtext and The Art of Description) from the UK with free shipping for less than I could find them from booksellers in the states.
You can find many books on Abe with free shipping without the minimum total that Amazon requires. The service is excellent and you can track your purchases easily once you set up an account. I’ve found most (not all) titles I’ve sought there for (usually) the best price. You can filter your searches and do other fun stuff there without a lot of clutter. So, that’s my recommend for today.
Related articles
- Guardian books podcast: John Burnside wins TS Eliot poetry prize (guardian.co.uk)
- To Market, to Market- Sending Out Your Poetic Babies (poetic-muselings.net)
- Pen to Pad (prefacme.com)
- Librarian to the rescue: an introduction to poetry (elizabethwillse.com)
- Where Clouds Are Formed: Ephemeral Poetry, Reviewed and Excerpted (indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com)
- ArtsBeat Blog: Poet to Poet: Graywolf To Publish Bly-Transtromer Correspondence (artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com)
- Truth And Beauty: 2011′s Best American Poetry (npr.org)
- Best poetry books of 2011 (sfgate.com)
- Don’t Judge A Poem By Its Poet (brandinielsen.wordpress.com)
- I am never writing poems again. (grgrsmth.wordpress.com)
- My ‘Secret’ To How I Write My Poems (prefacme.com)
Can’t wait to check that site out. We buy must of our books now used through Goodwill and such. It’s such a great deal! And I can’t resist a good book
There are used Goodwill books on that site, too. I just love the free-shipping you get on many of the already-affordable titles. I’m with you. I’m addicted to adding good books to my shelves just so I know I can pull them down and read them whenever.
I’ll have to check out AbeBooks. My usual sources for used books are Friends of the Library sales. Different local branches have different collections based on the patrons who donate there.
Redondo Beach Main Branch has the best selection with a whole store, staffed by volunteers. Torrance Main library has a good selection, but they are the priciest, averaging about $3 per book.
The Los Angeles County libraries each have their own unique book sale setup. Some are just shelves, others, like the new Lawndale Branch has a tiny little store. The Los Angeles Main Library downtown has a cute store that sells all kinds of stuff, more like a gift shop.
I was looking all over for UnderWorld, Book 1 by Greg Cox. Nobody had it until I logged on to Dave’s Olde Bookshoppe in Redondo. They had a virtually brand new copy for only $3.
I like this serendipitous idea that supports libraries. It’s a win-win. But when you need a specific title,, well, know what I mean?