A Purely Personal Pilgrimage

God willing, on the 1^st of September 2014, I shall be taking off on a journey around the British Isles.

I plan to explore the quirky, eccentric parts and people of Britain, to have a chance to appreciate its beauties and most importantly, (the theme that links my quest and pilgrimage) to seek out the last remaining second-hand and Antiquarian bookshops.

My plan is to make a base in a particular area, where I will visit friends and family but for the most part, house-sit or stay in vacant holiday homes.

Whilst there, I will support myself by giving talks, selling my books and Vintage collectibles at fairs and of course- by doing some life modelling!

It will be a rather hand-to-mouth existence but it should allow me the time to discover hidden gems of little book shops, to photograph them, interview their owners and their loyal customers and then to write about them-before they disappear.

 I plan to explore The Lake District and the North in the Autumn, Wales in the Winter, Devon and Cornwall in the Spring and as Summer comes, work my way along the South coast 

and then up the Eastern side of England and as far into Scotland as time and funds allow. As yet, I haven't included Ireland but everything remains flexible.

I don’t intend this to be an exhaustive listing of all bookshops in each area, more a gentle time of serendipitous discovery.

England still has strong communities, individualistic people and hidden beauties; I’m very excited about the chance to discover some of them and to visit places that have touched my imagination.

It is an exciting yet daunting idea. Imagine taking a year off to do exactly as I please! 

Yet I have been planning something similar for many years. As a single parent, my life has been particularly wrapped around my children's needs and their care. With Emily now at university, when Sam disappears in the summer of 2014 to stay with his father in Canada and spend a gap year exploring there, I shall have a huge gap in my life. I hate to think that worry about me would ever stop my children spreading their wings, so if I am off on my own adventures, they can fly away with ease.

My favourite picture ' Lucifer and God'

My wonderful partner David is fully supportive and understanding. As I am travelling within this country we have plans to spend many a weekend and holiday together during my time away.

I call this 'A Gap Year' to myself but in fact it will probably turn out to be a series seasonal adventures with me returning to see loved ones in between. Both my Mother and Emily already plan to join me for  little jaunts.

On a practical note, I'm hoping to have weekday lodgers within my home to help cover costs and keep the house happy. I have saved up a little money ( not very much) and if I can find free or very reasonable accommodation I should be able to survive.  Already, people have invited me to visit and those meetings will be part of the joy of this adventure.

 I will need to find places to stay where I can be alone, however, especially if I'm writing. Part of my reason for taking this time off is to allow myself the luxury to be by myself where I only have to think of my needs and wishes. A little selfish perhaps but oh, so necessary sometimes!

I would so love to spend some weeks alone in a cottage at wintertime, by a wild, wild sea...

Friends have asked me how I came up with this mad idea... I can recall two separate occasions which fixed my previously vague and happy dreams into an actual plan.

The first was one of those dazzlingly golden, breezy, sunshiny days you often get in mid September.

 I had just left David's house on Monday morning and decided to drive down to the sea at Sidmouth before returning home. As I bounced along in my little car, map on the seat beside me, and as I entered the town, bought a pasty and sat with it on the shingle looking out to sea, I realised that this was the sort of exploring I truly enjoyed. Not for me the extreme treks to far away places but the gentle exploration of my beloved country.

This idea of an English wandering gained a theme and quest last year. Whilst on a retreat in Wales I came upon a house where an inspired woman had turned her front room into a tea room and bookshop. It was such a find and I started wondering how many other tiny bookshops there were, hidden away, throughout the British Isles.

The idea seeded, it grew and grew and now (excepting any unforeseen disaster) I am giving up my local jobs next summer and plunging into the adventure of a life time. Not a very wild or exciting one some might say but perfectly suited to this eccentric English Book-lady.

 I'm excited at the thought of writing about my plans and preparations and then of the pilgrimage itself. I have yet to decide whether to create a new blog for the adventure or to keep to this one. 

I think I'll just wait and see what happens...

Happy Birthday 'Pretty Nostalgic' Magazine

As soon as I came home yesterday, I rushed to the doormat and there was my copy of  'Pretty Nostalgic' Magazine-

Reading this unique magazine is always a treat but this time I had an extra reason to be excited...

They had asked me to write an article about the quirky joys of secondhand books and it has been published in this issue.

I'm in print!

If you are intrigued, here is the link. My article apart, it's a truly unique and high quality magazine, with unusual articles, beautiful photographs and a great attitude!

http://prettynostalgic.co.uk/inside-issue/buy-issue-7-now/

In my article I talk about the unusual things found within old books and the particularly personal pleasure they can bring.

My favourite is:

"a tiny wood engraving of hens. It fell out of a 15th-century bible and was probably used as a page

marker. It is dated 1610. It’s incredible that this little slip of paper has survived over 400 years. "

I have a habit of saving favourite photographs and cards in my poetry books. It is such a joy to open a well-loved book and out slips a happy memory

Emily and Sam showing an early love for Jaffa cakes

Emily was 4 years old when she gave me this little drawing. On the back it says ' to Mummy becos you love flaws'

I save love notes and tickets, even shopping lists for a special party. The past is brought back so vividly when I discover and read them again.

A beautiful hand-painted card form my artist friend Nicky

I was recently re-reading and old paperback of ' Women in Love' by D.H. Lawrence. It was filled with my marks and scruffy hand-written notes from 1982 when I was studying at university. It may be a bad habit to write in books but I'm so glad I did!

Of course some handwriting in books is perfectly allowable. This is a recipe from a cookery book, written in 1885.

In my article I write-

 

"I love finding hidden things within the pages.  It is as if, for a moment, I am

connected to the person who owned this book before me."

I hope my little mementoes connect me to the person who owns and reads my books after me.

I will finish now with a final wish to all the lovely people who are involved with ' Pretty Nostalgic' magazine. Long may you brighten my days!

Kiss the Book on Facebook!

This is just a quick little post, as I've been setting up a page on facebook. Juggling photographs seems to take forever!
I hope that this link below works and if you are a user of facebook, please come along and have a look.

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Kiss-the-Book/205051982868914?fref=ts


I plan to post about new stock, taking photographs and describing the exciting things I find.
Have a happy Tuesday everybody!

The scent of old books- lost forever?

In true New Year fashion I plan to leap into a whole new project. A Vintage Quarter has opened up in an old shopping area near to me and I am hoping to rent some space there. I'm not sure if they will consider me suitable, or if I can really afford it but it's an exciting prospect!

Many people have said to me how sad it is that Salisbury, like most towns, has lost its secondhand bookshops. I feel passionately about this and have to be careful not to start ranting at dinner parties.
Everybody loves the idea of an old bookshop.They say how much they enjoy the thrill of the chase- the piles of books, the wonderful colourful chaos and of course, that enticing, evocative smell of the old books...
" I could go in and wander around for hours"

But did they buy?
It is the same story with  little village corner shops. People like the thought of having them but in the end it is the awful phrase 'put your money where your mouth is' that sums up the situation.

Now I know that many people who are actually reading this are actually the very sort of person who did buy books and who do support the little independent shops in their home towns. So I am preaching to the converted but maybe you will talk about this and if I and other booksellers take that plunge and open up our doors again, book lovers will be there to make sure we survive.

I know that a recession is not the best time to be starting such a venture but surely it just needs a little shift of perception, a small alteration of habit that could make all the difference?

Perhaps instead of a bunch of flowers a pretty book might lift your spirits?

Maybe, if my local friends were noble and had one less tempting cappuccino when out shopping, they could treat themselves to a good read instead?

The Internet is the supreme place for research but I have many quirky, informative books which must surely suit somebodies enquiring mind?

I do tend to give books as presents and the nice thing about a secondhand or Antiquarian book is that it's unique- or nearly so.

 So if somebody has a hobby-

or a favourite character from history

Tea in a pretty vintage cup and a biography of Marie Antoinette, what could be more appealing?

There is a book for every occasion.

You can return to your childhood-

Re-read the classics you have just watched on film

You can think of it as a mad diversion

Or a sound investment.

So all you wonderful, passionate, literate book-lovers out there, heed this cry from the heart-

And buy books, books and more books and with just a little luck and a lot of support we might once again see our villages, towns and cities full of the shops we love and care about.

Hmmmm, I think I've said quite enough for one day. Just be glad you weren't stuck next to me at a dinner party....

(Apologies for using photos from previous posts, it wouldn't let me down-load any new ones)

Saturday at the Book Fair- an abundance of books

I grumble about doing book fairs. The deciding, sorting, boxing up and worst of all, the lifting are faced with apprehension.  My long-suffering friends and family ask (with gritted teeth) why I still do them.
In truth, I enjoy choosing the books and setting up my stall only when I have enough time and strength but I do so love spending a day talking books with customers and other booksellers, that it's worthwhile in the end.
Saturday's Book Fair is held regularly in Winchester

  http://www.winchesterbookfair.com// 

and is one of the few small remaining places where true booksellers can sell their stock. We are a dying breed but luckily seem to be tenacious and long lived.
We arrive early and apart from a few friendly greetings, all concentrate on unloading our books and setting up. As soon as this is achieved, everyone wanders off to have a closer look at each others stock. Most booksellers have their particular specialities and so there is usually a lot of buying and selling between us even before the doors open! This is the perfect time and place to find that elusive addition to my own library...

There is a great satisfaction in standing back and looking at all my books laid out for all to see and enjoy-

I brought a good selection of children's books-

Some leatherbound sets-

A selection of sheet music-

 Some unusual bits and  pieces to add a little variety-

And something to make me laugh-

I love looking at other bookseller's specialities-

But a bookshelf full of mixed stock is still to me the most uplifting sight. What treasures might I find there?

At 10.00am the fair opened and we all sat ready, peering out from behind out towers of books-

It was a lively, busy day with many book lovers coming along to browse and to buy-

Back to my books and I will just show you a few of my particular favourites-

A beautiful plate from The  Cyclopaedia of Costume





Three books on British birds

and a lovely illustrated edition of Tennyson's poems

In all it was a good day, with interesting people, kindred spirits and I sold quite a lot of books!

The next Book Fair is on Saturday March 3rd... and I promise not to grumble about it this time!