I’m having my chill-out 1-week annual leave at home. On one of those leisure stroll into the Central Library last Tuesday, I took my time to look out for a good loot. My personal tips on increasing your chances on stumbling across great find: You have to be there on a weekday, you should take a look at the “Just Returned” shelf, and then the non-fiction shelf. That was how I found the books that I have ‘always’ wanted to read. 😉
So here’s my find:
From top to bottom:
- Quran: A biography by Bruce Lawrence – recommended by Maphead who reads great non-fiction books.
- After the Banquet by Yukio Mishima. Hmm I think I had it on my pile awhile back, I have to return it and borrow it again, I intend to read this with The Sailor who fell from Grace to do a back-to-back comparison for books by the same author in a Japanese literature mini-challenge.
- Weight by Jeanette Winterson – another to add on the list of Canongate Myth series.
- Sky Burial by Xinran, uncover the strange ritual of Tibetan saying goodbyes to their dead by leaving the dead bodies as a feast of the vultures and eagles.
- China: the Balance Sheet, another one recommended by Maphead.
- Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf – no idea it is so slim, right this one goes into my basket too.
- Identity by Milan Kundera – Love The Unbearable Lightness of Being so much and I hope this one doesn’t disappoints.
- Budapest by Chico Buraque – read about the journey of a Brazilian journalist to Budapest. Nothing particular except I’m going to Budapest, Vienna and Slovakia this fall term break and I’m excited about the trip and would be nice to read about Budapest.
- Life & Times of Michael K by J.M. Coetzee – I love his other booker prize winning novel Disgrace, hope this one doesn’t disappoints as it won the same prize too.
- Yalo by Elias Khoury – introduced by the Arabic Lit Summer reading Challenge it is about how differently the world is seen through the eyes of a militia member of the Lebanese Civil war.
This is my idea of a great loot because it contains some of great titles that I wanted to read, from non-fiction and fiction alike, and they are all so slim, no clunky chunksters here!
Anyway I better get down to reading before the summer ends, have a great bank holiday to everyone in the UK and a lovely holiday everyone!
JoV's Book Pyramid 
What an interesting selection! Yalo sounds particularly fascinating, though I’m also rather intrigued by Budapest. It’s such a strange but interesting city. I always love to read about the places I visit before I go and then to keep reading after to compare my impressions against the authors’!
Posted by Claire (The Captive Reader) | August 26, 2010, 10:04 pmHi Claire, nice having you here. I do usually read about places that I am about to visit on rough guides and lonely planet, that way I get to appreciate a little bit more about the history of the place I’m about to visit and make my trip worthwhile. After this reading this book, I’m still going to read my rough guides and Lonely planet guides! I have so much travel reading to do… 😀
Posted by JoV | August 26, 2010, 11:44 pmI can’t wait to read your review of Budapest. I have a friend who is visiting that city as I type this. I hope you end up liking Bruce Lawrence’s book on the Quran !
By the way, thanks for the kind words !
Posted by maphead | August 27, 2010, 1:09 amHey Maphead, not a problem at all! you do read great stuff! 🙂
Posted by JoV | August 27, 2010, 9:07 pmYou’ve got a great mix bag there and your right how great to manage to get so many slim books. I’ve been reading some really chunky books recently! I’ve just lifted my library ban so should hopefully be getting my own loot tomorrow 🙂
Posted by jessicabookworm | August 27, 2010, 7:01 am@Jessica, I can never hold on to my library ban for more than 2 weeks. 😦
Posted by JoV | August 27, 2010, 9:05 pmWhat a co-incidence, even I look at the returned shelf all the time to see if something catches my eye. There are some books I will always find on the shelf (popular ones) and some serious readers do leave behind some great finds for me.
Posted by anaamica | August 30, 2010, 11:53 am@Heeelllooooo Anaamica!! Where have you been? Thank God you are still around! Hope you haven’t given up reading!! 😉
Posted by JoV | August 30, 2010, 8:52 pm