Library Loot is co-hosted by Eva and Marg.
I want to move into the library! 😀 I think I´m not allowed though (but I haven´t seen a sign prohibiting that now that I think of it), so I´m moving all the books into my flat, bit by bit 🙂 I still have library books I need to finish but let´s just say I´m testing how they´d look in my room.
This weeks I got out six, I couldn´t carry more (I also got some DVDs and they were out of baskets):
An Expert in Murder (Nicola Upson)
I´ve been eyeing this one for a while but now my library finally acquired it so I couldn´t leave it there. I´m always on the hunt for good cozy crimes, and the thirties were an interesting time (go check out Nymeth´s 1930s mini-challenge!) so I´m hoping I´ll enjoy it. I´ve never read any Tey so I hope I won´t have a problem with her as a “fictional” character.
On the Beach (Nevil Shute)
They had the vintage edition, I´m a sucker for this series. And the description on the back sounds interesting enough, in a depressing kind of way. Has anyone read this?
A Graveyard for Lunatics (Ray Bradbury)
I´ve never gotten around to actually reading much more of Bradbury´s works than Fahrenheit 451 and one short story so I´m really looking forward to this book. Bradbury´s take on the movie industry should be fun.
Take the Cannoli (Sarah Vowell)
Emily made me curious about Vowell´s works, and I think I´m going to enjoy this one. I love a chatty but informed style.
The Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam (Lauren Liebenberg)
Another Virago book, with a very eye-catching title! Curiously enough the proof copy made it all the way to my German library. So for once I noticed a book because of the title instead of the cover. Progress!?
England, England (Julian Barnes)
This one I had to get after reading Susi´s great review. I wish I could read all those books at the same time, but I´ve noticed recently that although I usually read two books at the same time, I focus on one work and the other does not get my full attention or appreciation. I started this two-book-system so that I could switch according to my mood but perhaps I´ll go back to one book at a time. Perhaps it´s also due to some amazing books I´ve read recently (The Lace Reader could simply not grab me while I also read Songs for the Missing, which was very emotional. I really liked the former when I focused on it). What do you think? Do you prefer to focus on one book or do you switch between a couple of books?
If You Can Read This 
I’m so glad you got ‘England, England’. I really hope it won’t disappoint you. 🙂
And I know what you mean about wanting to live in the library. My dream is to have my very own one day. 😉
I’m a one-book reader. I always feel that I can only do a book justice when I focus on that one exclusively. I was never any good at reading two books at the same time.
Hope so, too 🙂 But I´m sure it´ll be at the very least interesting.
Oh yes, one´s own library! I want to have a fireplace in it 🙂
I´m starting to think your one-book-system is a better idea. But I´ll try it out with other books because I always enjoyed jumping between for example a cozy crime and a good novel, depending on my mood.
I prefer to read one at a time unless one of them needs serious concentration like some non fiction and complex novels do ……..then I’ll have something lighter for bedtime reading.
I wouldn’t mind living in the library either. 🙂
Great loot – enjoy!
Thanks 🙂 That´s a good system, although I don´t read much non-fiction.
If they allowed us to live at the library, I think they’d have a ton of renters! Up until reading your post just now I hadn’t heard of half of these books, but now I am glad I have! I especially like “The Voluptous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam”. Fabulous!
Here is my Library Loot post if you’d like to come on by!
Haha, true, guess I´d have to fight lots of other bookworms for the best spot 🙂
Glad to help spreading the word about these books. I hadn´t heard of your loot either, I like that most about LL, learning about new books 🙂
On The Beach sounds interesting…is that by the same guy who wrote A Town Like Alice?
I had to look it up, but yes it´s the same Nevil Shute 🙂 Did you enjoy A town like Alice? I´v never read anything by Shute.
I read On the Beach eons ago. Can only vaguely recall the plot now, but it was a pretty big book in its day. I haven’t read any of your other Library Loot books, but want to read England, England, because I enjoy Julian Barnes’ writing.
I am working on turning a room in our house into a library. I have the books, all I need now is for the room to be painted, new carpet put down, and shelves to be erected. Let’s just say that my husband does not share my enthusiasm, so the project is going very slowly!
I usually read several books at the same time, which is not good for blogging, because I have nothing to write about for a while, and then have a lot to say, but can’t really be bothered writing a lot of posts in a short space of time.
Glad to hear about The beach 🙂 I haven´t read any barnes so far I think so I´m happy to hear that you enjoy his style.
Oh wow, your own library! Congrats 🙂 Hehe, your poor husband, maybe he thinks he won´t see you once you´ve got your own library 😉
Maybe it´ll help if you do some kind of mini reviews. I sometimes can´t be bothered to write a lot either but I still want to let people know that a book is worth reading. It´s great though that you can read many books at the same time!
My library has a beautiful and comfortable reading area, with sofas, coffee table etc.. toilet (shower) and pantry are available. I’ll go speak to my librarian if you want, but chances are they won’t agree to my proposal. So I suggest if you could come use all the beautiful amenities (oh including Free Internet!), you could find a comfortable spot on the street to sleep at night (since it’s spring going to summer now), and you will be rent-free and reads lots of books!!! 🙂
I love to have a library like the one Tahir Shah (a writer) has, take a peek:
http://bibliojunkie.wordpress.com/2009/05/26/collecting-cheap-books-at-home/
isn’t it beautiful with Moroccan traditional wood carving?
Haven’t heard any of the books you loot, but I’m eager to hear of what you have to say about them. Enjoy your loot!
Oh wow, that´s a beautiful library, especially the carving! I think I want mine to have dark shelves a really comfy armchair and a fireplace 🙂
Also, I´m jealous of your second-hand stores, we have them too, but they rarely have books in English.
My library is not nearly as comfy as yours, there are toilets (for which you have to pay!) but only a few chairs and tables, mostly for studying and no café. I think I should move into yours 😀
I´ll definitely post reviews if I ever get to those books ;)I need to read faster!
You are most welcome. My local library is just a stone throw away from where I live (By the way I live in the city of Reading, UK, Reading = Reading Books, get it? ;)) It is small but lots of natural lights, I think you can hunt it down, the Battle Library? But Central library is a functional 70’s building, but the sofa is just situated next to a flowing stream / river/ the Thames (whatever you call it!)
And the good thing is you don’t have to pay for toilets!!
Hehe did you move there because of the name or did you become a bookworm to live up to the town? ;D Your library is really pretty! mine´s boring but the statues of two people in front of it with very long legs are weirdly interesting:
I think the toilet thing here is because of homeless people and drug addicts, the central station is across from the library. Still annoying though.
I’ve wanted to read England, England ever since Susi blogged about it as well! I hope you enjoy it.
I recognize the problem with wanting to read everything at once, and like you I do tend to read 2 books at a time, but focus on one book mostly.
And I’d really like living in a library. I’m jealous of Violet having the speca to turn a room into one! I can’t wait to be grown up and have my own house 😉
Glad to hear you focus on one book, too. I think I used to be better at “juggling” books but maybe I´m getting old 😉
Oh yes, to have your own library would be amazing. But I kind of can´t imagine ever having the money to have an extra room what with my master. My roommate lets me stack books in the living room though 😀
I’m interested to hear what you think of Vowell. I read The Wordy Shipmates and liked it, but found it was a little too hardcore political for me to love it.
Interesting, was it her views or just the amount of political info? I hope I´ll like Take the Cannoli.
I even agreed with her views, it just seemed to be very ‘this is right and that is wrong’. I still really enjoyed the book, I just wished that she hadn’t written it so partisan.
Ah okay, I´ll let you know of does it in this one as well. Glad you still liked it though 🙂
Interesting books you got there. I really should read a Bradbury book one day
Fahrenheit 451 is a must read and a good place to start, I think 🙂
I understand the urge to move into the library for the books but I’m afraid aesthetically my library is not appealing, take me back to my unviersity library with marble and dome then I’ll happily move in!
I’m afraid I can’t be much help on your actual loot of books, I haven’t read any of them. I must admit though I am also a complete sucker for the vintage book editions 🙂
They are really pretty, aren´t they? 🙂 I want the complete vintage set!
Hehe, my library is just a boring modern building as well. The marble ones are beautiful but rather cold to live in! ;D
I loved the title ‘The Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam’ 🙂 Looking forward to reading your review of it. On Ray Bradbury, my most favourite book by Bradbury is ‘Dandelion Wine’ and which is one of the most beautiful evocations of summer that I have ever read. If you haven’t read it, I would heartily recommend it.
I have tried reading books, one at a time and many at a time. One at a time seems to work better for me.
I love that title as well, I need to make sure to take tea and eat pb&j when I read it 🙂
I´ve read a great review on Dandelion Wine by Carmen (Books and Stuff) and definitely want to read that one as well. Hope my library´s got it.
I always liked to switch according to my mood but it´s getting difficult when I read one nice book and another one I completely love at the same time. Probably not fair to the former as well 🙂 Maybe I´ll try out your system.
If you get around to reading ‘Dandelion Wine’ I would love to hear your thoughts on it.
I have been reading bits and pieces of books here and there these past couple of months. I am liking dipping into different books for a while, but it is frustrating to not finish a single one. Hoping to get back to the one-book-at-a-time way soon 🙂
It´s on my list, I think I´ll read it in summer, should make for a more intense reading 🙂
Ah yes, I know about the dipping into different books. I´ve tried reading three book this week but nothing seemed to fit until I started The Unit. This almost never happens to me but I think it might be because I´ve got too much choice with all the library books here at the moment.
I hope you find one that you can stick with. Try to decide which genre you´re in the mood for and how serious the book should be, that might narrow it down. Or revisit an old favorite, that usually helps! 🙂
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on the Nicola Upson series!
Still contemplating the book, which is surprising for a crime book. I´m sure I´ll have time to post the review this weekend. The depiction of the 30s was very interesting (though this comes from someone who hasn´t read a lot about this time), so I think it´d be a good book for you 🙂
The Voluptuous Delights of Peanut Butter and Jam! I love that title!
A Graveyard for Lunatics sounds fantastic -simply on the title alone and I’m sold! What a great title! Looking forward to reading your review on it. I haven’t read Bradbury’s other works either except 451.