Saturday, April 14, 2012

Day 20: A hobby of yours

One of my hobbies is going to thrift stores and second hand book shops (WARNING: Do NOT let me go into a second hand book shop with a full wallet! My money will be ALL gone!).
Today my dad and I hit most of the thrift stores in our area and I came home with less than I usually do... Just two books.

The first is, "The Doings of Raffles Haw" by Arthur Conan Doyle.


You may know Doyle for writing the Sherlock Holmes mysteries. In reality, Doyle actually strongly disliked the character of Sherlock Holmes. He thought that the Holmes mysteries were not his best work. He even killed Holmes off so he could write "better" stuff. He didn't want to be known for Sherlock Holmes.... But he is! Funny how that worked out.
I had meant to look up some of Doyle's other work to see why he thought it was superior to Sherlock Holmes so when I saw this book at the thrift store, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to buy it! Especially since in the back of the book there are two Sherlock Holmes mysteries as well ('The Red Headed League' and 'The Boscombe Valley Mystery')! The inside flap of the book says, "Copyright 1891, 1919 A. Conan Doyle" so I'm guessing this book was printed closer to the second date.
Whenever it was printed, it's an old book. And I love old books. It's also in really good condition, which is good!
I looked up the synopsis of the "Raffles Haw" story and from what I leaned from wikipedia, it's a book about a millionaire who tries to give his wealth away but becomes disillusioned and the story ends in tragedy.... It will be an interesting read, that's for sure!

The second book I bought is "Kidnapped" by Robert Louis Stevenson.


Like "The Doings of Raffles Haw", I haven't read "Kidnapped" yet. But it's been on my mental reading list for awhile and I keep telling myself I'll get it from the library.... As soon as I read it, I'll probably want to buy it, so I thought, 'Why not buy it today?' Plus, this is also an old book. Not as old as "Raffles Haw" but still old. 1949.
There are also full color pictures in "Kidnapped" which always add to the reading experience! =D

So yes, my hobby is going to second hand shops and buying old books and other things (such as American Girl Dolls - when I can find them).

Now I will post this and get back to watching the Tintin movie. =)
Have a good weekend!

2 comments:

  1. Going to thrift stores can be fun, but not when your mom spends a super long time looking at EVERYTHING in the store! (Ok, maybe that is a bit of an exageration.)Sometimes you can find really cool stuff there though. Wow, that is an old book! That's interesting about Arthur Conan Doyle. My brother is reading Kidnapped right now.
    See you Tuesday!
    Love, ShiningHisLight97

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  2. Full colour pictures? Yes, that sounds sweet! xD They don't do that in novels anymore...Its a shame.

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