In my previous post I mentioned I was buried under an avalanche of books and that I was going to a book sale at the local library that raises funds for said library. Before I show you what I bought, I tried to find a name for the disease of those of us who-it might be said-are compulsive book buyers-but I found none specific to book buyers, but Google does no always find what I am looking for. The closest word is oniomania. It is a compulsive buying disorder that causes problems with everyday life. Book Buyers exempt.

The word ‘bookaholic’ does not really apply. It is a person who loves books, but when you continue to buy and your reading can’t keep pace with the purchasing then there must be a better, more accurate term. But I am not compulsive. It certainly does not interfere with daily life as daily life continues no matter what I do.

I may be in denial, having bought 21 books plus one Justice League of America comic book on Saturday, days after receiving two hardbacks from Amazon, “Paper,” a book on the history of paper, and “You May Also Like” a book on taste in the age of endless choices. It tells us why we choose what we do. (At least I have heard it will, as it remains unread for the moment).

Saturday sale 

Paperbacks:

Callander Square-Anne Perry

The Rose Rent-Ellis Peters

The Snake, the Crocodile, and the Dog-Elizabeth Peters

Live to Tell-Lisa Gardner

Nightmare in Pink-John McDonald

five mysteries by Dana Stabenow-set in Alaska.

Mr.. Murder-Dean Koontz

House of Sand and Fog-Andrus Dubus

Foucault’s Pendulum-Umberto Eco

The Island of the Day Before-Eco

Grendel-John Gardner

What Killed Jane Austen and other medical mysteries 

Hardbacks:

John Dickson Carr Treasury-two novels

Light Thickens-Ngaio Marsh

Book of Lies-Brad Meltzer

Faithless-Karen Slaughter

The World’s Last Mysteries-Readers Digest 

One Justice League of America comic 

21 books + one comic. Cost $6, tip included at Friends of the Library Sale

 

Sale continued Monday:

The New Yorker Album of cartoons 1925-195o (oversized

The New Yorker Album of cartoons 1955-1965 (oversized)

Hardbacks:

Bag of Bones-Stephen King

Devices and Desires-P.D. James

The Red House Mystery-A.A. Milne (Yes the Winnie the Pooh guy)

This Side of Paradise-F Scott Fitzgerald

Tender is the Night-F Scott Fitzgerald

The Dark-Carrie Brown ( a professor from my alma mater)

Paperback:

Something from the Nightside-Simon R. Green

The Natural-Bernard Malamud

Freedom From Fear-Pulitzer Prize winner from David Kennedy. The American people in the depression and war 1929-1945

And finally a book all book lovers MUST have on their shelf. It is “The Man Who Loved Books Too Much,” by Allison Hoover Bartlett. It is about a man who loves books and steals a fortune in rare books, not to sell, but for himself and the detective on his trail. I hope he is never caught. On the back of the book in the description it says this. . . “deep into the rich world of fanatical book lust. . .” Book lust, that must be the disease, an erotic, lust of books.

Cost-$6 (tip included)