Tuesday 23 April 2013

A Miscellany of bookish bits and pieces

I've been thinking of selling my Rene Cloke collection and have finally decided the time has come. There are around 300 books plus ceramics, original artwork and other bits and bobs in the collection. Some of the books are early 1st editions others are more recent publications by Award. I will be listing everything on eBay over the coming months, but if you are interested in the collection as a whole or would like further information, please contact me by via the email button in the right-hand column. Alternatively, leave a comment with an email address, and I will get back to you.  




I’ve been interviewed by Three Hoodies! OK, not strictly true, but I have been interviewed by Roger Lawrence; the author of Three Hoodies Save the World and Kongomato. Roger came up with some excellent questions. See my replies at Three Hoodies Save The World here

Kongomato -  After three right wing thugs break into a museum to steal a diamond, they inadvertently release a ten million-year-old monster which proceeds to create havoc in London. As if the Prime Minster doesn't have enough to cope with, he cannot even tell the general public about this threat. With only days before "friendly powers" take the matter into their own hands, only one man can resolve the crisis: a drunken, jobless scientist forcibly assisted by someone he hates and cannot trust.

If you enjoy a good horror story, you should read Kongomato. Roger creates a terror filled yet thoroughly entertaining read. I loved it and can’t wait for the next instalment.



Update July 2016: March House books closed on my retirement in 2015, but I do still blog here at March of Time Books and always appreciate your visit. 

40 comments:

  1. Dear Barbara,
    What a great collection you have! I hope you get a good buyer for it who can value this collection. :)
    All the Best for your new site! I know it will be as beautiful as the old site or even BETTER!
    I will surely be visiting it because I love your posts. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Aunt Mary! My blog will still be at this address its my book selling website that will change.

      Delete
  2. Always a hard decision to make, I'm sure your collection will find a wonderful new home.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello, Petty it was difficult to make the decision and there are some pieces I really don’t want to part with but space is at a premium, and something has to go! Half the joy of building a collection is in finding things to add to it. That has got much harder as the collection has grown. Now I just need to think about what to collect next!

      Delete
  3. My dear Barbara! Good morning! Change is always a good thing, and I applaud you for all the hard work it takes to making those changes. I did the same thing last year and I am still making big changes! Therefore, this BLOG will no longer be? Anita

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Anita, it’s always hard to make changes, but I’m sure it will be worth it in the end. My blog is hosted by Blogger so it will stay the same. Thanks for your comment x

      Delete
  4. Hello Barbara - I'm looking forward to seeing the new website. I'm sure it will be just as good as everything else you do. Meanwhile I love the blog - and the March Hare, of course!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Marilyn thanks for your sweet comment.

      Delete
  5. Barbara I am sure you will soon find a buyer for your wonderful collection. Sometimes it's good to clear out old things, you know it makes room for new things! Hahah! That's my problem!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Can't wait to see the new site Barbara, it must be nerve-racking as well as exciting ;-) It's going to be great I can tell. As an aside, will we be able to keep our blog buttons to MarchHouseBooks? I'd love to keep a button on my site for your new site - it's the prettiest thing on my blog by far!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jill, it is a bit scary! Lots of time and effort went into the old site so starting again has been difficult, but it’s looking good now.
      The blog and blog button should stay exactly the same. Thank you for saying such nice things! Barbara

      Delete
  7. I'm glad your blog will still be here. All the best with the new site. I enjoyed this post as I always do when I visit! Those beautiful images. I hope you find a buyer who loves the books.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Lindsay, I sort of do and sort of don’t want to find a buyer! It will be nice to start a new collection, but it’s always sad to part with pretty things. I will be over for a visit with you as soon as I’ve left this reply.

      Delete
  8. ~ Change is good, Barbara. ~ and I WISH you well with this...Popping over to have a nosey! ~ Thanks for lovely words always...Maria x

    ReplyDelete
  9. ~ Its wonderful Barbara! ~ Very easy to use...LOVE the Far Away Tree Adventures...Will pop on my wish list *** With kindest thoughts...Maria x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Maria thanks so much for taking a look and for saying such nice things! Barbara x

      Delete
  10. Such a great collection you have, Barbara, I'm sure it will find a lovely new home.
    And good luck with your new website :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Hilde, I really appreciate your comment.

      Delete
  11. Those are beautiful! And now I need to go read your interview!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Joleene. Roger asked some great questions, some of them certainly made me think!

      Delete
  12. I know I don't stop by enough to comment on your posts, but I do follow along. I'm making a better effort this time because I nominated you for A Very Inspiring Blogger Award. My post including the nice things I said about you is here: http://brandysbustlings.blogspot.ca/2013/04/another-award-very-inspiring-blogger.html
    Whether or not you choose to participate, know that your blog inspires me. I have a collection of Berenstain Bear books that I think I am going to blog about thanks to you!
    Brandy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well thank you Brandy, that is really sweet of you. I will pass the award along as soon as I can.
      I'm looking forward to reading your Berenstain Bear post.

      Delete
  13. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Such a big decision to sell your collection! It would be so difficult for me... I love that Alice's illustrations by Rene Cloke and luckily found a copy some weeks ago.
    I have just read your interview and found it very interesting, congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Silvina, It was difficult but once every corner of every room is full it’s time to let go (and start again!) I’m glad you enjoyed the interview, thanks for reading it. Barbara

      Delete
  15. Change is good but hard to let go.

    Rene Coke's work is brilliant, I have mainly award books and I'm sure your lovely collection will find a good home.

    Congratulations on your award Barbara and I'm popping over to read your interview:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Michelle I’ve started to list the books for sale, but so far all my favourite ones are still on the shelf. Maybe as the shelves empty it will be easier, or perhaps I will be forced to keep one or two! It’s taking me ages to list them because I keep gazing at the gorgeous illustrations or reading a little bit of the text. Oh dear, am I doing the right thing?
      Hope you enjoy the interview.

      Delete
  16. Is Kongomato Japanese like Godzilla? Sorry for the silly question.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Eve, not silly at all but you might need to visit http://threehoodies.blogspot.co.uk/ for a definitive answer. My understanding from reading the book is that the creature (a ten million-year-old reptile) was found inside a rock that came from Africa, so I don’t think there is a Japanese connection. But I could be wrong.

      Delete
  17. The new website sounds like a lot of work- but I am sure it is well worth it!

    Kongomato sounds interesting. I look forward to checking out the interview! How exciting. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Stephanie, Kongomato was one of my favourite reads of last year. I’m eagerly awaiting the second and third books in the series. The interview was a lot of fun, hope you enjoy it. Thanks for calling in.

      Delete
  18. Barbara, moving away from a place is never always easy, but I'm happy for you in a way that the changes can only mean your vintage book business is growing. :) Have a good move, and I can't wait to see more of your postcards! (Kongomato sounds interesting. I'll pop by The Three Hoodies in a while to check it out.)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Claudine, I’m just putting a couple of postcard posts together so there will be more soon. Roger asked some interesting questions, not sure my answers were all that, but I hope you enjoy them. Thank you for your good wishes.

      Delete
  19. Hi Barbara - your new site looks great - I've just been having a look around. The only suggestion I'd make is that you open all your links in a new tab - somehow I managed to close down the link to your blog when I was finished looking at a page and then I had to come the whole way back round from blogger again. Your Rene Cloke collection looks wonderful - I always wish I had a little fortune tucked away when I see something like that and didn't have to watch the pennies! I've also just noticed your 'grab my button' for the first time. I saw Diane's from Crave Cute on your sidebar and then noticed yours. I must add you both to my blog when I have a moment and maybe think of setting one up of my own - is it tricky to do? I loved your interview with the 3 Hoodies - thought that was such a great idea! And thanks for the 'rambling' comment on my blog last time - you did cheer me up because I was feeling very tired and blue!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Sharon, that’s an excellent idea I will try to remember to do it from now on. I lost all the links between the blog and the website a few weeks ago (all to do with the set-up of the new site). I had to go back over the last two years and re link everything, wish I had thought of it then! I found a tutorial online explaining how to make a button but can’t for the life of me think where it was. It might have been a Google thing, or maybe YouTube. If I remember I will let you know or maybe Diane will be able to tell you, she seems to be very good at all that kind of thing. I hope you do make one as I would like to add it to the others, I might even start a page for blog buttons if I get enough. Roger asked some great questions, not so sure the answers were any good, but I enjoyed the experience. I’m sorry you were feeling a bit down, if the rambling helped I will have to do more of it (not difficult I assure you!)

      Delete
  20. New website looks fabulous! Very modern and easy to follow.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for that Darlene; I appreciate you taking a look.

      Delete
  21. I think I like the Mad Hatter tea party illustration in this book better than any other I've seen. Love how 'March House Books' is printed on your new website.
    I read the interview and loved it. I read Kongomato and loved it. He is very talented.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi Donna, that's my favourite too! Glad you enjoyed the interview. Roger is an amazing writer. I was flattered when he asked to interview me. Thanks for calling in.

    ReplyDelete

I really appreciate your comment. Thank you!
Barbara xx