Monday, 8 October 2012

Quotation Station

"Life is nothing without enthusiasms."

Richard Pankhurst

A good philosophy to live by !

Just as a point of interest, the originator of this quote was Richard Marsden Panhurst (1834 - 1898), not his grandson Richard Keir Pethick Pankhurst OBE (born 1927), though both are interesting characters in their own right.





Saturday, 6 October 2012

Hoonaloon News October 2012




As usual, here are a few recent additions to our fine selection of worthy tomes ;




Mrs Robert Henrey (Madeleine Henrey, nee Madeleine Gal) was born on the northern outskirts of Paris, the daughter of a miner and his seamstress wife.  Her father died whilst she was in her teens and her mother decided to relocate to England.

Although Madeleine did write some fiction, she is best remembered for her largely autobiographical accounts of life in a small English town. Some of her early work was published under the name of her husband, Robert Henrey, and some under her own name, but she preferred to write as Mrs Robert Henrey as an acknowledgement of her husband`s help with editing etc.

She kept hens as a hobby and lived to be 97.

A copy of her She Who Pays can be found at 5387 in our listings.




Gladys Mitchell, who also wrote as Stephen Hockaby and Malcolm Torrie, was a `Golden Age` detective story writer best remembered for her Mrs Bradley stories.  A prolific wielder of pens, her mysteries were many and you can find out more at www.gladysmitchell.com .

Her interests included Freud and witchcraft and she was a member of The Detection Club, The Crime Writers Association, The British Olympic Association, Middlesex Education Association, PEN and the Society of Authors. 




John Sawkins wrote Jangara ; A Novel of the Sudan after spending some years teaching in that country.
 
I understand that his novel addresses issues of colonialism and racism in a fair, undogmatic way. Unfortunately for the author, he is not the only John Sawkins to write books and it is difficult to be clear where one John Sawkins ends and the other begins.

Despite my almost total ignorance of his life and work, I decided to include his book in this month`s newsletter for no other reason than the fact that I like the cover.

I have posted details of other items from our stock at http://bookshelvesandbrownale.blogspot.com and http://thesextonblakeblog.blogspot.com  ,

or you can view the full 4,000 or so items we have at present by clicking here ; http://www.abebooks.co.uk/Hoonaloon-Books-Derbyshire/53404521/sf .

As ever, if you have any questions, just get in touch.

Respect the Book !

Nick & Ann-Marie
Hoonaloon Books







   











Sunday, 2 September 2012

Hoonaloon News September 2012






We`ll start this month`s newsletter with Berlie Doherty`s `A Beautiful Place for a Murder`. Doherty, a denizen of Derbyshire, is a prolific writer who embraces a variety of genres and formats. She is best known for her work for younger readers but does in fact write for adults as well. Encounter bookish Berlie at number 5292 in our listings, or visit her website at www.berliedoherty.com .



 
 
At 5279 we have Harold H Mather`s Clock and Watch Makers of Nottinghamshire. Horological Harold, a descendant of one of Bonnie Prince Charlie`s soldiers,  was something of a `gifted amateur` where antique timepieces were concerned and repaired/restored a number of those held in Nottinghamshire museums.
 
 
 
Over the pond and a world away, at 5247 we have Charles E Cobb Jr`s On the Road to Freedom ; A  Guided Tour of the Civil Rights Trail.
 
Cobb is well qualified to write on the Civil Rights movement, having been a field officer for the Student Nonviolent Co-Ordinating Committee and a prime mover in the establishment of `Freedom Schools`.
 
 
That`s all for this month, but remember, at any given time we have around 4,000 titles available online stock, with new titles added five times a week.
 
As explained in my previous posting, many of the items we are currently offering for sale have  been reduced in price by 25% (offer ends 15 Sept 2012).
 
In most cases we only have one copy of each book, so buy now to avoid disappointment.
 
 
 
 
 
 
  








Friday, 31 August 2012

News From Hoonaloon 31 August 2012



Our next monthly newsletter will be along shortly. In the meantime I just want to mention that a substantial portion of our stock is available now at dramatically discounted prices.

During our sale in July, we discounted all of the stock we were offering  for sale on ABE by 25%.

When the sale ended, we entered into an arrangement with ABE whereby those items that had been discounted as part of the sale continued to be offered at the discounted price, but new items added to our stock after the sale ended went online at the full price.

It`s no secret that retailers of all sorts are having to offer generous discounts to keep sales constant in these difficult economic times.

We are no exception to that, and for that reason, we are extending the arrangement we have with ABE until 15 Sept 2012 - all the stock that was discounted as part of the sale in July continues to be discounted, but items added after the sale ended are online at their full price.

Remember in most cases we only have one copy of each book  and once they`re gone they are in fact  gone, so grab yourself a bargain while stocks last. 

And don`t forget - Respect the Book !






Tuesday, 7 August 2012

Hoonaloon News August 2012




BIG NEWS ON BARGAIN BOOKS !

Our latest sale has now officially ended. However, as it was going well, we`ve come to an arrangement with ABE whereby all the books we still have that were reduced in the sale are still reduced, but all the new titles we add are going on at full price.

This will help us keep a constantly changing stock and also cater to current trends as it`s clear that book buyers are becoming more and more price-conscious. Understandable, in these troubled times.

We`ve not yet decided how long to continue with this arrangement, so buy now to avoid disappointment.

A FEW RECENT ADDITIONS TO OUR STOCK



We continue to stock a comprehensive crime section. It may well be that you`ve caught one of Alexander McGregor`s appearances on TV documentaries and if so you may well be tempted to savour one of his literary offerings. The Law Killers is his most successful book to date and our copy can be found at 5191 in our listings. Browse our catalogue if you wish to discover the full range of murder and mayhem that we have to offer.



Old Sibthorpian Daniel Taylor began his journalistic career with the Newark and South Notts Advertiser before moving on to more esteemed periodicals. His passion for Nottingham Forest continues unabated and finds an outlet in this worthy tome, which you will find at 5187 in our listings.




This attractive volume is an antiquarian pocket-sized hardback edition of R L Stevenson`s Catriona and can be found at 5234 in our listings. Books of this sort were the ancestors of today`s paperback and were aimed at working people who wanted something stylish, affordable and durable they could slip into their pocket and take to work. Many have survived to the present day and they continue to be cheap, practical ways of  acquiring the literature of the past. More fun than a Kindle ! 

That`s all for now, bargain hunters. If you wish to keep up to date with our other activities and obssessions, fell free to visit http://bookshelvesandbrownale.blogspot.com and/or http://thesextonblakeblog.blogspot.com .

All the Best,

Nick and Ann-Marie Osmond
Hoonaloon Books













Saturday, 7 July 2012

Hoonaloon News July 2012



Nefarious doings in the Netherlands ! At 5104 in our listings, Janwillem Van de Wetering`s Hard Rain (number 11 in the author`s Amsterdam Cops series), finds detectives Grijpstra and de Gier investigating a series of killings and having to deal with the obstructiveness of corrupt officials along the way. "A fast-moving story that combines action, detection, satire, Zen philosophy and pure fun" - Fantastic Fiction.




Leicestrian literature looms large in our listings lately. Copies of J D Bennett`s `John Flower 1793 - 1961` can be found at 5092 and 5116 in our current catalogue, while the same author`s `Leicestershire Architects 1700 - 1850` is at 5093. For good measure, copies of Albert Robinson`s `The Whitwick and New Swannington Comforts Fund` can be found at 5105 and 5115, whilst Dennis Baker`s `Whitwick Schools at War` is at 5106.



Created  by writer Helen Wells (aka Helen Weinstock, Francine Lewis), Cherry Ames was a nurse with a sideline in crime-fighting and mystery-solving. You wonder where she found the time ! The Cherry Ames series was long-running (1943 - 1968), though not all the books were written by Wells - some were the work of Julie Tatham.

The theme of crimes solved  by an assertive young career woman fits nicely with modern sensibilities, which is probably one of the reasons a number of the Cherry Ames adventures are currently in print. A member of Mystery Writers of America, Ms Wells wrote many mystery stories aimed at a readership of teenage girls, usually involving an ambitious female lead character who solves cases that have baffled others. 

The two Ames mysteries in our stock at present are ;

5113 Julie Tatham - Cherry Ames, Mountaineer Nurse - World Distributors (UK) - 1963

5114 Helen Wells - Cherry Ames, Senior Nurse - World Distributors (UK) - 1963

AND FINALLY...

Perhaps I could take this opportunity to remind you that the current Hoonalooon Books Sale is currently underway and that all the books we currently have on sale via ABE have been reduced in price by 25%.

The sale will end on 27 July 2012


And remember our slogan - Respect the Book !









Monday, 2 July 2012

Hoonaloon Books Sale July 2012

Our latest sale is already underway and runs from 1 July 2012 -  27 July 2012.

All the items we have on sale via ABE will be discounted by 25%.

The discount has already been deducted from our listings, so all you have to do is choose your books and place your order.

Our usual monthly newsletter will be appearing soon - I had hoped to have it online already but, not for the first time, events have overtaken me.

Any questions, just get in touch.


Nick & Ann-Marie
Hoonaloon Books

P.S. While you await the dubious delights of the next newsletter, here are a few of the more recent additions to our stock. These three are not yet showing up online, but should appear within the next 24 hours.