BOND....JAMES BOND

I wonder if Ian Fleming knew he would be creating a legend in the spy genre when he wrote Casino Royale back in 1953 and introduced the world to James Bond. Let's face it, you don't even have to like 'spy' stories to know the name Bond.

His popularity really took off when Sean Connery depicted the character in the movie 'Dr. No' in 1962.

Whether you prefer a First Edition with fabulous cover art by Richard Chopping or a 'Pan' softcover edition with images of, what many folks deem the "best" Bond...Sean Connery...on the cover, the books are a great read.

Go on, lose yourself in the world of espionage and be shaken not stirred!

I wonder if Ian Fleming knew he would be creating a legend in the spy genre when he wrote Casino Royale back in 1953 and introduced the world to James Bond. Let's face it, you don't even have to like 'spy' stories to know the name Bond.

His popularity really took off when Sean Connery depicted the character in the movie 'Dr. No' in 1962.

Whether you prefer a First Edition with fabulous cover art by Richard Chopping or a 'Pan' softcover edition with images of, what many folks deem the "best" Bond...Sean Connery...on the cover, the books are a great read.

Go on, lose yourself in the world of espionage and be shaken not stirred!

LITTLE GOLDEN BOOKS

"Little Golden Books was the brainchild of Georges Duplaix, who in 1940 was head of Artists and Writers Guild Inc., a division of Western Publishing tasked with developing new children's books.

Each book would have 42 pages, 28 printed in two-color, and 14 in four-color. The books would be staple-bound. The group originally discussed a 50-cent price for the books, but Western did not want to compete with other 50-cent books already on the market. The group calculated that if the print run for each title was 50,000 copies instead of 25,000, the books could affordably be sold for 25 cents each.

The first 12 titles were printed in September 1942 and released to stores in October:[4][5]

1. Three Little Kittens, by Marie Simchow Stern
2. Bedtime Stories, illus. Gustaf Tenggren
3. Mother Goose, by Phyllis Fraser, illus. Gertrude E. Espenscheid
4. Prayers for Children, by Rachel Taft Dixon
5. The Little Red Hen, illus. Rudolf Freund
6. Nursery Songs, by Leah Gale, illus. Corinne Malvern
7. The Alphabet from A to Z, by Leah Gale, illus. Vivienne Blake and Richard Peck
8. The Poky Little Puppy, by Janette Sebring Lowrey, illus. Gustaf Tenggren
9. The Golden Book of Fairy Tales, by Winfield Scott Hoskins
10. Baby's Book of Objects
11. The Animals of Farmer Jones, by Leah Gale, illus. Richard Scarry
12. This Little Piggy and Other Counting Rhymes, by Phyllis Cerf Wagner, illus. Roberta Harris Pfafflin Petty
    

Three editions totaling 1.5 million books sold out within five months of publication in 1942. "
(Wikipedia)
And they are still in print today...truly Golden!

What are the Joys in your life?

I have a few things I adore: reading books, lapidary - cutting rocks into beautiful gemstones - and gardening.

Gardening...what does it mean to you?

For many folks it's growing your own fresh produce to eat when it is minutes old. For others it's designing the perfect outdoor setting. Maybe roses are your thing or you love the art of bonsai. Perhaps you want to teach your children or grandchildren that being outdoors, growing things and getting your hands and knees dirty, is a good thing :)

Whatever your gardening inclination there are fantastic reference books to help hone your skills..check them out on Mammy Bears Books...happy gardening! 

WONDERFUL LEGENDS AND STORIES FROM AUSTRALIAN INDIGINOUS PEOPLES

I live in Australia and have found that the Old Ways and Legends of our Indiginous People are of great interest both here and abroad.
Mammy Bears Books has an ecclectic selection of books on these subjects.
Take a look, you may find something that intrigues you

THOUGHTS ON BIOGRAPHIES...

Biographies, whether autobiographical or not, are quite fascinating books. They give one an insight to the artist/personality which can be quietly enlightening, funny or even sad; rarely are they boring.
Reading this genre of book has been popular since the 19th Century and remains popular to this day.
Often they come in the format of photo- journals, as is the case of the Mohammad Ali book shown. I particularly like this book, as it is full of previously unpublished photographs.
So, if you love Tolkien's work, or the fabulous stories by Kipling or the humour of Terry Gilliam,
find out more about the man behind the words/pictures...you may be pleasantly surprised.

Ho Everyone
Well it's been a while since I last wrote a blog.
Alas my property was flood affected by Cyclone debbie in March 2017 and all the family, including yours truly, has been "all hands on deck", trying to get our lives back in order. Still have a looong way to go, but will get there in the end.

Taking the opportunity to meet customers face to face

After many years of selling antiques and collectables at various fairs in and around Brisbane, I felt a need to meet my book customers face to face.

I know the internet is a fabulous tool and a marvellous way to reach a wide audience, however I do miss the buzz you get from attending a fair.

With this in mind I have sallied forth to attend a few local markets, mainly to hand out bookmarks and talk about my website. Luckily, I only took along a few books, as the heat has been intense and reeks havoc on your books.
 It has been very interesting; talking to people about vintage books and what people are looking for and importantly, why they still buy books. I did get a few people who informed me that 'books are a thing of the past' and 'just a waste of space', happily, there were not too many of those and my venture was very informative and interesting.

It seems that books are highly emotive, especially children's books and many people are searching for books they read as a child, or read to their children and want a copy for their Grandchildren. Young people are keen on a pristine copy of their favourite author's work. Also picture books - my personal favourite - are universally loved.

It was great to get out and meet fellow booklovers, but I have to admit it's lovely to chat to you on the phone and via email, at least a lot more comfortable for my books!

So, it would seem that books are still a perennial favourite and a long way from being "a thing of the past". Hurrah!
And if you would like to meet me face to face :) I will be attending Aladdins Collectables Fair at Windsor, Brisbane on the March 26th.

Hope to meet you there.