Paul Collins
Paperback | Pages: 224 pages Rating: 3.65 | 2577 Users | 391 Reviews
Particularize Books In Favor Of Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books
| Original Title: | Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books |
| Edition Language: | English |
Relation Supposing Books Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books
Paul Collins and his family abandoned the hills of San Francisco to move to the Welsh countryside—to move, in fact, to the village of Hay-on-Wye, the "Town of Books" that boasts fifteen hundred inhabitants—and forty bookstores. Taking readers into a secluded sanctuary for book lovers, and guiding us through the creation of the author's own first book, Sixpence House becomes a heartfelt and often hilarious meditation on what books mean to us.Be Specific About About Books Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books
| Title | : | Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books |
| Author | : | Paul Collins |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 224 pages |
| Published | : | April 3rd 2004 by Bloomsbury USA (first published 2003) |
| Categories | : | Writing. Books About Books. Nonfiction. Autobiography. Memoir. Travel. Biography |
Rating About Books Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books
Ratings: 3.65 From 2577 Users | 391 ReviewsJudge About Books Sixpence House: Lost in a Town of Books
A mixed bag of emotions from this one. I loved the stuff about books and Wales, especially Hay-on-Wye, but the ridicule of Americans and many of his other derogatory and judgmental remarks rubbed me the wrong way. All in all, I am glad I read it, but there were those moments where I had to grit my teeth. Some quotes that I appreciated:"If you grew up in a rural area, you have seen how farmhouses come and go, but the dent left by cellars is permanent. There is something unbreakable in that[2.8 stars] Of course, I liked this book! Or at least the idea of it! After all, it is set in the Welsh bookstore town of Hay-on-Wye where Collins, his wife, and young child have moved. Unfortunately, Collins writes with detachment and doesn't really let the reader into his life. He quotes extensively (and indulgently) from obscure 19th-century journals and magazines he has fun finding. I was disappointed at how little this book was about bookstores or literature.
Ive had a couple of unsatisfactory reads lately , although they were at least unsatisfactory for different reasons. Sixpence House I have been looking at since it came out in hardcover, but it didnt make the purchase list until available in paperback on a day when I was in the mood for retail therapy. I should have paid attention to the instinct that stopped me from buying it in the first place. Its the story of the short period when the author and his family moved to a town in Britain that is
Perhaps the two stars are because this wasn't very interesting. Perhaps they're because I'm jealous. The author was just casually browsing in the biggest used bookstore in Hay-on-Wye, fell into conversation with the owner, and just like that was offered the job of organizing the American fiction section. That would never happen to me, and it's not fair. hmmf.
When booksellers and bookmen get around to writing their book about books, I have come to find, they often fail to trust their materials books. Rather than books, bookmen (to use the old fashioned, sexist term) feel compelled to tell us about famous people theyve met, engage in literary criticism, or persist in telling us about themselves at tedious length. And Sixpence House is another example of the failure of the genre. Sixpence House is not the worst book-on-books book Ive read, but it is a
The shortest version I can possibly give you is that Sixpence House is the latest -- and last -- bust in the long line of books I read because Nancy Pearl recommended them with great enthusiasm. I reject her as a competent adviser on what to read next, and vow never again to pick up any book just on her say-so. I have spent the last two years dutifully listing books to read based on her wildly popular Book Lust series, but no more. It is time to realize that when, out of the 150 or so books I've
The writing is that of an overeducated white male who has a genuine interest in oddball historical accounts and literary outliers. I appreciate the intelligent, witty writing and the author's commentary on living abroad. He throws in many completely random little tidbits of history and literature, many of which are splendid. Some of which fall a little flat. Upon viewing his photo, I have determined that Collins is someone I would have mocked in high school for being pretentious. As adults we
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