I can’t make up my mind, I know this isn’t an unusual thing for me, but something I really need to decide because my books must get off the floor and back onto the shelves where they belong.
You see, it is possible, although highly unlikely that lawson may have a lil point… just a small one. FINE! If I admit it, I am a book junkie.
Maybe I do want to own every romance ever written! Maybe I would like to rescue those old unloved romances, being mocked and scorned at library sales, tosses around in ubs like so much offal and treated like sub par books when they are prolly hands down better than most of the other books in their sights.
Some of these lovely books I have really even read. Some of them are my favorites and some are just hard to find. Yes part of my illness is the moment I find out something is ‘hard to find’ I want it. Not because I can sell it or whatever, no I just then feel the need to OWN it.
Ok, so I am not well, sue me. Like you are any better.
At the same time there are books with ick covers and when you open them up the author grabs you with their words and you love her story, her characters and wish to hell Elizabeth Lowell would write another western or medieval. So what is a girl to do? When you have a old cover and then one of the reprints?
Do you keep them both? The Only Series has been reissued so many times those old books aren’t ‘worth’ anything. They were the ‘first’ books I had by her I fell in love with but I didn’t buy them when they first hit the shelves. The new reissues are just so damn lovely, sez I. So now I have about seven Elizabeth Lowell books I own twice. This of course doesn’t really count the old Harlequin covers I have come across for a few of them now in the case of Fire and Rain (love that book, hell love the series) the book is the same. One just has a bad old Desire cover – as does Granite Man and Outlaw. Or just one of the many reissues that ended up with a ugly cover, what do you do? Then what about the OLD Desires the ones she got the rights back on (mad respect to Lowell for however she got that to happen… rights back… from HARLEQUIN – dude you do think it involved a horse head?) and expanded into full stories for Avon.
I mean same book but not really, so that is ok to own both right? Right? Hello…
And then there are the HARD to FIND books. Like Windflower by Laura London, even I am not greedy enough to keep two copies of a HTF book (I lied I kept). No you can’t have it, this is already set to find a new home with Tara Marie, as soon as I can decide which one. Do I want to keep the old cover or the newer nicer one? {side note I found a copy of The Gypsy Heiress (Candlelight Regency #644) yesterday for a dollar AND it turned out to be sign by the authors… tres cool no?}.
What are you people with older books that have been hard to find forever doing if the book gets reissued. Do you hold your copy of Ladies’ Man tight (which for god sake I hope you didn’t pay hundreds of dollars for) and sqquee that other people get to read it now. Do you rush out and buy the new one so you can have both? Do you toss your copy into the UBS box and buy a pretty new one? Are you a bad good book junkie and don’t give a flip?
I am very easy to please. Give me a book in great condition and with an acceptable to beautiful cover and I am happy. I don’t care if it’s the first, fifth or umpteenth edition as long as the afore mentioned criterias apply 🙂 The more beautiful the cover the easier I am convinced to keep the book – assuming I enjoyed the story and consider it worthy of my keepershelf (which does happen perhaps 10times/year). I have very few harlequin keepers and except of a few old ones from Napier. I can’t bring myself to put books with such horrible covers on my shelf *shudder*. Btw. I love Sharon and Tom Curtis and everything they wrote, I should pimp them more often!
Sybil,
When I hopefully go to Heaven and I hop to god there is one, I want to read every single romance ever read. I am so lucky to have some paperbacks that I will never let go such as Lightning That Lingers by the Curtis’ and a few Sandra Canfield, who sadly is no longer with us. I also have A Rose at Midnight by Stuart that no one can find unless they pay mucho dollars.
I love for used books sales, talk about finds there!
For me it’s all about sentimental value. If I find a HTF book I’ve wanted for ages, I feel like I’m walking on air. And if said HTF book is excellent, that’s even better. The book is old, it has been read, the pages are yellowed, page 186 might be slightly torned at the top, it has its own unique smell which tells me something of the last home it belonged to. All this adds to the reading experience. It’s something you simply can’t have with a new book. In 10, 20 ot 30 years , sure, but that’s a long time to wait. I never ever get rid of an old book. If it sucked donkey balls I’ll put it in a box with other duds but I won’t take it to the UBS or donate it. Like you, I feel I simply have to own it.
That said, if the book re-issued is a favorite of mine, I will probably buy a new copy ‘just in case’. I always feel better when I know I have two copies of a great book I can’t do without.
I’ve never seen the newer cover for Windflower–I think I like the older better. 😉 Books are the only thing I’m really selfish about. Lol. I’m a bit of a hoarder. Mine, mine!! I should learn to share.
I only buy reissues if the newer cover is way nicer and my old one is falling apart. Otherwise, I’d rather buy something new-to-me.
I had to laugh as some of this is me to a T. If it is an author I love I will buy every darn cover that gets printed. And if for some reason I crease the spine (or God forbid of someone who BORROWS it creases the spine) I buy another pristine copy for me “Kepper” Shelf.
I freely admit I am addicted to books. I have them EVERYWHERE and my addiction is the sole reason that nobody will ever help me move again. 🙂
I am a total book junkie…I still have the original paperback of Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers…in addition I have a couple later releases of the same book.
I have two copies of The Windflower…both hardcover. Neither are first edition. Also Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas.
And finally I have three copies of Savage Thunder by Johanna Lindsey.
I too have the original Only series by Elizabeth Lowell too also Blaze by Susan Johnson.