Well, I’m back from my nine-day jaunt to the United Kingdom, specifically southwest England and southern Wales. As a result my internal clock is a bit off and I woke up at 5:30 am EDT on the last day of a holiday weekend. Anyway, while in the UK I, of course, set foot in some bookstores. So I thought it’d be fun to do a UK book haul. I was good and restrained myself, though to be honest it wasn’t that difficult because a lot of the books I’m interested in I tend to get from Fairyloot or Illumicrate. But, nonetheless, I brought home a few “souvenirs.”
I kept seeing Amy Jeffs’s books everywhere and finally decided to help myself. Initially, I told myself to just check them out from my library. But my library doesn’t have them. Moreover, books are overall cheaper in the UK than they are in the U.S., even after converting from pounds to dollars. The only one I couldn’t find by the time we made it to Oxford was WILD. I’m low-key kicking myself for not picking it up in Tenby, but at least Blackwell’s has free shipping to the U.S.
STORYLAND by Amy Jeffs: This is Jeffs’s first of the “trilogy” and is an “illustrated mythology of Britain, set in its wildest landscapes.” Jeffs retells “…medieval tales of legend, landscape and the yearning to belong…” It overall sounds like an interesting way to better familiarize myself with British myths. I picked this one up in Tenby, Wales.
SAINTS by Amy Jeffs: This one will be published in September in the U.S. I thought this book might help me better appreciate THE STARVING SAINTS. I felt I didn’t grasp a lot of the themes because I didn’t study medieval religion. “In Saints, Amy Jeffs retells legends born of the medieval cult of saints. She draws on ‘official’ lives, vernacular romances, artworks and obscene poetry, all spanning from the fourth to the sixteenth centuries.” I picked this one up in Blackwell’s (Oxford).
RUN TO THE WESTERN SHORE by Tim Pears: I found this one while quickly browsing (due to limited time) in Blackwell’s. Once I saw it’s set in AD72 Britain I was immediately sold. I feel like there aren’t a ton of books set near the end of the Iron Age, so I can’t help myself when I randomly find one. It’s a longer novella, so I can eat this one up in a couple of days. It’s only available in the U.S. as an ebook (B&N) as far as I can tell.
THE EXPANDED EARTH by Mikey Please: This was another surprise find. The cover initially drew me in followed by the synopsis: “Humankind has been reduced to the height of a handspan – a transformation that is both potentially lethal and exasperatingly inconvenient.“ It also has pretty stenciled edges. Again, this hasn’t been picked up in the U.S., so ordering via Blackwell’s is the way to get it. I found this one in Blackwell’s manga/comics/sci-fi/fantasy-specific bookshop, which is across the street from its main location in Oxford.
LETTER TO MY TRANSGENDER DAUGHTER by Carolyn Hays: In Hay-on-Wye, Wales there are literally dozens of bookshops. It’s known as a bookshop town. One of those shops is called Gay-on-Wye, so naturally I stopped in. This is what I walked out with. “Self-aware and intimate, Letter to My Transgender Daughter asks us all to love better, not just for the sake of Hays’s child but for children everywhere enduring injustice and prejudice just as they begin to understand themselves.”
THE MODERN FAIRIES by Claire Pollard: I also found this one in Hay-on-Wye, but in Richard Booth’s Bookshop, which is the store that started it all in the town. It looks like there is a U.S. hardcover version, but I think the UK paperback cover is more appealing. From the Blackwell’s listing: “Brilliant and bawdy, romantic and provocative, The Modern Fairies is a dazzling novel inspired by real events, about the delights and dangers of storytelling in dark times.”
And that’s my UK book haul! I ordered a couple of books from Blackwell’s before my trip as well, which arrived while I was away. I knew I wanted the hardcover versions of FAITHBREAKER by Hannah Kaner and THE MORRIGAN by Kim Curran. Those take up more space in luggage (I did carryon only), so I just decided to have them delivered.
Has anyone read any of these? If so, let me know what you thought of them!
Glad that you arrived home safely and hope that you had a great time over here. Books are definitely more expensive in the US even allowing for the exchange rate. I always find myself going How Much!!! when I visit US bookstores with my daughter. I do love the Blackwells Fantasy/SF shop in Oxford. I know they do free postage here in the UK but hadn’t realised they do it to the US too. That’s a great deal considering the price of sending stuff across the Atlantic.
I read Storyland last year and enjoyed it. I hadn’t realised that it was part of a trilogy though so I will definitely see if I can order Saints from the library. The Expanded Earth is on my TBR as it just sounds so intriguing.
Yea, I’m jealous of your lower book prices! I mentioned it my instagram stories a few days ago & someone said the prices used to be about the same a decade ago, but increased during the pandemic & I guess just stayed there. £10 for a paperback is a great deal!
I was thrilled to see Blackwell’s has a separate SFF store! That was a nice surprise. There’s a life-size dalek on the top floor that made my day.
Welcome back! What could be a better souvenir than books!
Thank you! Souvenir books are the best.
What a fun book haul! I remember going crazy on a trip to London and buying as many books as I could fit in my suitcase. Especially books I already had because I wanted the UK cover🤣
There are some pretty UK covers! I almost bought The Tainted Cup because of that but stopped myself lol.
Hope you had a great trip! I love explring bookstores when I travel and it looks like you got a nice haul.
I did have a good time, thank you! 😊
I was not aware that books were much more expensive in the US. But the UK is unbeatable when it comes to deals. I didn’t go too crazy with books during my brief stay this time. Cute notebooks, DVDs and make up made it into my suitcase since I can’t get many things as easily in the rest of Europe. Money well spent indeed. Have also a look at a publisher called Chiltern…they have the most magical binding and covers for British classics.
Carolin | Solo Travel Story
You know, I was pretty impressed with the prices in the UK. Even with the conversion to US dollars it didn’t feel too expensive (except for ticket prices to some of the super popular tourist sites like Stonehenge). I haven’t heard of Chiltern before! Barnes & Noble here in the US also tends to put out lovely looking editions of classics.
The Modern Fairies sounds so good and has such a beautiful cover. I’m glad you had a great trip and made it back safely!
And it’s a shorter book, which is perfect!
I haven’t read any of them, but Storyland sounds interesting to me. I’ll have to look that up.
Storyland should be available to purchase here…the author is also an artist so her books tend to have her linograph prints interspersed throughout.
I hope you had a fantastic time in the UK 🥰 and that your internal clock doesn’t take too long to right itself now that you’re home again.
It looks like you got some great books too. Storyland sounds like the perfect momentum to remember your trip and I hope Saints helps you with The Starving Saints as well. The Expanded Earth has caught my eye before between it’s cover and premise, I’ll have to watch out for your thoughts on it. I can’t wait to read The Modern Fairies too, it sounds fascinating. I’m pretty sure I brought the ebook and need to make an effort to get to it soon.
Ooh what lovely books to come home to as well 🥰
What an interesting bunch of books you picked up. I would also take advantage of being able to buy cheaper books but boy would I struggle to restrict myself on ones that would fit in my luggage. It was a good idea for you to order some to save bag space. I hope you enjoy these.