Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Yesterday's purchases

Fela Kuti, Confusion/Gentleman If you'd told me even three years ago that I'd be listening to, let alone buying, world music, I'd have called you crazy. And MPAA take note: this would not have happened without illegal downloading.

Francoise Hardy, The Vogue Years All the ye-ye you'll ever need.

Chris Ware, Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth Everyone loves it, so I'll give it a try.

George Herriman, Krazy and Ignatz, 1927-1928, Love Letters in Ancient Brick No one has yet explained to me why this is such a work of genius, so for now I'm still a bit skeptical.

Alberto Manguel, A (not THE) History of Reading When he was a teenager, Manguel read to the blind Jorge Luis Borges. That's enough for me.

R.R. Palmer and Joel Colton, A History of the Modern World This is probably unnecessary considering the number of history textbooks I own, but I wanted the best. Not the latest edition, but it was relatively cheap.

The Landmark Thucydides which is in no way "by" Victor Davis Hanson, as Amazon says. Neo-con conspiracy? In any case, I expect that this, like the Manguel, will remain unread for a few years. But like than man says, it's a "possession for all time."

W.G. Sebald, Austerlitz Hardcover, because everyone should have a first edition copy of their favorite book. (Madame Bovary and Gravity's Rainbow will be tough, so let's just pretend this is it.)

Alain de Botton, How Proust Can Change Your Life Also not strictly necessary in any sense of the word. Probably fun, though.

Margaret McMillan, Paris 1919 I've skimmed this and didn't find it great, but enough people I trust like it enough that I should give it another chance. Underlining might help. Finally, something that might help me write my dissertation. (Oh yeah, that.)

Total: $130. Comics are new paperbacks, the rest are used hardcover. Not too bad, I don't think. Let's hope it tides me over for a good while.

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