Another book from my 20 Books of Summer books list (intro post here) recorded in my State of the TBR on 01 August (I have three of the print acquisitions recorded there left to read and all are on my 20 Books pile) and this time it arrived from Paul Half Man Half Book (his review here), who’d somehow come into possession of two copies (Royle would call one of them a shadow copy).
This is the fourteenth book I’ve completed from my 20 Books project (and I’m currently reading Book 15) and also comes off my TBR 2021-2022 total. I feel like I’m making some progress now, although for every slender novel there’s a hefty work of non-fiction to come …
Nicholas Royle – “White Spines: Confessions of a Book Collector”
(22 July 2021 – from Paul Half Man Half Book)
If I could just acquire a few more Picadors to edge out those Sceptres and Paladins and King Penguins on the bottom shelf, I’d have a bookcase, a white bookcase no less, full of white-spined Picadors. It would be a think of beauty. It would be a small masterpiece and it would be easier to achieve than the masterpieces I was trying to create at my desk in the attic. (p. 46)
Royle is what you’d call an inveterate collector, of many things beside Picador books – including, pleasingly, Virago Modern Classics, which I also sort of collect. I don’t collect anything in the way he does, but I can see why he does and I can see the attraction of collecting these elegant white spines (see two in the top pic). In fact I started to go through his list of Picadors owned to see how many I also owned, but felt that might be tipping over into Too Much. Paul and Kaggsy both loved this book; I’ve seen one person I follow say it was a bit boring. It might be boring to some people, but reading about various charity and second-hand bookshops and which books he found, then including a potted history of the imprint and notes from various people who’ve been involved in it, going chapter by chapter into other people’s books and their notes of ownership, things found in books, favourite bookshops, pairs of authors with the same name … what’s not to like? There were various serendipitous moments and also mentions of bookshops I actually know, which I will try not to be too boring about below!
A list of things I found fascinating in this book or particularly enjoyed …
- When you’re a bus or train number collector, you can access a little book you underline the numbers you’ve got in it – I had always wondered how this was done, but had never got round to finding out.
- The most common Picador books he fines are Last Orders by Graham Swift and Andrea Ashworth’s A House on Fire and now I’m going to be compelled to check for those in each charity shop I go into.
- He’s completely right on how, when you’re doing a charity shop crawl, the same person will appear by the records or somewhere else, in the same outfit, but already in each shop as you reach it.
- He’s wrong that the Kings Heath branch of Oxfam Books has more exciting stock than the Moseley one (in my opinion) but it’s very, very exciting to see my two locals mentioned (almost as good as hearing the words “Kings Heath” on the telly twice in three days last week (once during the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony, once during that Joe Lycett programme about the RA Summer Exhibition).
- He’s also wrong that those weird photographic covers on Penguin Iris Murdoch novels are the best ones (in my opinion).
- I was chuffed that he stood up for Virago Modern Classics when someone said only 5% of them really were classics.
- He mentions in his Anomalies chapter the “Olivers Sacks” spine error on A Leg to Stand On – see the picture above, I have that one AND Seeing Voices. However, neither appears in his list of Anomalies he owns, even though he includes the one in his Anomalies chapter (rechecking, he doesn’t claim to have it, just to know about it); he does list both in the books he owns so I don’t feel I have to get in touch to offer him my weird ones. Probably.
- He mentions High Street Books in New Mills and even one of the owners, Adam. That’s a shop I know and people I know and was very exciting to read (though, sorry, not as exciting as seeing Kings Heath or hearing it on the telly).
What an excellent book. I hope my tribute to it is taken in the affectionate way it’s meant, if Royle ever reads this. Thank you to Paul for sending it to me and everyone who recommended it!
This was book number 14 in my 20 Books of Summer 2022!
This was also TBR Challenge 2021-22 Quarter 4 Book 8/28 – 20 to go (and I’m currently reading books 9 and 10!)
Cathy746books
Aug 17, 2022 @ 08:45:38
I’m so keen to read this Liz, I have a real fondness for these editions (along with early 90s Faber and Penguin Twentieth Century Classics) as they were about when my reading and book buying really took off in the early 90s.
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 08:47:05
Like Virago Modern Classics, the old Penguin Classics and Faber poetry books for me!
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A Life in Books
Aug 17, 2022 @ 09:01:19
So glad you enjoyed this one. I loved all the trivia, some of which brought back bookselling days for me, and Royle’s very funny.
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 11:48:05
Oh, yes, I bet it would bring back those days; it was lovely and reminiscent of all the bookshop/charity shop trawling I do!
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JacquiWine
Aug 17, 2022 @ 09:30:07
Very keen to read this one, Liz. It sounds wonderful, literary catnip for any lover of books, charity shops and other secondhand outlets. How lovely to hear that it features a couple of your favourite local haunts, too. It’s the icing on the cake to have a personal resonance like that!
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 11:49:20
I think you would really like it! I think I’d already found it had my local Oxfam Books in it (I expect Paul alerted me) but it was great to find other well-known places; my best friend’s daughter used to volunteer in the Muswell Hill Oxfam Books, for example!
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Rebecca Foster
Aug 17, 2022 @ 09:44:35
I was more on the side of finding it boring/indulgent, though there were some fun bits. Looks like I particularly objected to the dreams. I predicted you’d like it more than I did! 😉 https://bookishbeck.wordpress.com/2021/11/14/nonficnov-review-book-catch-up-cohen-gilbert-hodge-piesse-royle/
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 11:49:53
And you were right! I did start to skip the dreams, but then he’d refer to one in the text and you’d get confused!
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elkiedee
Aug 17, 2022 @ 10:06:14
Another one for my wishlists….. I think I talked to him on Twitter a few weeks ago, as I realised that there are two Nicholas Royles, and wanted to make sure their books were attributed correctly on LT.
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elkiedee
Aug 17, 2022 @ 10:23:24
I’ve just looked the book up, not available in Kindle, not in any of my 3 library services. Perhaps I’ll make a future suggestion. I did discover a novel by him published in 2014, title: First Novel, which is available. I reserved it but then decided I need to cancel and put it on a list for when I’ve caught up a bit with current reservations (whenever this might happen!)
It’s about a writer, and shows a picture of a row of that book, published by Vintage. Guess what colour the spine of the book is in the picture!
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 11:52:33
Yes, apparently that novel (not his first) is about someone obsessed with Picadors. I think you’d like this as I know you’re a committed charity shop and second-hand bookshop burrower like me; I’m keeping it or I’d send it to you! Hopefully you can track down a copy.
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wadholloway
Aug 17, 2022 @ 10:37:00
Nice too that he (Royle) said hi to you on twitter. Looking around I see I have plenty of Picadors, all Australian authors. Robert Drewe’s Our Sunshine has a coloured panel on the spine
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 11:53:54
Yes, that was lovely, wasn’t it, I was pleased he liked my review! He wouldn’t like the one with the coloured panel. He did mention a good few Australian books as he went through but of course I failed to note them. I have a fair few dotted about the house but didn’t want to bother to collect them up for a photo, so stuck with the two ones with errors on the spines …
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Jane
Aug 17, 2022 @ 12:49:55
I must get a copy of this, I love all the trivia and I hope a bookshop I know will be included!
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Liz Dexter
Aug 17, 2022 @ 13:26:08
I only pointed out the most salient three that I knew; I knew or knew of a good five or six others, too, and that’s without really considering it. So I’m sure one will!
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Simon T (StuckinaBook)
Aug 17, 2022 @ 15:51:49
I loved this one too!
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Liz Dexter
Aug 18, 2022 @ 07:58:57
Excellent!
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Paul Cheney
Aug 17, 2022 @ 17:09:11
I ended up with three copies for some reason! Passed on to readers who I was sure would love it. Glad to hear that you liked it too, Liz
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Liz Dexter
Aug 18, 2022 @ 07:59:26
That is funny! And you chose right – it’s even one of the rare books I’m going to keep!
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heavenali
Aug 17, 2022 @ 19:04:48
I have done a bit of book collecting myself from time to time but nothing like the way Royle has. Having seen this book reviewed several times before, I have been tempted to read it. However at the moment I am less likely to read non fiction even than usual. So perhaps not for me right now.
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Liz Dexter
Aug 18, 2022 @ 08:00:14
Well, I’m keeping hold of it so it’s there to borrow when and if you fancy it. I’m finally enjoying your Barbara Pym biog but I like the fact some of our books are in each other’s homes at any one time!
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kaggsysbookishramblings
Aug 17, 2022 @ 19:07:59
It’s such a good book, isn’t it Liz – resonates so much with us bookish types who love to haunt the charity shops! I loved seeing places I know mentioned in it too!!
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Liz Dexter
Aug 18, 2022 @ 08:00:39
Yes, I thought of you when he was down your way, and also the London ones I know you like!
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Annabel (AnnaBookBel)
Aug 17, 2022 @ 21:01:04
I enjoy Royle’s writing having read one of his novels and his memoir about his mother and have this on the shelves. I love the Picador white spines and Penguin Modern Classics ones in particular – and yes I do look out for them at every second hand shop – plus orange Penguins of course. I will make this my 20th Book of Summer if I can find it – look for the White Spine!
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Annabel (AnnaBookBel)
Aug 17, 2022 @ 22:33:45
Argh! Wrong Royle! I have read and enjoyed the right ones short stories.
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Liz Dexter
Aug 18, 2022 @ 08:01:12
There’s a whole chapter on twin names, including the “other” NR!
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Annabel (AnnaBookBel)
Aug 18, 2022 @ 08:03:14
They write about each other a lot!
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MarketGardenReader/IntegratedExpat
Aug 18, 2022 @ 13:31:05
Another book to add to my wishlist, even though I have rather an antipathy to white spines. If left to merely random selection, I tend to pick red or black spines first and save green ones for best! Of course, the first thing I did was rush downstairs to check which Picadors I currently have. I’m sure I had one of the Sacks books in Picador but passed it on in 2014, as well as Last Orders (Graham Swift). I now have A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters (Julian Barnes), Saving Agnes (Rachel Cusk), Nights at the Circus (Angela Carter), A Maggot (John Fowler) and Waterland (Graham Swift). Also Rory Stewart’s The Places Between, but that doesn’t have the white spine. There may be more in boxes or outlying bookshelves. As for spines with ff, I have three by Garrison Keillor, Death Comes to Pemberley (P.D. James) and Memoirs of an Infantry Officer (Sassoon). That was a fun scavenger hunt!
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Liz Dexter
Aug 18, 2022 @ 15:49:19
Good work! I have lots of Sacks and all the Eric Newbys as well as Last Orders and Nights at the Circus!
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MarketGardenReader/IntegratedExpat
Aug 18, 2022 @ 15:53:54
Sadly, the only Newby I have is his A Book of Travellers’ Tales, which much to my dismay I’d a compilation of other peoples’ writing. Come to think of it, that may be a Picador, but it is hidden behind a heavy armchair so escaped my treasure hunt.
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