Saturday 6 April 2019

An Accidental Adventure ~ in which books arrive

Hello Friends!

In the loosest possible definition of the word, technically I am on a self imposed embargo on book buying, so it will come as no surprise to anyone who knows me that this past week saw the arrival of two books into my not inconsiderable collection.

Here come the excuses:
  1. Both are out of print.
  2. One in particular is highly sought after in my locality, and I already have people asking me if I can keep an eye out for a copy for them too.
  3. Putting myself on a book buying embargo is a bit silly to begin with.
  4. They will be put to very good use, see below.
So, here is the first, and possibly most highly prized book purchase I have made in a very long time.  This is, locally, known as the Twr Y Felin Guide. It was originally written for genteel visitors to the peninsula to give them a general guide to the area but, in its day, quickly became the definitive guide. I do not know when it went out of print, but it did, and is now highly sought after by serious and amateur historians alike. When I found this copy, which is in quite good condition considering it is nigh on one hundred years old, it took me something less than a gazillionth of a nano second to quickly part company with just under £15.00 to secure it as my own. Originally, back in its day, it cost the princely sum of 5/-, that's five shilling, pre decimalisation and works out to 25 pence in today's money.


Here is the second, which I stumbled across on eBay during a random search for something else. Not so much a book, more of a pamphlet, it is a 1935 copy of a pilgrim's guide to St Davids. I don't know very much else about it, other than it cost me £1.75 including postage, and is, again, in quite good condition considering its age.


I had to share this image with the postage stamps. Aren't they lovely?  As a former Girl Guide, what transpires next will come as no surprise.

As I perused my two new treasures, an idea popped into my mind. Why not use these guides for their intended purpose?  So, my friends, that is exactly what I plan to do this summer. It will be my Summer Adventure of Exploration!  As and when the weather permits, I shall take a section of each in turn and follow in the footsteps as much as possible {for much may have altered in the last nine decades} I will endeavour to record the same photographic images as closely as possible to those in print and compare.

I think this is going to be fun, and who knows what I will discover along the way?

Until next time ~~~
Deborah

14 comments:

  1. Oh this does sound exciting! I understand the book embargo and I accomplish this as well as you do lol, 😉, you have reminded me of my Girl Guide days, happy thoughts,

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  2. What lovely finds, Deb. I'm looking forward to joining you on your Summer Adventure of Exploration. How could you not add to your vast collection of books? The leather bound beauty and the pamphlets are in great shape to be so old! And the stamps are beautiful. Let me know when to lace up my walking shoes. xoxo ♥

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    1. I will advise in advance if you need sturdy walking shoes or proper hiking boots! Let's take a picnic, whatever else we do! Have a lovely weekend xoxo

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  3. Such delightful finds! I look forward to seeing your photos.

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  4. Very valid excuses I think! Look forward to seeing photos of your summer expeditions

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    1. Hopefully, I'll begin soon if our weather improves.

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  5. What superb finds - I keep telling myself I am not going to buy any more books but then I find just one or two I cannot resist and so it continues! :) What a brilliant way to spend the summer and I can't wait to hear more of your Summer Adventure of Exploration - it will be so interesting :) Have fun!

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    1. There's always room for one more book ~ and one more scone!

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  6. This will definitely be a fun adventure for you AND us! I love it when I find a long sought after book, or one I didn't even know I wanted until I stumble upon it. We have four used books sales at churches in our area during the year that we mark on our calendars, plus one at the college. It is one of our more exciting outings!

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    1. Truthfully, I don't think the vendor understood what they had. It just goes to prove, gems keep turning up on the second hand market.

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  7. What a brilliant idea! I love it. And I can't wait to come along.

    And as for the book embargo...I am laughing. We would rather go without clothes than books, eh? The choice between chocolate and books would be tough.

    Let the Adventure begin!

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    1. Well, not sure about clothes, but chocolate and books go hand in hand. We're taking a picnic along! xoxo

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