Blog4Change

Want to know where we buy our new books from?

2012-12-03T15:26:00.000+02:00

A little known secret is that even secondhand bookstore owners buy new books from time to time! Even though we have access to thousands of books from any genre imaginable, the need to buy new books does arise from time to time, like when we really can't find a secondhand copy of the book we're looking for (or when any available secondhand copies are more expensive than buying it new!). This morning, for example, I bought a copy of Beginner's Georgian by Dodona Kiziria - not something I was able to lay my hands on in South Africa.

After having tried out almost every online bookshop imaginable at least once, I have finally settled on one that I keep going back to. This online bookshop offers totally FREE shipping to South Africa and the rest of the world, and always comes out tops where price is concerned - and believe me, I always compare prices between both South African and overseas online bookshops - if I can't find an even cheaper secondhand copy, that is!

It usually takes about 2.5 weeks for my books to be delivered either to my house or to my local post office, and no extra import taxes are charged (unless the items contain media other than books, such as CDs or DVDs). And don't think they only sell obscure titles like the one I mentioned above! You could get any of your non-South African titles from them, as they have over 6 million available to choose from. So when you're in the market for new books rather than rare, out-of-print books and secondhand bargains - do give them a try!

Price comparison between The Book Depository and other online bookshops:

For the comparison I chose JK Rowling's latest book, The Casual Vacancy. In all cases I've listed the cheapest copy I could find:

South African online bookshop no. 1 - R228 incl. shipping
South African online bookshop no. 2 - R229 incl. shipping
TheBookDepository - $24 incl. shipping (R214 at today's exchange rate). At least a R14 saving!

PS. This is just an example, sometimes the saving is even much bigger. The book I bought this morning? I saved R57 off the price a well known South African online store would have charged me!

More Books4Change books available from Kalahari's Marketplace

2012-11-01T15:41:00.000+02:00

We're now also selling a selection of our books through Kalahari's Marketplace for used books and other previously owned goods.
Most of these books are secondhand copies of books still in print that you can pick up at bargain prices (most bestsellers and recent releases - pretty much anything that you can also find new copies of at Kalahari).
We promise you'll still be getting the same great service and speedy postal delivery you've come to expect of us - the only difference is that you'll be placing your orders via Kalahari.com.
Rare and collectible books will still be sold through our Books4Change website.
Click here to view a full list of books we're selling through Marketplace along with their prices and description of condition (once on the page, click on View all items from seller), and to see our customer rating and comments.

50% Off Romance Titles in our Romance Book Sale!

2012-04-07T14:25:00.000+02:00

If you're a fan of Mills & Boon and Silhouette, then our Romance Sale is for you! Pick up 6 books from this category to get 50% off your order. That works out to only R23 per book! Free delivery to any South African postal address applies.

Shop the Romance Sale now!

Limited Special Offer on Revolutionary Health & Lifestyle Title

2012-03-13T10:42:00.000+02:00

For those of you interested in books on healthy living, Books4Change is now selling Still Healthy at 100 by John Robbins, author of the New York Times-bestselling Diet for a New America for only R45, which includes free postage to any postal address in South Africa. We'll also throw in a free Vegetarian Starter Kit, published by the Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine.

Why are some areas of the world completely free from heart disease and asthma?
Why do more people in Okinawa reach the age of 100 than any other place on earth?
How could a wholefoods, plant-based diet help save your life?

In this paradigm-shifting book, John Robbins shows us how we can prolong our life and our health by drawing on the most recent medical research and the secrets of some of the world's healthiest people.

Amelia's review: "Robbins artfully balances scientific data with anecdotes and historic reference, making this an easy, yet enlightening read. Whereas most books on health tend to focus mostly on diet and exercise, Still Healthy at 100 is much more comprehensive, detailing also, with scientific evidence, the enormous effect love, relationships and community, and attitude to life can have on one's health. I was very pleased by the inclusion of not only reference to the Okinawan centenarians study in this book, but especially The China Study, hailed by the New York Times as the most comprehensive study ever undertaken on the relationship between health and diet, and whose extraordinary findings have been so neglected by mainstream medicine. I would recommend this book to anyone, not only to improve their health, but also the quality of their lives, relationships, and the health of the planet. A must-read."

We have very limited stock available, so make sure you place your order now! The offer is only available while stocks last. A maximum of three copies per customer applies.

Green is the New Tinsel: Sustainable Gift Wrapping Ideas

2011-11-25T08:03:00.001+02:00

Did you know? Although it's paper, gift wrapping paper is generally not easily recyclable, if at all, as it is produced with heavy inks that reduce the quality of the paper. The chemical dyes also contribute to water pollution. Furthermore, it is likely not made from recycled paper or wood sourced from sustainable forests.

Paper that is best for recycling is light-coloured, non-shiny and doesn't contain elements of plastic, metal, metal inks and sticky tape residue. Foil and metallic papers, plastic wrapping and paper with non-paper ingredients such as glitter cannot be recycled.

As you can see, recycling is therefore not the ideal solution for your Christmas waste. But never fear, we have come up with these reusing and repurposing ideas to add some eco-friendly flair to the festive season. With a little bit of imagination, you can easily eliminate waste while adding some DIY magic to your gift-giving:

No longer the sole domain of penny pinching grandmothers, reusing last year's Christmas wrapping is the ecologically responsible thing to do for a resource-stressed planet. It seems ouma was ahead of her time! Why not spruce up your package with a few layers of matching gift wrap and a hand-made card?

Take a leaf out of the Japanese's book and wrap your gifts in cloth that can be reused as scarves, table mats, wraparound dresses or something else. The traditional art of Furoshiki has seen renewed interest in Japan and around the world as environmental protection has become a concern.

With a few added decorations, everything from newspaper, maps, calender pages, old sheet music, blueprints, etc. can work great as gift wrap. Use ribbon you have saved, dried grasses and flowers or the tree decorations you're not using anymore to add a special touch.

If you've got a sewing machine, you can sew together pieces of leftover fabric to make a drawstring bag that can be used again for grocery shopping or lending books from the library. If you haven't been blessed with domestic skill you can always buy a reusable shopping bag from Woolies or elsewhere - you'll find that they're often less expensive than printed gift wrapping paper!

Get creative and think inside the box! Yes - inside the box. Most of us have cardboard boxes of different shapes and sizes stored in a closet or the garage. If you wrap the boxes and lids separately (with last year's wrapping paper), they can be reused again and again (tautology used for emphasis ;). Wooden crates and wicker baskets decorated with raffia will work well too, especially if you like that rustic look. Or make a basket from strips of used brown paper bag (see photo).

If you're giving a secondhand book as a gift, why not wrap it in another book's dustjacket that has got separated from its insides? Or make the accompanying card by cutting out the image on a dustjacket and pasting it on a piece of folded cardboard. You could probably find something really vintage-looking from your local hospice shop or church book sale. Inside the card you can write a quote from the book you're giving to hint at what's inside the parcel.

Plain colour wrapping and used string

Biodegradable decorations

Baskets made from brown paper bag strips

Used books make great eco-friendly gifts to go with your sustainable wrapping! Have a look at the Books4Change Holiday Gift Guide for our hand-picked selection of great rare and special secondhand books to give to the whole family. Also have a look at our African themed, eco-friendly Christmas cards and gift tags that you can plant after use to grow your own herbs and flowers!

Please share your ideas for eco-friendly gift wrapping with us in the Comments box below.

At Books4Change YOU count, and so do our charity partners

2011-11-02T13:08:00.000+02:00

While we're no experts on Census 2011 (we have not as yet been counted), we do know that it requires considerably less effort to register on Books4Change.co.za. So if you, like us, are feeling a little left out, you can rest assured that to us you definitely DO count.

To make your registration count even MORE, go to our charity registration page, where signing up with us earns R5 for your choice from a drop-down list of local charities. You will be automatically subscribed to our email newsletter (we won't spam you, but you can unsubscribe at any point if you please) and you'll be able to place orders with the account you have created, without re-entering your details every time.

If you're already registered with us, you can email us to let us know your choice of charity, which will earn them a R5 from you too.

Give Someone a Scary Book for 'All Hallow's Read'

2011-10-13T15:25:00.001+02:00

"The concept of dreaming is known to the waking mind but to the dreamer there is no waking, no real world, no sanity; there is only the screaming bedlam of sleep." - Stephen King, Rose Madder

While Halloween is a festival only partly celebrated in South Africa, a new tradition surrounding Halloween has recently taken root that local enthusiasts of the Horror and Thriller genres will appreciate. It's called All Hallow's Read, and the idea is to give a friend or family member a scary book for Halloween. Neil Gaiman, author of Coraline and The Graveyard Book, started the tradition, which has since been eagerly adopted by a community of scary-book loving bloggers and Twitterers.

When thinking of scary novels, the names Stephen King, Dean Koontz and James Herbert come to mind. These three authors have been happily scaring people out of their wits for decades. (Do they believe in karma, one wonders?) The best thing to do with fright, of course, is to pay it forward! So without any further ado, we give you a list of books so scary they will have you sleeping with the lights on for a couple of nights:

Lord Halifax's Ghost Book - A collection of true stories based on eyewitness accounts.

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote - A true account of a multiple murder and its consequences.

Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris - The back story to the Silence of the Lambs

Winter Moon by Dean Koontz - In one word: terrifying!

Carrie and The Tommyknockers by Stephen King - Two of his scariest novels.

From today until the 31st of October we will be updating our Facebook Page regularly with scary quotes and other tidbits, so watch your backs!

What are the scariest books you have ever read? Let us know in the comments box below:

How a mutually beneficial partnership between an NPO and a for-profit social venture benefits literacy

2011-10-07T13:20:00.000+02:00

When my mom and I started this business we set out to do something meaningful while also aiming to turn a profit. Quite a tall order for two entrepreneurial novices, but we hoped our determination would help us prevail. We decided to combine our love of books with our philanthropic aspirations, and a social venture that raises funds for charity through secondhand book sales was born.

As might be expected of a couple of book nuts, one of whom is an ex-high school English teacher, literacy is something very close to our hearts. Did you know that nearly five million South Africans are totally illiterate, and that almost 80% of South African learners have not developed basic reading skills by the time they reach Grade 5? If you're as shocked as we are by these statistics, read on.

Having put our desire to work with worthy charities out there in the universe, we were contacted by help2read, a child literacy organisation that provides literacy support in over a hundred schools in South Africa with the help of a large group of enthusiastic adult volunteers. They follow a simple model whereby volunteers are recruited, trained and placed in schools where reading support is needed for disadvantaged primary school learners. They were established in Cape Town in 2006, and have assisted over 6000 children with their reading program so far.

This was just the kind of organisation we wanted to help, and to be associated with such a worthy cause would benefit us as much as our marketing and sales efforts would them. After meeting with help2read at their Cape Town offices, and learning more about their work and training programs, both parties were enthusiastic about the possibilities of working together and our social partnership was born.

So, how does help2read benefit from a partnership with Books4Change?

The first and most obvious benefit is the profits generated from book sales on our website. Supporters of both help2read and Books4Change can donate their used books to benefit the charity, and we then catalogue these on our website where buyers can find them.

You may be aware that many charities hold their own fundraising book sales from time to time, but there are many obstacles that inhibit them from getting good returns from these donations, such as the lack of manpower, time, storage space and most importantly, experience recognising and pricing valuable collectors' items, thus missing the opportunity to make a decent profit! Rare books often make their way into the hands of book dealers at these charity sales, leaving the dealers with the huge profits and the charities with peanuts.

Having noticed this disparity, my mom and I thought there must be a way that charities can benefit from the true value of the donated books as well, which is why we decided to rather sell the donated books on behalf of the charities we partner with than buying it from them, and sharing in the profits. For us this also means better cash flow, as we're not buying stock up front that may or may not sell in the end. For them it means not having to spend valuable time and resources selling books when they could be spending it helping kids learn to read!

The second benefit the charity gets from our partnership is the additional exposure for their cause generated by our marketing efforts through press releases, our website and our social media presence. We are also working on new fundraising ideas that we will launch in due course.

Learn more about help2read and view the books sold in their aid

50 Most Influential Books of the Last 50 Years

2011-08-12T11:10:00.000+02:00

SuperScholar.org have recently compiled a list of the 50 most influential books of the last 50 (or so) years. According to the editors, the list includes books that have been enormously influential, not necessarily great or even popular.

Some of the books that made the list include:

The Purpose-Driven Life by Rick Warren at Number 46;

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser at Number 38;

The Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling at Number 35;

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand at Number 33;

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown at Number 6;

Dr. Atkins's Diet Revolution by Robert Atkins at Number 3;

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams at Number 2;

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe at Number 1

Click here to see the rest of the list.

Which books have had the most influence on your life? Please share in the comments below!

Tracing your family tree with the help of books

2011-05-17T17:38:00.000+02:00

While today family search websites on the Internet is probably the best source for starting to trace your family tree, some of your ancestors might be hidden in books where search engines can't get to them. Unless you extend your search to include offline sources, the past may remain a closed book (so to speak!).

For the novice family tree researcher, general books on Genealogy provide the reader with a good starting point, showing you how to go about tracing your roots, guiding you through the complex maze of Internet resources, documents, archives and dead-ends. A book that I have found particularly useful in this regard, is The Genealogical Handbook - The Complete Guide to Tracing Your Family Tree by Ellen Galford (Reader's Digest), as it includes a list of South African resources at the back.

History books that deal with a specific time and place, e.g. Slavery in the Cape in the 17th and 18th centuries, will help you paint a picture of what life was like for your ancestors.

One of the best book resources, mostly for white South Africans wanting to trace their origin, is a series called Suid-Afrikaanse Geslagregisters/ South African Genealogies by J.A. Heese and R.T.J. Lombard. The books contain registries of most or all Afrikaans families from 1652 to 1830 and beyond, as well as that of many English and some Coloured families. While the books can be bought online, they are available at many ordinary public libraries around the country to view for free!

Your own attic, store room or stowed-away boxes may hold a wealth of information that you may not even have considered. In days past, people often recorded important names and dates in their family Bibles. Memoirs, written histories and diaries can provide extra background that will make those names and dates come alive with detail. Older family members often keep these treasures, unawares to the rest of the family.

Why reinvent the wheel? In some cases, an enthusiastic family researcher may have already done hours of slogging in archives and church records and documented their findings, saving you (at least some of) the trouble! While these days many people choose to publish their research online on blogs and family tree software, there are also those who choose to publish or self publish their work in book format. The Genealogical Institute of South Africa has quite an extensive list of such works in their library.

These books are often really hard to come by, as there may have been only a limited print run handed out to family members only and the authors are sometimes hard to trace! Books4Change has a special mailing list for family researchers, notifying you of Genealogical titles we find or receive through book donations. Send an email to amelia@books4change.co.za if you wish to join this list.

I hope you'll have fun reading up on and researching your family histories! Additionally, visit Ancestry24.com, the most comprehensive online information source for South African family history.

Get your orders in by 26 May - Books4Change to run slow for fortnight

2011-05-17T10:59:00.000+02:00

The man whose colourful life inspired our trip

As mentioned in our last newsletter, we will be running on a skeleton staff for a genealogical research mini-break for 2 weeks from the 27th of May to the 10th of June. That is to say: the office will be run by 4 cats and our wonderful assistant, Yvonne. We would like to apologise for the inconvenience and encourage our customers to place your orders by next Thursday morning to avoid any delays in delivery. During this time you will still be able to place orders, but your books will only be dispatched directly upon our return. You'll be able to reach us by email at info@books4change.co.za if you have any queries or concerns.

For those interested in family research: we will be keeping a blog on our adventures discovering our roots in Germany and Poland. More detail to follow! Also watch out for an upcoming post on blog.books4change.co.za on how to use books to trace your ancestry in South Africa and around the world. As with reading and book collection, this bug is hard to shake once you've been bitten!

Happy reading and researching,

Amelia and Christine
Your Books4Change Team

Announcing the winners of the 'Another Book in the Wall' competition!

2010-12-07T16:13:00.000+02:00

For the past four months, supporters of Books4Change and Safe House Stellenbosch have been gathering together all of their unwanted books to be 'redistributed' to new and loving homes, in aid of the charity. These books - all in fair to mint reading condition - will be sold on books4change.co.za to raise funds for the expansion of the Safe House facility (hence the name of the competition, Another Book in the Wall).

Over the course of the competition we received over a thousand book donations - thus reaching and exceeding our target of 1000 books - and we're currently busy sorting and selecting before adding the books to the site.

Of course, the competition would not have been possible without the kind support of the sponsors who donated some fantastic prizes, so without any further ado, here are the winners of the draw which took place over the weekend:

First prize winner: Tania du Toit (One night in the luxurious honeymoon suite at L'Abrie Manor in Stellenbosch to the value of R 1,650)

Second prize winner: Jan Theron (Dinner for two at the Asara Wine Estate in Stellenbosch to the value of R800)

Third prize winner: Elana Visagie (Free style consultation, including a colour and figure analysis by Gitte, to the value of R850)

Prize for the most books donated: The prize of 3 cases of Asara wine will be shared between our two most generous book donors: Patrick Kannemeyer and Nolene Loets.

Prize winners will be contacted during the course of the week to let them know how to claim their prizes. If for any reason you cannot use your prize, please let us know so we can select another winner.

We would also like to take this opportunity to thank Basic Bistro in Stellenbosch, who acted as a drop-off point for hundreds of books, as well as Sunflood Studios who were responsible for the brilliant designs for the Another Book in the Wall campaign.

In case you were wondering: While the competition is now closed, we will still be accepting book donations in aid of Safe House Stellenbosch, so please contact Books4Change if you have more to donate!

Everybody hearts books

2010-08-20T09:17:00.000+02:00

What do book lovers entertain themselves with on the internet? Book porn, of course! Bookshelf Porn is a photo gallery website with all the best bookshelf photos, "for people who *heart* bookshelves".

There must be a lot of bookshelf addicts out there, as the site receives about 100, 000 unique visitors a month, with over 10, 000 followers on Tumblr. They even have a Facebook Page and Twitter account to match!

While many of those hits may be accidental (from people who are searching for... well, something else), it seems there are still thousands who'd support hardcovers over e-readers any day, judging by the many great photo uploads to the site:

Bookshelf made from 15, 000 pencils

Bookshelf sculpture

Handy bookshelf

Every nook and cranny

Space saver

British Library, London

View more great bookshelves on Bookshelf Porn

Please give lifts to hitch-hikers!

2010-08-03T08:51:00.004+02:00

I've written before about the extra-ordinary things people use as bookmarks, and since then I've found even more remarkable things people use to remember the page they were on.

In a box of donated books that were clearly from the 60s, in between the pages of an old text book, I found a note from the Students' Representative Council at UCT "kindly requesting" all students and staff with cars to give lifts to hitch-hikers. My, how times have changed!

While giving lifts to hitch-hikers is not a prerequisite for shopping at Books4Change (as I'm sure it's not at UCT anymore), we do stock a range of fascinating books - mostly Africana - from the 60s, 50s, 40s and even 30s. Browse our Rare & Collectible section to explore these forgotten treasures - we promise they are anything but dull and dusty!

PS. As always, you'll receive a free bookmark (a proper one) when you order from Books4Change - so no need to improvise!

Who do you write like?

2010-07-27T12:27:00.000+02:00

H. P. Lovecraft

Coding Robots has developed a statistical analysis tool called I Write Like that can tell you which famous writer you write like, by analyzing your word choice and writing style and comparing them with those of the famous writers (or at least, any of the 50 authors in its database).

Apparently I write like the late H.P. Lovecraft, American author of weird fiction.

Do you write like Margaret Atwood, Stephen King or perhaps Mary Shelley? Simply paste any English text you have written into the analyzer, here.

It's probably wise not to take this too seriously, though. Apparently Margaret Atwood pasted in a sample of her own writing and was told she writes like Stephen King!

I write like
H. P. Lovecraft

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

How often do you give your bookshelf a thought?

2010-06-30T17:56:00.001+02:00

Have you been thinking about your bookshelf lately? Not so much, hey? How about what you would like to see happen to improve the lives of South Africa's poor, its victims of abuse, its environment, its animals, etc. - what you could do to help?

Here's a suggestion from Books4Change - one that won't take up too much of your time and could help you unclutter your space. And yes, it involves your bookshelf!

Watch our highly entertaining and informative video, How to raise money for your school, church or charity through Books4Change.co.za:

For more information, visit the Donations page on our website.

Books4Change.co.za goes carbon negative

2010-06-08T18:08:00.000+02:00

For those of you who have noticed the Carbon Negative logo on our website, here is a short summary of what it is all about:

For the last few months we have been financially contributing towards Planet Positive's TreeDuty Kenya reforestation projects through our web host, Texo - the only carbon-negative web host in South Africa. That means we are offsetting not just 100% of our website's carbon footprint, but 110%!

As outlined in a previous blog post, we are also doing as much as we can to keep our business's entire carbon footprint as low as possible, with the aim of going completely carbon negative or at the very least, carbon neutral in the long run.

More about the TreeDuty Kenya reforestation projects:

In semi-arid Kenya trees are used for firewood, fruit, fodder, shade, building, tools and even medicines. However, the deforestation that has taken place has endangered many useful species. Apart from threatening people’s livelihoods and the environment, the continuation of traditional medicinal knowledge is at risk as necessary trees have been culled at an overwhelming rate.

The Kenya reforestation projects alleviate these problems by planting protected forests in one of the key regions which will positively impact climate change. The planting of different endangered species of trees not only creates community resource of seeds for private farm plantation, but in addition, as the trees mature, they enhance regional biodiversity and help improve the global environment through their absorption of carbon dioxide.

Benefits & Impacts

• TreeDuty provides a commmunity resource of seeds for private farm planting
• It protects rare or endangered species of trees
• It increases regional biodiversity
• It contributes to the continuation traditional medicinal knowledge
• It contributes to long-term postive impact on climate change

Do you want to determine your own carbon footprint, or that of your business or even your children? Use Planet Positive's carbon calculators.

What you need to know about our carbon footprint

2010-03-24T08:43:00.006+02:00

Even though Books4Change is a small, family-run business, we believe that anyone can make a difference in the fight against climate change, by changing some of our ingrained habits, making better consumer choices, and hopefully by setting a good example for others to follow.

Some of the actions we are already taking, include:

selling mostly secondhand books (thus reusing rather than manufacturing);

buying secondhand office equipment and furniture, e.g. book cases;

reducing our waste where we can;

recycling all of our waste paper, plastics and cans;

composting our organic waste;

making use of solar water heating;

making use of compact fluorescent light bulbs;

turning lights off when not in use;

using 50% recycled paper for our shipping labels;

minimising our personal meat and dairy consumption and buying local as much as possible;

using our 1000cc Daihatsu Cuore to deliver your packages to the Post office.

We are also in the process of joining a program that will make our website carbon neutral (more info coming soon!) and we'll be looking into the best ways to reduce and offset the rest of our carbon footprint in the years to come.

We hope that you will join us in our fight against climate change, by taking steps to reduce your carbon footprints too! Please let us know if you have any comments or suggestions for us, or let us know what you are doing to combat climate change.

The book or the movie - can Hollywood do justice to our favourite works of fiction?

2010-02-25T13:33:00.005+02:00

Although I usually much prefer reading the book before seeing the movie, there have been times when I saw the movie first or even (gasp!) saw the film without ever reading the book!

More often than not, Hollywood seems to leave us, impassioned readers feeling a little disappointed about all that's been left out or even changed for visual or dramatic effect or, most likely, time constraints. Let's face it, it can't be easy fitting a 1000-page novel into 2 hours on screen.

While some books seem to almost be written more like screenplays than novels (think Patterson, Grisham and also Nick Hornby's High Fidelity and About a Boy) others seem less likely candidates for the big screen. I still marvel at how they managed to adapt The Hitchhiker's Guide into a movie that actually almost captures the wit and absurdity of Adams's book, although mind you, the books were actually adapted from the original BBC radio comedy series, which were also adapted into stage shows, comic books, a TV series and even a computer game, making it probably the most-adapted least-likely-to-be-adapted phenomenon I can think of!

Other film adaptations I was impressed with include The English Patient, The Harry Potter series, No Country for Old Men, The Remains of the Day, The Lord of the Rings series and Smilla's Sense of Snow (adapted from Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Høeg).

The ones I was less impressed with were Running with Scissors (not nearly as disturbing as the book), I, Robot (the book is just so much better than the forgettable, Will Smith-featured, holiday blockbuster) and Journey to the Centre of the Earth (the 2008 adaptation of the Jules Verne classic starring Brendan Fraser), which may have been less pitiful in 3-D but did nothing to uplift my Sunday evening when I saw it on its MNET premiere.

Next up is The Lovely Bones, adapted from the novel by Alice Sebold, which I'm quite looking forward to.

Which screen adaptations of books are your favourites (or least favourites) and why? Please share your thoughts below.

Valentine's.... Schmalentines!

2010-02-12T12:38:00.006+02:00

You don't have to be single to hate Valentine's Day. Fortunately, there are enough schmaltz, kitsch and aggressive marketing campaigns around to drive even the most devoted couples into self-imposed isolation.

Here's what the equally offended have to say:

"Cupid rhymes with stupid." - Unknown

"True love comes quietly, without banners or flashing lights. If you hear bells, get your ears checked." - Erich Segal

"Today is Valentine's Day. Or, as men like to call it, Extortion day." - Jay Leno

"Sales ad at a store: ‘You are my one and only’ Valentine's cards, now on sale: 4 for R30." - Unknown

So, don't get the object of your affection a gift this Valentine's Day - certainly not on our account. We suggest hiding out until the airwaves have cleared of repetitively-played love songs, the TV channels are free from bad romantic comedies, the shops have packed away their stock of plastic hearts and roses, not to mention the ridiculously drag lingerie - and then maybe, if and when you feel like it, you can buy him/her (or yourself) something that will last longer than a playground affair.

Like a book, for example.

Do you finish reading a book you don't like?

2009-09-18T13:13:00.003+02:00

Having been an avid reader since the day I picked up my first book (I might not have been able to actually decipher it, but that didn't stop me from plotting out the story from beginning to end with the help of the accompanying illustrations) I soon learned that not all books are created equal.

To put it bluntly, some books I have read have been downright awful - from their dull beginnings through their anti-climaxes and their flat, fizzling ends.

Yet I was never able to put down any of these literary fiascos, believing resolutely that I would soon discover their many redeeming qualities, if only I carried on reading just a little bit longer. In fact, I believe now that I suffered from put-down guilt - masochistically denying myself the right to enjoy a good read, and enforcing pitiful boredom on myself for a good couple of hours (or days).

A lot of it, I suppose, had to do with a lack of confidence in my own good taste - after all, my friend/ role model/ English Lit. Professor had described it as a masterpiece, so who am I to disagree?

Over time, though, a combination of growing insouciance and a sad lack of time for self-indulgence have allowed me to become a little pickier and a lot less impressionable. I now am able to let go of a book that has failed to at least tickle my interest within the first few pages or so. Without feeling guilty! I must say, it is quite liberating...

How about you? Are you a compulsive finisher or a carefree ditcher? Which books have you found too exasperating to complete (even when others have raved about it)? Please share your stories below.

Here's a list of books you are bound to read from start to finish - more than once!

The (extraordinary) things people use as bookmarks

2009-09-11T14:55:00.004+02:00

Bubblegum wrappers, receipts, business cards, account statements, paperclips, brochures and those loose advertisements that come tumbling out of your magazines and newspapers as soon as you open them.

These are some of the things people use in lieu of proper bookmarks to remind them where they were.

As a secondhand bookseller, I have come across a wide variety of odd bits people use, and then forget to remove, before they resell the books to us.

Some of the most memorable have included an order to appear in court (poor fella!) and a letter written to an elderly lady by her adult son and his wife living in Canada. (Apparently the kids have adapted well but they are worried about their granny living all by herself now).

Personally I have been known to use hair bands, a ruler, the inside flaps of a book's dustcover and even a shirt sleeve (or whatever's closest when the phone or the doorbell disturbs me from my leisurely reading).

I have asked a couple of my friends for their input, and they confessed to using:

- a piece of toilet paper (most handy when you're multitasking in the bathroom)
- the TV remote control (a sure way to set off a major search and rescue operation)
- a tissue (unused, one would hope!)
- a sock (oh, pooh!)

Some even have the following shameful habits:

- folding the page's corner (tut tut!)
- leaving the book open underneath their pillow (just the kind of thing that makes pages fall out eventually)
- tearing out the title page and using it as a bookmark (GASP!)

The most unobtrusive (but doubtful) response came from a friend who claims to remember the page number. (I would have tried it if I didn't know for sure it would lead to my having to reread several pages of a book - one of my pet peeves. And don't you just hate it when your bookmark drops out as you pick the book up?!)

Something which I haven't found (but would not mind at all) is money. Paper money to be precise. Lots of it!

What have you found and/or used as a bookmark? Please share your stories with us below.

Happy reading!

PS. Every order from Books4Change includes a free bookmark (a proper one) so you won't have to make use of your granny's teeth to keep your place!

PPS. The first 3 customers who are able to tell us what quote about reading is used on our bookmarks, gets a R10 discount voucher to use with your next purchase from Books4Change. Email your answer with 'Funny Bookmarks Competition' in the subject line to info@books4change.co.za .

Latest Releases on Books4Change

McCall Smith's Cheerful Ladies

2009-08-27T18:58:00.006+02:00

"Wayward daughters. Missing husbands. Philandering partners. Curious conmen."

This description, though nothing out of the ordinary for a modern detective story, really caught my attention when I learnt it was not for a book set in Trenton, New Jersey (a la Evanovich's Stephanie Plum) or even in Miss Marple's St. Mary Mead, but rather in the improbable Gaborone, Botswana.

Thus began my fascination with Mma Ramotswe, Botswana's finest - and only - female private detective, as depicted by Alexander McCall Smith in his No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.

According to McCall Smith, he "wanted to show readers in the rest of the world that there are many great and remarkable people living in southern Africa – people who lead good lives, with honour and integrity." People like Mma Ramotswe.

The ten-part series (thus far) include The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency (1998); Tears of the Giraffe (2000); Morality for Beautiful Girls (2001); The Kalahari Typing School for Men (2002); The Full Cupboard of Life (2003); In the Company of Cheerful Ladies (2004); Blue Shoes and Happiness (2006) The Good Husband of Zebra Drive (2007); The Miracle at Speedy Motors (2008) and Tea Time for the Traditionally Built (2009).

The popularity of the books has recently also lead to the creation of a BBC and HBO produced television series by the same name, currently being shown on M-NET.

The author himself is not unfamiliar with southern Africa, having been born and raised in Zimbabwe. After studying law at the University of Edinburgh, he returned to Africa to teach at the University of Botswana. He now lives in Scotland, where two of his other series' are set: The Sunday Philosophy Club Series - featuring a fourty-something philosopher aka the "Edinburg sleuth", Isabel Dalhousie - and the 44 Scotland Street series, a witty and incisive observation of Edinburgh as seen through the eyes of Pat, a student now in her second gap year.

Another popular series is The 2 1/2 Pillars of Wisdom about the "unnaturally tall and memorable character", Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, whose "sublime insouciance is a blend of the cultivated pomposity of Frasier Crane and Inspector Clouseau's hapless gaucherie."

Books by Alexander McCall Smith on Books4Change

More Mystery Novels on Books4Change

Goodbye, Teacher Man!

2009-08-13T10:16:00.004+02:00

Frank McCourt, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of three autobiographical works, recently died in NYC at the age of 78, of skin cancer.

In his much-loved debut, Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt described his poverty-stricken childhood in the slums of Limerick, Ireland and having to endure not only the loss of three of his seven siblings, but also his charming but alcoholic father (who frittered away what little money the family had) and his own near-death experience from typhoid fever.

McCourt set the scene thus, in the opening lines of Angela's Ashes: "Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood. People everywhere brag and whimper about the woes of their early years, but nothing can compare with the Irish version: the poverty, the shiftless loquacious father; the pious defeated mother moaning by the fire; pompous priests, bullying schoolmasters; the English and all the terrible things they did to us for 800 long years."

The tale was told in such an endearing and heartfelt way, that it caught the attention of readers around the world, sold over a million copies, won the Pulitzer prize for best Autobiography and was made into a movie with the same name, starring Emily Watson as Frank's mother, Angela.

Frank later went on to write the continuation of his life story in 'Tis, which told of his return to New York in the 1940s, and Teacher Man. He also wrote a children's story, Angela and the Baby Jesus, which was released in 2007.

A friend of mine, Rochelle van der Merwe - who is a big McCourt fan - was so touched by the news of his death that she sent me this tribute to the "friend she never met":

A few hours ago I found out Frank McCourt died yesterday. I remember hearing his name on the news last night, something about being ill, but I was in the shower and by the time I got out, the news had moved on to something else.

So, tonight I searched for news about him and when I read in the first sentence that he had died, I just broke down and cried my heart out.

He was the friend I never met. He was my inspiration, leading a humble life, and then when he was somewhere in his 60s, he published his first book, which won him a Pulitzer Prize and also my love and respect.

I loved the way he wrote. I wanted to write like that. It felt like he was sitting in a bar next to me, chatting to me about his life, and I was too captivated to move – which made it hard to put his books down. It was like he was right here talking to me like I was his oldest friend, and by closing the book, it felt like I was rudely interrupting him while he was on a roll.

I liked the way he kept it all real as he dealt with life’s tragedies with the armour of a wicked sense of humour and dry wit. He kept all the darkness so innocent by just telling it like it was – no frills, no fuss, just the blatant, downright truth. He’d hit the nail on the head so many times for me, that reading his books felt like an epiphany carnival had come my way and I could go on all the rides.

And how I rode - and swallowed his words like candy - letting them light up my literary world just like fairy lights would light up a window.

It was beautiful and magical, even though you know a lot of darkness was needed to make those lights glow so fantastically.

I’ll miss him, what he brought to this world and what I was hoping he’d still bring.

All I can do now is to make sure that the inspiration he gave me would not go to waste. I’ll dive right back into my book and speak my own truth, hoping it’ll light up some individuals’ windows out there too.

My darkness can create a lot of light. I just need to keep on believing that.

Rochelle's Top 3 books by Frank McCourt, in this order:

1. Angela's Ashes
2. Teacher Man
3. 'Tis

Find books by Frank McCourt on Books4Change.

More Autobiographies and Memoirs on Books4Change.