On October 21, in this blog, I did a sort-of review of a used book-store in Washington, DC (Kultura's Books on Connecticut Ave.). You can read it below (don't make me link it for you).
Now I'd like to offer another sort-of review of another used book-store, this one only a couple blocks from Kultura's.
The store in question is Second Story Books, on P St. (there are two other locations in the DC area).
I put to this store the challenge I put to Kultura's: to provide me with 18th and 19th century works, and lit crit on the period, to fill some holes in my book list for my comprehensive exams.
Once again, I scored some great books.
I found a 1926 Oxford U. Press hardback edition of Cowper's Poetical Works for $12.50 (needed The Task for my list).
I found a 1963 Everyman's Library edition (hardback) of William Hazlitt's Lectures on the English Comic Writers, with "On the Periodical Essayists" and "On the Works of Hogarth," both of which I wanted for the list.
I found a beautiful 1927 Macmillan hardback edition of Edgar Lee Masters's Spoon River Anthology. Since this is a work of early-20th century American poetry, it doesn't belong on my list. But I remember fondly reading the Anthology in college (when I was a prize-winning poet!) and being very impressed with it. And, as I said, it's a beautiful book, with a nice embossed cover, and attractive font and layout. And it was only $5! I double-checked with the cashier guy, but he confirmed the price written in pencil on the cover page, so I bought it.
And since I got a nice book for $5, I decided it was OK for me to go ahead and buy The Doré Illustrated Edition of The Complete Poems of John Milton, published by Crown in 1936, for $20. I really need an edition of Milton for my library (though he won't be on my list), and the Doré illustrations were a big bonus (though they are a little washed out). The only thing better would have been an edition of Milton illustrated by William Blake.
Then when I thought I was done spending, I came across the music CDs.
I found a Dawn Upshaw compilation (Messiaen, Debussy, Golijov, and Fauré)--I really liked her singing on Gorecki's Symphony No. 3 recording (Elektra/Nonesuch 1992). And I found a Hyperion recording of "English Music in the Time of Beethoven" entitled The Romantic Muse. I grabbed that because I've been trying to build up a Romantic music soundtrack to listen to while reading Romantic literature. Most of that has been German classical and Romantic music (Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert)--but now I have actual English music of the period (which, strangely, includes Haydn, from when he was visiting London). I bought both those CDs for $9 each.
I thought the things I bought were reasonably priced, and there was a great selection, so I have to give Second Story Books in Dupont Circle four stars for a selection and prices even a grad student can enjoy.
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Posted by jeb at November 5, 2005 9:41 PM | TrackBack