Items related to The Bookshop
The Bookshop
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review:
Since 1977, Penelope Fitzgerald has been quietly coming out with small, perfect devastations of human hope and inhuman (i.e., all-too-human) behavior. And now we have the opportunity to read "The Bookshop," her tragicomedy of provincial manners first published in 1978 in the U.K., but never available in the U.S. The Bookshop unfolds in a tiny Sussex seaside town, which by 1959 is virtually cut off from the outside English world. Postwar peace and plenty having passed it by, Hardborough is defined chiefly by what it doesn't have. It does have, however, plenty of observant inhabitants, most of whom are keen to see Florence Green's new bookshop fail. But rising damp will not stop Florence, nor will the resident, malevolent poltergeist (or "rapper," in the local patois). Nor will she be thwarted by Violet Gamart, who has designs on Florence's building for her own arts series and will go to any lengths to get it. One of Florence's few allies (who is, unfortunately, a hermit) warns her: "She wants an Arts Centre. How can the arts have a centre? But she thinks they have, and she wishes to dislodge you."
Book Description:
Once the Old House Bookshop is up and running, Florence is subjected to the hilarious perils of running a subscription library, training a 10-year-old assistant, and obtaining the right merchandise for her customers. Men favor works "by former SAS men, who had been parachuted into Europe and greatly influenced the course of the war; they also placed orders for books by Allied commanders who poured scorn on the SAS men, and questioned their credentials." Women fight over a biography of Queen Mary. "This was in spite of the fact that most of them seemed to possess inner knowledge of the court--more, indeed, than the biographer." But it is only when the slippery Milo North suggests Florence sell the Olympia Press edition of "Lolita" that Florence comes under legal and political fire.
Fitzgerald's heroine divides people into "exterminators and exterminatees," a vision she clearly shares with her creator--but the author balances disillusion with grace, wit, and weirdness, favoring the open ending over the moral absolute. Penelope Fitzgerald's internecine if gentle world view even extends to literature--books are living, jostling things. Florence finds that paperbacks, crowding "the shelves in well-disciplined ranks," vie with Everyman editions, which "in their shabby dignity, seemed to confront them with a look of reproach." One senses that classic hardcovers would welcome The Bookshop, despite its status as a paperback original. --Kerry Fried
Mariner paperback, 1997, previous ISBN 978-0-395-86946-8
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherHarper Collins
- Publication date1998
- ISBN 10 0006543545
- ISBN 13 9780006543541
- BindingPaperback
- Rating
Buy New
Learn more about this copy
US$ 9.89
Shipping:
US$ 2.64
Within U.S.A.
Other Popular Editions of the Same Title
Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Softcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Good. Good condition. A copy that has been read but remains intact. May contain markings such as bookplates, stamps, limited notes and highlighting, or a few light stains. Seller Inventory # N23N-00559
Buy Used
US$ 5.69
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Softcover
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Very Good. Very Good condition. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain light spine creasing or a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp. Bundled media such as CDs, DVDs, floppy disks or access codes may not be included. Seller Inventory # W08A-01720
Buy Used
US$ 5.69
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description paperback. Condition: Very Good. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!. Seller Inventory # S_380175823
Buy Used
US$ 2.50
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.34. Seller Inventory # G0006543545I3N00
Buy Used
US$ 6.29
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.34. Seller Inventory # G0006543545I3N00
Buy Used
US$ 6.29
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.34. Seller Inventory # G0006543545I3N00
Buy Used
US$ 6.29
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
Harper Collins
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 0.34. Seller Inventory # G0006543545I4N00
Buy Used
US$ 6.29
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Good. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00053694357
Buy Used
US$ 6.36
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Very Good. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00054789872
Buy Used
US$ 6.36
Convert currency
Stock Image
The Bookshop
Published by
HarperCollins Publishers Limited
(1993)
ISBN 10: 0006543545
ISBN 13: 9780006543541
Used
Softcover
Quantity: 2
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: Good. New Ed. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # GRP15501894
Buy Used
US$ 6.51
Convert currency