Agricultural theme continued
Where we can't help is with any reasonable explanation of why retailers are selling individual pieces of fruit with a shiny indestructible plastic label on every single item. Possibly they think the sales staff are too stupid to be able to spot the difference between a banana and a kiwifruit. If so, that is clearly very insulting to the staff and they should rise up!
It is highly unlikely that that is why they're doing it. Therefore, I think you should all join me in my campaign to peel off every single offending label and return it to the shop. They have the power to refuse to buy from any supplier who unnecessarily defaces the fruit with indestructible and environmentally polluting bits of sticky plastic. They could stop this stupid habit almost immediately.
Farming
It has to be said that it is a modest section at the moment; nay, a very small section to be more precise. But for years people have been asking for books on agricultural botany or deer farming and we never knew where to send them to look as we weren't sure where the books might have been shelved; rather random as to whether they'd be found in gardening, natural history, biology or general science!
So with a modest beginning and as a work in progress, we start our farming and agriculture shelves with a selection of books on New Zealand cattle breeds, livestock behaviour, keeping poultry, farm management, pests & diseases, soil management, the history of tractors and farm machinery, and of course the above-mentioned deer farming and agricultural botany. Come on in and have a look.
Merry Christmas
Spotted in the Otago Daily Times this morning was Warwick Jordan, owner of Hard to Find Bookshop (page 4 just in case you missed it). He was pictured in front of the "holiday" tree in the Octagon. Sadly, his offer to pay for the "Happy Holidays" sign to be replaced with a "Happy Christmas" banner did not meet with success.
So just to cheer him up and make sure the message gets out there (without offending anyone or being exclusive): Joyeux Noelle; Hyvää joulua; Frohe Weihnachten; Vesela Koleda; Glaedelig Jul; Kala Christouyenna; Boldog Karacsonyl; Selamat Natal; Buon Natale; Meri Kuri; Feliz Navidad. We could go on!
Christmas Trees
The Christmas season is nearly upon us. It probably already is upon us for some. All those here in Dunedin have no doubt been following the lively discussion about the Christmas tree in the Otago Daily Times. I should more accurately say argument really. It has been very much in the news both in Paul Gorman's What's With That and in letters to the Editor.
For those not reading the ODT, the problem is the message around the tree which reads "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas". The owner of Hard to Find Books agrees it should mention Christmas. It is, after all, a Christmas Tree and not a holiday tree. He rightly says that Diwali and Matariki (and others) are referred to by their correct names. There is no suggestion they cause offence or that they should be changed. Likewise Christmas.
He believes it so strongly that he has offered to pay to have the sign changed. Watch this space (and the tree in the Octagon) to see if he is successful or not.
It's Agatha Christie again
Following on from yesterday's book, we now also have a copy of Agatha Christie's The Mystery of the Blue Train and once again it is a comic version. If you prefer to call it a graphic novel version that is fine.
This one is by Marc Piskic and was also published by Harper Collins in 2007. It is also in beautiful condition but the joy is that it is MUCH cheaper than yesterday's book.
You have to come in and see it. As I said yesterday, comics/graphic novels are not my thing at all but there is something appealing about it, especially if you are an Agatha Christie fan.
Death on the Nile
We have a copy of Agatha Christie's Death on the Nile as you've never seen it before.
This edition is a comic version (or a graphic novel version, if that's what you prefer to call it). It is adapted by Francois Riviere and illustrated by Solidor. It was published by Harper Collins in 2007 and is in beautiful condition.
This is a case of "has to be seen to be believed". I am not a fan of comics or graphic novels at all and yet even I can appreciate Solidor's illustrations, which definitely capture the mystery and magic of Egypt in the 1930s. Come and have a look at it.
Hello Christopher Robin
After you've seen the film or before you go and see it, why not get copies of AA Milne's books, all beautifully illustrated by EH Shepard.
When We Were Very Young
Now We Are Six
Winnie the Pooh
The House at Pooh Corner
Return to the Hundred Acre Wood (and more)
You can't go wrong with these classic children's books. Whether they are for your own collection, for your children, or as a present, no-one could fail to be thrilled with some of the gorgeous editions available. Come on in and have a look at what is available. We have something for everyone's budget.
University of Hard Knocks
The University of Hard Knocks: The School that Completes our Education
by Ralph Parlette
"The greatest school is the University of Hard Knocks. Its books are bumps. Every bump is a lesson. If we learn the lesson with one bump, we do not get that bump again. We don't need it. We have travelled past it. We move to the next bump..... Some of us learn to go forward with a few bumps, but most of us ... do not learn the lesson....and the bump must come back and bump us again.... most of us have to be pulverised."
Teaching a wilful child or being happy in your work, it's all dealt with in this book. It may have been written over a hundred years ago but the two colleges of the University of Hard Knocks are just as relevant now as they were then: The College of Needless Knocks and The College of Needful Knocks.
"It is so hard to tell young people anything. They know better." Any book with that in it must be worth reading.
