doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com A Book Thread?

The Chinese Bandit by Stephen Becker.

The Parker crime novels by Richard Stark, a nom de plume. I forget his real name 'cause I find his other novels to be uninteresting.

Arthur Upfield's Australian crime novels, for a glimpse of the various parts of the continent.
Regards, Joe

I nestled in with my copy of Robert's Muzzle Loading Cap Lock rifle last night. It reaffirms my notion that I was born about 100 years too late!

My wife hurt her back a couple of weeks ago. She has been largely confined to her chair & bed and is rather bored and frustrated. Sometimes I read to her while she does her needlework. Also, I recently bought a picket rifle with Norman Brockway tooling and that put her nose a bit out of joint.

A few days back, I read excerpts from "The Muzzle Loading Cap Lock Rifle" to her. I read all the parts about Uncle Alvaro, learning to shoot and the great bear hunts. That led to a discussion about 10-year old kids then and in 1950 and today, and about the differences between farm kids and town kids.

Then I read some of the biographies in the latter parts of the book. She was born and raised on a farm in central New York state and took much interest in the biographies. I am now forgiven for the purchase of the rifle with Brockway tooling.

When you spend a lot of time looking at books ever so often you find an unusual one.

In reply to an earlier post, In the sixties, I stole Havilah Babcock's "I Don't Want To Shoot An Elephant" from my local library. I should have stolen a bunch more, rather than having them trashed as most great books were. I have no idea why I didn't steal more, but I guess I am not that kind of guy, except that once.

Kind of like Abbie Hoffman's "Steal This Book'?

All of this talk of books caused me to pull everything off of my floor-to-ceiling x 10' book case last night with the aim of re-organizing everything. Big mistake. I got bogged down re-reading Ed Zern's "To Hell with Hunting". Sitting and laughing with Ed Zern beat the hell out of sweating over a huge pile of books! Tonight it'll be "To Hell with Fishing".

I've never taken a book but the local library has a copy of "Boomtown" and suspect someday it will go for fifty cents at one of their sales.

I can't remember when I had so much fun with a thread. I picked up several books that others have mentioned and have read them. Always fun to explore new stuff.

I just finished "One Second After" by William R. Forstchen.

Also read "The Shape of Water" By Andrea Camilleri as well as "The Daily Coyote".

Starting "World's End" By T.C. Boyle

Michael,

I'm new to this site -- happened across it yesterday. However, I figured with both you and Steve Hughes posting here, it can't be all bad.

I too am a book nut, and have amassed a decent library over the years. I'm glad to know that you are a Samworth collector. I haven't really looked lately, but I know I have at least one in my library, Big Game Rifles and Cartridges by Elmer. The copyright is 1936. I've had it for years, don't remember where I got it, and have no idea what they are selling for these days. I also have a copy of Keith's Big Game Hunting, Published by Little, Brown and Company. The copy I have is the 1954 reprint. I had about an hour-long chat back in 1979 with Elmer, and he certainly was a colorful and interesting character.

Thanks much for starting this most interesting thread. Glad I found it.

TT

I saw a first edition of Big Game Rifles and Cartridges sell for $300 a few years ago. It is definitely out of the "Friends of the Library" league.

In the late 1980s, I was helping a friend set up a display at a Safari Club show in Reno. A woman showed up with a large rented truck. She unloaded 2 overstuffed leather couches and a couple of easy chairs, a couple of glass-fronted bookcases and a coffee table. Then she filled the bookcases with good editions of a great many gun & hunting books. When the show started, she was there in a classy tweed suit, selling books to the footsore attendees. I bought a copy of John Taylor's "African Rifles and Cartridges" and a copy of Naramore's "Principles and Practices of Loading Ammunition". It sure looked like she knew her customers and her specialty niche. Is she still in business?