What did You buy today? December 2020

It was my10th Thingaversary so I purchased 11 books!

Lord and Master: Master of Gray Trilogy 1 Nigel Tranter
The Leopard Giuseppe Lampedusa
Prisoner of Conscience: My Steps Through Insein Ma Thida
Nor Iron Bars a Cage Ma Thanegi
F*ckFace: and Other Stories Leah Hampton
A Change of Heir Michael Innes
Little Man What Now Hans Fallada
The Kalahari Typing School for Men Alexander McCall Smith
Stomping Grounds: A Pilgrim's Progress Through Eight American Subcultures by Hampton Sides
Time of the Octopus: Based on the True Story of whistleblower Edward Snowden Anatoly Kucherena
Winter: A Novel Ali Smith

>1 Tess_W: Tess_W: 🎉Congratulations on your big Thingaversary!!!🥳🎉

Since it seems another "hard" Lockdown is due soon, I went excessive bookshopping yesterday and today.

Some calendars for 2021, loads of postcards, books for my hubby's birthday and Christmas and some for myself:
Stephen Chbosky: Imaginary friend
Sayaka Murata: Earthlings
Vladimir Nabokov: Lolita and
Sylvia Plath: The bell jar.

Yep, government has announced another Lockdown starting Wednesday, December 16.

So I went for another shopping tour with my hubby - clothes, decoration, books.
But I was a good girl and only got myself a new 2021 daily planner as well as a German edition of The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins.

I went thrifting! For $6 I got:

The Woman in cabin 10
The Deadwood Beetle
The woman on the stairs
Life after Life
Honor Killing
Me and Earl and the Dying girl
Never let me go

Mostly hardbacks and some first editions.

Brought home two ARCs and bought one book.

ARCs:
* _Lincoln's Mentors: The Education of a Leader_ by Michael J. Gerhardt (pub 2/21)
* Master of the Revels by Nicole Galland (pub 2/21; fantasy)

I bought a book of YA nonfiction, True or False: A CIA Analyst's Guide to Spotting Fake News by Cindy Otis. If it's good, I only wish it was required reading for all citizens.

We just had an anti-mask lunatic come into the bookstore last week, take all the books about the president- & vice president-elect off a display and put books about the lunatic's cult leader there instead. He went on and on about how the election "wasn't legitimate" and how he "knew what we were trying to do" and he wasn't going to "let us get away with it." Apparently he's done this at other local bookstores, too. He's evidently quite gullible and unaware he's being used. Clearly our educational system needs a lot of repair.

>ReneeMarie: Whatttttttt?!? You poor thing having to put up with those kinds of lunatics... Oh well...
:((( And the fact that Trump won#t give up, whatever the cost. He has divided the whole country and doesn't care in the least. Divided States of America - it really has come that far... :(((
Stay safe, stay strong!

>7 Yuki_Onna: Thanks. Every time I've thought the presidents couldn't get any worse, I've been proven wrong (Nixon, Reagan, Bush Jr). But I hope that with Trump we've hit bottom. What is most terrifying is that people support him despite his incompetence, venality, and complete lack of ethics. He encourages the worst in people, but that worst was there to be brought out. And it's not just the US where bad men are in power. It makes the future look hopeless.

On that upbeat note, I've actually stopped by to say I bought another book: _Make Way for Liberty: Wisconsin African Americans in the Civil War_ by Jeff Kannel.

>8 ReneeMarie: ReneeMarie: Yes, you're completely right. Let's hope the future isn't completely hopeless, though...

Didn't buy anything, but got books for Christmas. Does that count, too?

Baby teeth and Bad apple by Zoje Stage - which is the exact same book (one for the US market and the other for the rest of the English speaking world), but apparently not even the staff of our bookstore knew or had any means of knowing.... 🥴
The Swap by Fiona Mitchell
The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo
The Au Pair by Emma Rous
The arrangement by Robyn Harding
The silent companions by Laura Purcell.

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

Not necessarily today but I had a cold last week and wound up quarantined over the holiday until my COVID test came back yesterday (thankfully negative). During that time I binge bought/read all the remaining Whyborne and Griffin books, books 4-11, along with all the short stories on my kindle. Loved the books which made being stuck in my room slightly less frustrating.

>10 Jenson_AKA_DL: Glad you're okay. Somebody tested positive at work, and with privacy laws they won't tell us who it is so we can judge for ourselves the degree of exposure. I suggested the company at least *ask* during the pandemic whether a person infected is willing to share their identity for everyone's safety. I would certainly make sure everyone knew if I was ill.

It's not like COVID has a stigma attached like venereal disease. I work with smart people, they're not going to go Trump mob against someone who gets sick.

Overall we're down about 7 people who are quarantining because their friends or family have it or might have it.

>11 ReneeMarie: I also think it is important on identity to verify extent of exposure...I would certainly let everyone I was in contact with know if I had it.