...oh, I kid. The wedding is proceeding along at a bureaucratic pace - until Marcello gets his passport, I am at a loose end here, which doesn't mean that things aren't happening. Last night my dressmaker came by with some samples, was too tired to stay and went home (she's employed now, working on the costumes for the remake of Grey Gardens). But the samples are all lovely and I already want a handbag made out of the most expensive one...

Naturally if it's October then it is book sale time. My mom was recruited once again for the Art section at UC, so I agreed to help her out, but instead did my section. Oh my God you people, my section was even bigger than last year (four more tables than usual) and I worked hard at making it look just right; and so in the end it did...

...of course there's nothing better to compensate for working away alphabetizing books and so on than to get a lot of books in return, which is just what I did. The sale itself - now officially my last - had a coziness to it, but also I strongly sensed my inner need to move on. Because I didn't want that many books, I felt detached from it, even from the people involved...I will see them again next month, but after that...I will see some at my wedding & that will be it.

I did go to the Victoria College Sale, but this is what I got at UC, in no particular order.

Doris Lessing, Martha Quest

Usually I always had a pile of Lessing books on my table and they would mostly stay there, but everyone wanted her this year (it was nice to have a Nobel winner on my table!) This is the first in her series of books about growing up in Africa.

Charles Mingus, Beneath the Underdog

I saw this & thought MC would want it. I was right. Mingus is a hell of a writer.

Dodie Smith, I Capture The Castle

This is one of those books I always wanted to read but never got around to - I heard nothing but good things about it from the Chicklit crowd years ago. And yeah, I have the movie tie-in version, without having seen the movie. Hey, it looks nice!

Homan Potterton, A Guide to the National Gallery

I plan to spend a lot of time at the National Gallery, and I need a good guide. This one is written with feeling and understanding, as opposed to the more mechanical commentary in other guides. A blurb on the back says it's 'affectionately non-reverential' which is ideal.

Marika Hanbury Tenison, Left Over for Tomorrow

Yes, that's right, a British cookery book about...leftovers. With plenty of good things to make and then have again, either by itself or with other things. It has an appealing 1971 Penguin no-bullshitness about it that I like. Also, muffins are called "American Muffins."

Raymond Sokolov, Fading Feast: A Compendium of Disappearing American Regional Foods

I'm not sure how many of the recipes in here are nearing extinction, but it looks good and has a key lime pie recipe in it, which sold me. It also has a section on challah (including how to braid it), should I ever want to make some. (I don't know if challah's available in London.)

J. H. Plumb, The Italian Renaissance

If I am going to understand the Renaissance I don't want a huge book. This is a small one, thorough, which should help me out back at the National Gallery, not to mention in Italy.

Roland Barthes, Roland Barthes

The french poche version, ecrivains de toujours series. The master draws back his curtain a little to talk about where he comes from (lots of family photos) and lots of little moments and ideas take their shape. I may not work hard at French but I will work hard at this.

Andrea Levy, Small Island

And on the same tack, I don't want to read every novel set in London ever, but this looks good. Speaking of London....

A Traveller's Companion to London, introduced by Peter Ackroyd, edited by Thomas Wright

I have yet to look at this, but upon MC's very strong recommendation I picked it up. It includes letters, diaries and memoirs and should be really good.

Tate Modern the handbook, edited by Iwona Blazwick and Simon Wilson

I saw this on the art table and knew I had to have it at once; I think I picked it up and hugged it! Which is funny as MC & I have yet to go to the Tate Modern...it's a beautiful book and it was nice to get it for 3 pounds here than 18 pounds...

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Selected Letters

Anyone who knows me knows that I hate the Augustan period (as a certain Mr. Clarkson would say, I HATE IT SO MUCH), but Lady Montagu lived through it and made all the right friends and enemies, including Pope. A Penguin Classic that is hard to find at sales, let alone in regular stores.

More later...