Myra here.
Every Sunday, we share our book finds from various trips to libraries, out-of-the-way bookstores, retail bookshops, or the books that stalked and hunted us down until we adopted them and brought them into our homes.
Today, I am glad to share my book hunting expeditions at Barnes and Noble in San Diego, an independent bookstore in Los Angeles, and how it all came together to be part of our Christmas Book Loot. 🙂
Alias Books, Los Angeles
1650 Sawtelle Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90025, United States
I am very glad that our hosts in Los Angeles were so accommodating that they brought us to so many out-of-the-way book places in Los Angeles such as this one and The Last Bookstore which I posted last week.
This is part of their bargain bin near the entrance of the shop.
When I saw they had an Edward Gorey title, I immediately took this shop seriously.
Their children’s book selection was quite sparse. But what little they did have were really good.
Graphic novels!
While I would like to say that I bought this Saul Steinberg first-edition tome of a book which I reviewed here, it just cost way too much for me at over 60 dollars.
While I resisted from buying anything in this bookstore, here are our hosts’ book loot: Mistakes that Worked – 40 Familiar Inventions and how they came to be by Charlotte Foltz Jones illustrated by John O’Brien and How A Fly Walks Upside Down… and other Curious Facts by Martin M. Goldwyn.
Book Gifts by our LA Hosts
Our hosts were also generous enough to give these three books as presents to my now-13-year-old daughter.
Where Rainbows End by Cecilia Ahern, Shopaholic Takes Manhattan by Sophie Kinsella, and Sophie Kinsella’s Confessions of a Shopaholic.
Barnes and Noble in Las Vegas
This is where we went to for Black Friday, Thanksgiving, while we were at Las Vegas: Barnes & Noble.
My book loot for Thanksgiving Black Friday: Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson.
Barnes & Noble, Chula Vista
Otay Ranch Town Center, 2015 Birch Road #700, Chula Vista, CA 91915
We went to two Barnes & Noble branches while we were staying in San Diego. Here is the one at Otay Ranch Town Centre just across Cheesecake Factory.
Guess what this happy bookhunter got?
Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods by Rick Riordan and illustrated by John Rocco and Raina Telgemeier’s Sisters.
There ya go. I didn’t get them for myself though. It was quite a challenge hiding these books from my daughter so that we can give it to her as part of her Christmas Book Loot.
Barnes & Noble, San Diego
7610 Hazard Center Dr #315, San Diego, CA 92108
This was our last day in the US and we made a pit stop here, not to buy any more books, but a few gift items that we were sure our daughter would love. Here they are: opened during Christmas Eve!
Notebooks for our little geek.
Clearly, she is a One Direction fan.
… and a Whovian – a Tardis Alarm Clock!
Christmas Book Loot
My husband’s beautiful gift to me: The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales with illustrations by the inimitable Arthur Rackham.
My favourite image from the book.
He also got me these. Clearly, he knows I am into fantasy: Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Days of Blood & Starlight, and Dreams of Gods & Monsters.
Lips Touch: An Award-winning Short Story Collection by Laini Taylor with illustrations by Jim Di Bartolo – perfect for our Award-Winning-Books Reading Challenge.
My daughter’s book loot: Tom Angleberger’s Princess Labelmaker To The Rescue and Art2-D2’s Guide to Folding and Doodling.
A gift from her Ninang (Godmother) from Fremont: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.
More Book Presents
That’s not all folks! I also received this from the mail as sent to me by an author friend whom I met at the Asian Festival of Children’s Content this year: Three Brothers and the Flower of Gold – The Panchatantra by Sampurna Chattarji. Thank you so much Sampurna for sending this.
Once again from Pansing Books: The Here and Now by Ann Brashares.
Gathering Books 
It always looks like you guys are having the BEST time! 😀 And I have Brown Girl Dreaming at my bedside waiting to be read VERY soon 🙂
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Hmm… Where to begin? Hmm… Well, I finally got The Steampunk Bible!
I also got House of Robots (James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein), The 47 Ronin (Mike Richardson), The Book Thief (Markus Zusak), Zen in the Martial Arts (Joe Hyams – gifted from my Karate instructor!), The Ferocious Enchanted Staff of the Ancient Monks, STAR WARS Costumes [of] The Original Trilogy (Brandon Alinger), and 19 Lessons On Tea: Become an Expert on Buying, Brewing, and Drinking the Best Tea (27Press).
And that’s just a sampler. 😉
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