8 replies to this topic

[irvine99]

Hi!

I'll stay in April some nights in NYC. I thought i can find some nice second hand bookstores there.

Unfortunately my search on the net failed. Stores with historic and other blablabla books enough, but where are the stores with racing literature? Autocourse, magazines (GPI...) and so on.

So, who can help? Any advice?

Thanks!

[fbarrett]

Irvine:

I'm not from New York, so I don't know all the good places, but last time I was there a fellow auto-book collector took me to Strand Books, 828 Broadway (corner of 12th Street and Broadway).

Monday-Saturday 9:30 AM-10:30 PM; Sunday 11:00 AM-10:30 PM
212.473.1452
www.strandbooks.com

Unlike London, New York is not exactly a hotbed of automotive enthusiasm, but this should get you started. Strand claims to have 18 miles of bookshelves, but only a very small segment will be automotive.

Frank

[Terry Walker]

I went into the Strand Bookshop a few years ago, and was stunned. Like a dog in a field full of rabbits, I didn't know which one to chase. It wasn't until I was back home in Oz that I realised I should have looked for S J Perelman there. I have quite a few of his books, about half. If anyone is going to have old books by a New York author, Strand was the place to go.

And remember - even a very small percentage of 18 miles is a hell of a lot of books.

Don't miss it.

[fbarrett]

Originally posted by Terry Walker
It wasn't until I was back home in Oz that I realised I should have looked for S J Perelman there. I have quite a few of his books, about half.

Terry:

Funny you should mention Perelman. I don't think he hung out at Strand's, but I was lucky enough to meet him elsewhere. Circa-1967 he was a sometime dinner guest in a home in Pennsylvania where I rented an apartment, and I was often invited, too. He was a pretty quiet type, at least then, but meeting him got me hooked on his books, and I think he even autographed one for me (Chicken Inspector #23?). Not much of a car guy, but another guest, Charles Addams, his 300SL, and his Bentley Continental made up for that!

Frank

[Terry Walker]

Back after ww2, Perelman bought a new MG Y tourer in UK, which he kept for the rest of his life. His last big adventure was trying to drive it to Peking sometime towards the end of his life! In one of his books - can't remember which - he calls it Moon Glow. For many years he had a property in Bucks County PA, which starred in Acres and Pains (and which was loosely adapted into the TV series Green Acres).

I never met him, but there's less than Six Degrees of Seperation:

My mother's first cousin was Goldie Frazer. Goldie was short for Golden Ridge, her given names (for real - first child born at the Golden Ridge gold rush town in Western Australia)

Goldie Frazer's son was Colin Frazer, bodyguard and factotum to to Barbara Hutton (not a bad step up from working class family in the dusty goldfields of Western Australia).

Barbarah Hutton was married to Cary Grant.

Cary Grant and Perelman were friends.

Smaller world than we think!

Way OT!

[fuzzi]

The motor sport section is,or was down in the basement and when I went the ground floor (that's First Floor in American) was held up on Acrow Props (Screw up builder's props).

PS as you come out of the store turn left and there is a brilliant diner within 50yards which does a classic pastrami on rye sandwich which is a meal.

[fbarrett]

Back after ww2, Perelman bought a new MG Y tourer in UK, which he kept for the rest of his life. His last big adventure was trying to drive it to Peking sometime towards the end of his life! In one of his books - can't remember which - he calls it Moon Glow. For many years he had a property in Bucks County PA, which starred in Acres and Pains (and which was loosely adapted into the TV series Green Acres).

I never met him, but there's less than Six Degrees of Seperation:

My mother's first cousin was Goldie Frazer. Goldie was short for Golden Ridge, her given names (for real - first child born at the Golden Ridge gold rush town in Western Australia)

Goldie Frazer's son was Colin Frazer, bodyguard and factotum to to Barbara Hutton (not a bad step up from working class family in the dusty goldfields of Western Australia).

Barbarah Hutton was married to Cary Grant.

Cary Grant and Perelman were friends.

Since Barbara Hutton was the mother of Lance Reventlow, I wonder if Perelman knew him. He should have bought a Scarab!

Frank

[Pablo Vignone]

By the way, I am travelling to Coventry and London next June, do you know about good second-hand bookstores there? Of course, I will visit Motor Books for new books, but I want to save some money. Many thanks in advance.

[Terry Walker]

I just realised (very, very OT by now) that I'm just 3 degrees of separation from President Obama.

Way back when, I worked in Canberra when John Howard was our Departmental Minister. I met him waiting for an office lift once, and we chatted for about 2 sentences.

John Howard, when he became Prime Minister eventually became bosom buddy of Dubya

Dubya has met Obama.

This seems incredible, for a kid from a tiny mining town in the Western Australian outback.

Sorry about that. I'll go and watch TV.

Edited by Terry Walker, 02 May 2009 - 12:43.