A local bookshop

I saw a strange thing in a nearby town today: a genuine, independent, local bookshop. Not the franchise of a chain, not a used bookshop like the Oxfam ones we see so often, no a genuine independent bookshop. When even big chains are struggling, it was a reassuring spectacle. Of course, I had to go into it. It was small and cosy, and surprisingly (or maybe not), I found a few unexpected titles, books I rarely see in big chains. I bought Tarzan of the Apes, because of a long time curiosity about the original story, because I wanted to buy something there. The lady at the till was very friendly and chatty, something else we don't see very often in big chains. Not that all staff members of chain bookstores are necessarily blasés, but there is a proximity with the customers that you find only in small shops. I will go back there again.

So I went book hunting and caught something I was not expecting. I love that feeling. Did I ever say that I wanted to work in a book shop? In another life, I wish I could own my own bookshop.

Dinosaurs are boring

There are two sci-fi adventure movies with dinosaurs this late morning on tv, one is The Lost World, based on the Arthur Conan Doyle novel (which I want to read) and The Land That Time Forgot, based on an Edgar Rice Burrough story (Burrough is of course the father of Tarzan). I am flicking through both of them. I should enjoy both, I used to absolutely love silly sci-fi adventure stories about lost worlds with dodgy special effects, but so far I am bored. The Lost World has lizards with fake horns in front of a blus creen posing as dinosaurs! And it is set in the 60s! Boring. I thought dinosaurs fighing humans would be really cool. Well, so far I am not even enjoying the silliness. Shame. in The Land That Time Forgot, you can see the wires on very still the pterodactyles. I remember watching its sequel, The People That Time Forgot, when I was a child. I tought then that it was very entertaining.

I have a vague memory of The Warlords of Atlantis, which I want to see again. From what I can remember, it was quite ridiculous but enjoyable. I think I need a bit of escapism.