Top Tips for Reading Lists

Being an English student, a lot of my money tends to go on books. I don't mind paying £6.99 for a book that I know I'll enjoy reading again and again, but for a novel that I'll only study for a week and probably not look at again - not so much. If you see Beowulf on someone's bookshelf gathering dust, chances are they studied English at uni.

Anyway, instead of paying Waterstone prices for many of the books on my course, I have many other places I like to check out first.

First of all charity shops. They're always full of books that need a second home. Most of the time they're alphabetized, so go in with your reading list, but be prepared to search through a few copies of The Da Vinci Code and Katie Price's autobiography before you find what you're looking for. Charity shops are especially good for Classics and Popular Fiction. I found this copy of My Sister's Keeper for just £1.99. I do hate books that have pictures of the film on the front however, but beggars can't be choosers...

(Yeah Jodi Picoult is on my reading list...I'll keep you updated on that one)

I also found this copy of Oryx and Crake in Oxfam. God bless you Margaret Atwood for having a surname beginning with A, my knees were about to give from all the bending down near the P's.

Even though I do disagree with supermarkets and chain book stores being able to offer crazy discount prices that independent book stores can't compete with, I put such morals aside when searching for a bargain. Which leads me on to my next tip - HMV and Fopp. If you don't have a Fopp in your city then you're missing out. Think of it as HMV's younger sibling who gets all the hand-me-down goods but at excellent prices. They're both good for prize-winning books and classics for a £1 (although the printing is never that great). My copy of Their Eyes Were Watching God was only £3. Yay.

And then there's abebooks.co.uk. I go to Abe Books if I haven't managed to find any of my books elsewhere. Chances are someone somewhere will have it listed on here. It's especially good for out of print or obscure books as well. This is where I found a copy of The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist for £5.78 inc. p&p. Amazon Marketplace is also good for this type of thing, but I prefer Abe Books for some reason.

You could also check out swap-shop style websites, but I find them too much of a hassle, as you have to list all of your books and then find someone who's willing to swap books with you.

Books make good presents too, so giving your reading list to your family or a friend is a good idea if it's your birthday before the start of a new term. Make sure they get you other things as well though...

So after scouring the internet and various shops I spent a grand total of £23.70 on 8 books, which, if I'd have bought them all new, would have come to a ridiculous £63.92.

A saving of £40.22!

I haven't even bought all of my books yet, and this is just two modules worth. Of course I could just borrow the books from the library, but I like to write in them (in pencil of course), and a lot of the time the library will only have two copies of a set text, which just doesn't cover over 50 students. Anyway, I like old books, and you never know, you might just come across something as lovely as this...

I like to imagine what kind of relationship these two people had, and why Matty decided to donate this gift to a charity shop. I love finding personal notes in old books, and old receipts. Anyone else?

I hope this is useful to a few people. But everyone loves a good charity shop rummage, yes?

Blackpool in Photos

8 Things I Learnt From Glastonbury

As the novelty of regaining the use of running water wears off, and the fear of finding a surprise on the back of a toilet seat abates (do people seriously have such bad aim?), I thought I'd share my top eight festival tips with those who are just about to dip their toe into the final waves of this summer's festivals, with Latitude, Leeds/Reading, and Bestival still yet to come.

1. First of all - wellies. Wellies, wellies, wellies. You really don't need to be a hardcore festivaler to realise that wellies are THE essential item for any time spent in a field longer than 10 minutes. But lo and behold every year there's one mad person who thinks that their trainers, or flip flops (yes, flip flops) can withstand the onslaught of mud. DO NOT BE THIS PERSON. This year the queue to the entrance was littered with abandoned Keds and Converse. There's nothing sadder than a single trainer encased in mud, being trampled on by wellies again, and again, and again...

2. Socks. Bring socks. Lots of them. They are your wellie's friends. Especially the to-the-knee kind, as they stop the wellies from rubbing your calves at the top. This especially includes the boys, as they're less inclined to wear long socks. I saw some pretty sore legs around the site, including one guy who was practically carving away at his skin. Not pretty. If you don't want to wear socks, turn the top of your wellies over, which should stop any unwanted chaffing.

3. Layers. All good things have layers. Cakes for example. Take heed of this king of desserts and layer up. If it's too hot you can take one off, and if it's too cold just pop one back on. Think dress - hoodie - poncho for the girls or t-shirt - hoodie - poncho. With the added benefit that it's impossible to be unhappy in a poncho.

4. British weather is crazier than. Pack for all weathers, well, heavy showers and extreme sunshine. This year Glastonbury was marked by heavy downpour for the first two days and then glorious sunshine the next, making it more fickle than my Nan with a box of Roses. A lightweight mac, kag, or poncho are always good to whip out when the clouds start to form, and suncream for when they start to disappear.

5. Choice of Alcohol. Cider, beer or wine boxes are normally the usual festival tipple, but be warned - drinking 5 cans of cider whilst watching your favourite band on the main stage, might not be the best idea when the nearest portaloos are 15 elbow digging, and crowd maneuvering minutes away. Oh and don't think about bringing Tequila. Without the salt and lime it doesn't make anybody happy, and you'll just end up bringing it back home with you. (True story)

6. Babywipe Showers. So effective you'll consider giving up the real thing. Kind of.

7. Toilet Paper. None of the toilets will have it, so bring it with you, and guard it with your life.

8. No matter how many pages magazines dedicate to 'Festival Fashion' or 'Festival Chic' you will not be able to achieve the same look, and will stare down with absolute hatred those that do. And no matter what the magazines say, DO NOT wear a playsuit/jumpsuit to a festival. You know how you have to get naked to go to the toilet? Well imagine that but in a portaloo. In the dark. Best to leave the onesie at home.

But the best advice I could give is to just embrace everything. You're muddy and your feet are wet, so what? You're stood watching a band that you've been dying to see, in a field with thousands of people who feel exactly the same as you, singing their hearts out. Amazing.

See you in 2013.