Share and showcase you favorite non-fossil books & encyclopedia's

[Bobby Rico]

Sorry Ziggy I can’t get to my book shelves with my nice art books because our Christmas tree is in front of it. Like my friends @Kane @Fossildude19 and @FossilNerd I like a good comic book mostly marvel too. MrsR got me this omnibus of Cryptozoic Man by Bryan Johnson and Walt Flanagan of my favourite Tv show The Comic Men. I have not read it yet but soon , 

[siteseer]

On 12/19/2020 at 10:47 AM, snolly50 said:

Not nearly as extensive or arcane a grouping as Kane's population of print; nonetheless I did count 60 feet of filled shelves and (to my shame) multiple boxes in the closet that have not been opened in 25 years. I pulled the two pictured, as I felt they made a lasting impact on me. Quammen is a wonderful writer (with a lot to say) and Adams is hilarious (with a lot to say). Don't miss these.

 

 

 

Snolly50,

 

"The Song of the Dodo" is a fantastic book.  I think it was Quammen's first book after his essays were compiled across a few books.  Those essays are great and I liked "The Reluctant Mr. Darwin" too.  I highly recommend his books as well.

 

I haven't read "Last Chance to See" but I've heard people talk about especially after Adams' passing which I was sad to hear.  I had read his "Hitchhiker's" books years before.

 

Jess

[ziggycardon]

On 29-12-2020 at 11:43 PM, Bobby Rico said:

Sorry Ziggy I can’t get to my book shelves with my nice art books because our Christmas tree is in front of it. Like my friends @Kane @Fossildude19 and @FossilNerd I like a good comic book mostly marvel too. MrsR got me this omnibus of Cryptozoic Man by Bryan Johnson and Walt Flanagan of my favourite Tv show The Comic Men. I have not read it yet but soon , 

I've never heard of this one, but it looks very intriguing! 

[ziggycardon]

Here are a couple of boxsets of which I am extremely proud, unfortunately they don't fit my main bookself, so I have them stored in on of my smaller bookcases.

 

The first boxset is: The Great Mysteries of Archaeology.
Which consists of 10 books about: Easter Island, The Egyptian Pyramids, Tutankhamun, Persepolis, Troy, Pompeii, Palenque, Knossus, Machu Picchu & The Terracotta Army.
I bought this box set when I was around 12 - 13 years old, I rembember that that was quite an expensive box set for a 13 year old, but I am very happy I made that investment as these book are amazing. Very informative and rich in high quality photgraphs of artefacts and archaeological sites.

 

 

Another box set is: History And Treasures of an Ancient Civilization.
This one contains 12 books about: The Incas, India, The Aztecs, The Islam, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Persia, The Romans, China, The Celts, The Mayans, The Assyrians & Babylonians.
The books in this books are quite similar as the ones in the first book, expect that they focus more on a civilization instead of a single historical site. 
A really awesome box which I got for only 10 euros for the entire box... That's what I call a bargain  

 

 

I also have a small boxset that contains these two books.  
The Aztecs & Mayans - Charles Phillips
The Incas - David M. Jones

 

 

And this book with these two books: 

The Rise and Fall of Ancient Rome - Nigel Rodgers
Roman Empire - Nigel Rodgers

[Darbi]

I read mostly STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematic), history, and science fiction books. I also have few books from other genres such as fantasy, philosophy, etc. 

 

A book I'm reading right now is Green Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson. It's a second book of the Mars trilogy and I'm enjoying it so far! 

 

Please don't mind my shelf being disorganized and I don't have enough room on the shelf for all of my books. I have 2 tote boxes full of books stored in the corner of my bedroom. I'm renting a bedroom, so there's not much space right now! Here's all of my books on the shelf. 

 

...continued on the next post.

[Darbi]

I also collect antiquarian books!

 

The oldest book in my collection is this Holy Bible, printed in 1804. I'm not a religious person, this book caught my attention because it's so ancient and in a language I am not familiar with. I obtained it at a flea market at a really decent price during my stint in North Dakota few years ago. My pastor uncle thinks it's in Dutch German and possibly came from Amish or Mennonite family. 

 

**If you know or recognize the language, please let me know! Thank you!**

 

 

There are some interesting illustrations printed on some pages. There are also several small religious tracts or pamphlets tucked in between pages, possibly used as a bookmark. They're ancient, many if not all are printed in 1800s and in a good shape for its age!

 

Tracts/pamphlets and not part of the Bible.

This one printed in 1854.

 

[Kane]

13 minutes ago, Darbi said:

I also collect antiquarian books!

 

 

The oldest book in my collection is this Holy Bible, printed in 1804. I'm not a religious person, this book caught my attention because it's so ancient and in a language I am not familiar with. I obtained it at a flea market at a really decent price during my stint in North Dakota few years ago. My pastor uncle thinks it's in Dutch German and possibly came from Amish or Mennonite family. 

 

**If you know or recognize the language, please let me know! Thank you!**

 

 

There are some interesting illustrations printed on some pages. There are also several small religious tracts or pamphlets tucked in between pages, possibly used as a bookmark. They're ancient, many if not all are printed in 1800s and in a good shape for its age!

 

 

Tracts/pamphlets and not part of the Bible.

 

This one printed in 1854.

 

 

It is actually written in Czech. An interesting acquisition!

[Darbi]

18 hours ago, Kane said:

It is actually written in Czech. An interesting acquisition!

Thank you! Do you know what church? Such as Roman Catholic, Protestant, etc.? Any other details you know that might help me figure out its origin and other information? Sorry for these questions, I have been struggling with searching for more information about this Bible and its publisher on the internet. Any information would help! Again, thank you!

[Kane]

That might take me a while with this particular font (rendering via OCR will not produce anything readable). The thing about publishing, and particularly religious texts (bibles, prayer books, sermons, etc.) during this time is that there were very few "big name" publishers during this time, as they were effectively just printers/binders, and it would be the patron that is named as the publisher. I see a name at the bottom ("Jozefa [tough to make out]").

 

But in this case, it may in fact have been printed in Prague. One of the earlier versions, also in this style of Gothic script, was published by František Jeřábek in Železné Dveří (a small settlement area in what is today Slovenia). 

 

I wish I could be more help, but my Czech is poor -- I might be able to ask directions to a beer, or order a bathroom, but that's about it.  

[ziggycardon]

On 2-1-2021 at 6:33 AM, Darbi said:

I also collect antiquarian books!

That's a very extensive and varied bookcase you have there, I especially love the antique book. 
That bible is gorgeous, I understand why you bought it, I probably would have done the same and I am a huge pagan  

 

 

 

[ziggycardon]

And here is the final batches of books I'll post here for now. 
As some of you might already know, I am very interested in movies & television and that I am a huge fan of the fantasy genre, especially series like Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, The Witcher... 
So I do have quite a few books about the making off and lore of some of these movies and series. 

 

 

The first book I'd like to show is "Game of Thrones: The Costumes" by Michele Clapton. 
This book is part of a 4 part series, the other 3 books are about the Concept Art, Photography & Story Boards. Unfortunatly I don't have those other 3 books, although I do intent of purchasing them in the not too distant future  

I really love this book as costuming & props in fantasy films and series are something I am very interested in, as a good costume can tell a story and it is breathtaking what kind of details and secrets a good costume can hold. 
This book does a very good job at capturing those fine details on those costumes.
I recieved this book from my girlfriend for my birthday last year, although she likes it probably even more than I do since she is very into cosplaying and making costumes of her own. 
She is currently working on 4 projects, a traditional viking dress, a fantasy leather backpack, the dress from Cinderella (2015 live-action remake) and Witcher armor for a Ciri cosplay. 
In the past she made the costumes of Tauriel from the Hobbit and Lagertha of Vikings. She makes armor and corsets from leather by herself and even creates her own chainmail, which I think is pretty cool.  

 

 

A fun little book for learning Dothraki.

Although I've never really tried it out, I thought it was a fun book to own.  

 

 

The World of Ice & Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones - George R. R. Martin
This amazing book compiles the lore, stories & histories of George R. R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire. The book covers topics like the Age of Heroes, the Long Night, the Rise & Fall of Ancient Valyria, the arrival of the Andals, Aegon's Conquest, all the Targaryen kings, the Dance of Dragons, Robert's Rebellion and the histories of each of the 7 kingdoms as well as the histories of the lands beyond the wall, Essos and beyond...
In the end the book also contains the family trees with the lineages of the houses of Stark, Lannister & Targaryen.

 

 

The Hobbit Location Guide: Hobbiton, the Lonely Mountain and Beyond - Ian Brodie

This book is basically a Middle-Earth styled travel guide to New Zealand which highlight the locations where both The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings were filmed.

 

[ziggycardon]

The next book is "Middle Earth from script to screen: Building of the world of the Lord of the Rings & The Hobbit " by Daniel Falconer
Thes massive book is part of chronicle series that exists of 7 other books that are all about the making of the Hobbit movies. 
This one is the last of that series and covers also the Lord of the Rings. It covers all the locations of Middle Earth (seen and not seen in the films), as well as all the characters.

 

These are the 6 main books of The Hobbit Chronicle series, two books for each of The Hobbit movies. 
Each movie has a book with the Art and Design which covers all the concept Art. 
Then there are two books which covers props, costumes, weapons and sets, and one book which focusses on the characters and creatures.
These book are very stunning and are among my most treasured books  

 

A couple of these book are also signed by the people who worked on this book and the movies. 

Obviously Daniel Falconer's signature is there who wrote these books and is one of the main special effects and props designers for the movies. 
And Jed Brophy's signature is there as well, who played the dwarf Nori in The Hobbit movies.

And this book does have one very amazing signature belonging to Alan Lee, who is alongside John Howe the main concept artist for both the Hobbit & Lord of the Rings as before the films came out, they where the most famous artists who illustrated Tolkien's worlds.
These movies would not have looked the same without these two gentlemen. 

 

 

This book is the last of the Hobbit Chronicle series "Smaug: Unleashing the Dragon" by Daniel Falconer. 
This book is entirely about the dragon Smaug, about the concept art, the visual effects, the making off, etc...

 

 

And then there a ofcourse the fantasy novels itself which I like to read. 
The Hobbit & the Lord of the Rings are among my favorites ofcourse, unfortunatly are the fansy english editions at my girlfriend, so I won't be able to post them here, same goes for Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials". 
But these are the ones I can show.

 

the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series by George R. R. Martin
I really love this series, Martin is an amazing (though quite slow) writer who like Tolkien can create an amazing world with amazing characters and lore. 
While no one can beat Tolkien when it comes to creating worlds and history, I do prefer the way of writing of Martin more. I find these books a little bit more enjoyable to read.  

 

But my favorite book series are 'The Witcher" by Andrzey Sapkowski. 
I love the world of the Witcher and it's characters, the novels are by far my favorite books I've ever read and I can only recommend them to everyone who loves fantasy.

You have "The Last Wish" & "Sword of Destiny" which are a collection of short stories which tell of the adventures of the Witcher Geralt of Rivia, a mutant created to hun the monsters which taunt the continent. These shorts are exellent world building stories for the following novels.
Then you have "Season of Storms" which is kinda a stand alone novel that follows Geralt of Rivia after a contract gone wrong take takes place between some of the events from "The Last Wish"
And then you have the novels "Blood of Elves", "The Time of Contempt", "Baptism of Fire", "The Tower of the Swallows" & "The Lady of the Lake" which follows Geralt of Rivia and his child of surprise Ciri, who is the princess of Cintra. Ciri carries the Elder Blood which makes her a wanted target of many.
Geralt has to protect her from the Nilfgaardian empire, the Northern Kingdoms, the Lodge of socceresses, the powerfull wizard Vilgefortz and the spectral riders of the Wild Hunt who are after her so they can exploit the power of this Elder Blood. 

 

 

This one is a bit of a hidden gem, not many people know of this book and only limited numbers where printed. 
"Pirates of the Caribbean: The Price of Freedom" - A.C. Crispin
This book was released in 2011, a couple of weeks prior the the release of the 4th Pirates movie and this book serves as a canonical prequel to the movies. 
The book takes place in two different timelines: during Jack Sparrow's teen years in Shipwreck cove as well as his life during his twenties when he served in the East Indian Trading Company under Lord Cutler Beckett.
This books explains many of the backstory of the movies like Jack's & Barbossa's first meeting, how Jack Sparrow got his compass (until at least the 5th POTC movie decided to throw the entire established lore overboard...), the relationship between Jack & Lord Beckett, his history and ties with the EITC, how he got the Black Pearl, why he made a deal with Davy Jones and how he got his pirate brand.
Being a huge Pirates of the Caribbean fan I absolutely adored this book, it was well written, explained and expanded the lore very well and took you on some amazing new adventures with Jack Sparrow  

 

[Darbi]

On 1/2/2021 at 6:56 PM, Kane said:

That might take me a while with this particular font (rendering via OCR will not produce anything readable). The thing about publishing, and particularly religious texts (bibles, prayer books, sermons, etc.) during this time is that there were very few "big name" publishers during this time, as they were effectively just printers/binders, and it would be the patron that is named as the publisher. I see a name at the bottom ("Jozefa [tough to make out]").

 

But in this case, it may in fact have been printed in Prague. One of the earlier versions, also in this style of Gothic script, was published by František Jeřábek in Železné Dveří (a small settlement area in what is today Slovenia). 

 

I wish I could be more help, but my Czech is poor -- I might be able to ask directions to a beer, or order a bathroom, but that's about it.  

Thank you so much! You gave me new directions to look for! 

[Darbi]

On 1/3/2021 at 4:09 PM, ziggycardon said:

That's a very extensive and varied bookcase you have there, I especially love the antique book. 
That bible is gorgeous, I understand why you bought it, I probably would have done the same and I am a huge pagan  

 

 

 

Most of these books I have not read yet. I tend to accumulate books faster than I could read! I have hundreds of books on my wish list that I have not purchased yet.

 

What do you mean by "I am a huge pagan"? It seem don't make much sense to me.

[Earendil]

This is one of my faves, it's a diary that details the 1876 Centennial Exposition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_Exposition (wiki link) Here is a link to the original text, transcribed by yours truly! Notice the part about the Giant Sloth, too. https://docs.google.com/document/d/11cvWvCIAc9bKtKvYeC7Cg94RyA5Lep76HlTUMtuaU9s/edit?usp=sharing 

[thelivingdead531]

On 1/3/2021 at 5:48 PM, ziggycardon said:

 

I just got my husband this exact set for Christmas. He loves the game and the tv show, so I hope he likes these.

[thelivingdead531]

I have such a hodge podge of literature, most of it in various piles around the house or still in boxes in my garage. Some of it is nicely displayed in actual bookcases. 

 

This case houses my Stephen King collection and my husband's John Grisham collection. 

[Seaspawn]

@Darbi, that bible is neat. I love the woodcut/wood engraved(?) illustrations, just a really cool piece, and looks in good condition for how old it is. I am also a huge pagan; I think by that, they mean they are not at all religious in the Christian sense, but still appreciate that bible as a purely artistic item - that's what I assumed, anyway.

 

Ziggy, this is a great idea for a thread and I've really enjoyed looking at everybody's bookshelves!

 

On 1/11/2021 at 9:36 PM, yardrockpaleo said:

Here is a link to the original text, transcribed by yours truly!

You transcribed it? That's really cool!

 

I don't have a bookshelf set up at the moment, but I have a lovely gold-edged copy of Milton's Paradise Lost that I got from a charity shop for very reasonable, with fifty illustrations by Gustave Doré. Probably my favorite. I like reading about the Napoleonic era, and I have an interest in gothic horror and cosmic horror of the Lovecraft variety. Also like a few people here I have Edgar Allan Poe's complete works.

[ziggycardon]

On 15-1-2021 at 1:37 AM, thelivingdead531 said:

I just got my husband this exact set for Christmas. He loves the game and the tv show, so I hope he likes these.

If he loves the game and the series, I bet he'll love these as well and maybe even more  
the story is great as is the writing, a real fun series to read through! 

 

On 8-1-2021 at 4:19 AM, Darbi said:

What do you mean by "I am a huge pagan"? It seem don't make much sense to me.

Yes, exactly like @Seaspawn said. that I am not religious but still love that bible  
And it was also a little inside jokes as my mother often calls me pagan or heathen for not being religious and being a huge fan of everything Viking.
Especially since my girlfriend and I decided to no longer celebrate Christian holidays in the future but instead celebrating the pagan ones like Samhain, the Solstices and Equinoxes.
So yeah, I embrace my inner pagan  

[taj]

way too many bookshelves to take picture of .. actually the problem is to find on the second hand market Ikea shelves that match the existing ones . Expedit is now dead and Kallax has discontinued some of the nicest hues so the hunt is on !

[Bob Saunders]

My area was settled by the Dutch, so some interesting very early Dutch Bibles have sold at estate auctions. 

[Kane]

Speaking of historic bibles, here is a leaf from one printed in Strasbourg in 1485, roughly thirty years after the invention of the printing press. It’s kind of neat having a book artifact that is well over 500 years old. I hope one day to have an example of incunabula (pre-printing press books).

[taj]

wow!

 

[Darbi]

On 1/15/2021 at 5:38 PM, Seaspawn said:

@Darbi, that bible is neat. I love the woodcut/wood engraved(?) illustrations, just a really cool piece, and looks in good condition for how old it is. I am also a huge pagan; I think by that, they mean they are not at all religious in the Christian sense, but still appreciate that bible as a purely artistic item - that's what I assumed, anyway.

 

On 1/16/2021 at 9:37 AM, ziggycardon said:

Yes, exactly like @Seaspawn said. that I am not religious but still love that bible  
And it was also a little inside jokes as my mother often calls me pagan or heathen for not being religious and being a huge fan of everything Viking.
Especially since my girlfriend and I decided to no longer celebrate Christian holidays in the future but instead celebrating the pagan ones like Samhain, the Solstices and Equinoxes.
So yeah, I embrace my inner pagan  

Gotcha! Maybe it's a slight misinterpretation and maybe Americans and Europeans used the term 'pagan' fairly differently. When I think of pagan, I was thinking of New Age religions and beliefs. By your definition, I'm a huge pagan but I preferred to identify as atheist or agnostic. I'm no where close to having any belief system related to New Ageism. You can say I'm non-religious from Christianity's perspective but I'm quite religious when it comes to humanism and transhumanism. 

 

On 1/16/2021 at 12:26 PM, Kane said:

Speaking of historic bibles, here is a leaf from one printed in Strasbourg in 1485, roughly thirty years after the invention of the printing press. It’s kind of neat having a book artifact that is well over 500 years old. I hope one day to have an example of incunabula (pre-printing press books).

Dang! Nice! Yes, it's neat to have a book artifact that is 500+ years old! 

[Kane]

36 minutes ago, Darbi said:

 

Gotcha! Maybe it's a slight misinterpretation and maybe Americans and Europeans used the term 'pagan' fairly differently. When I think of pagan, I was thinking of New Age religions and beliefs. By your definition, I'm a huge pagan but I preferred to identify as atheist or agnostic. I'm no where close to having any belief system related to New Ageism. You can say I'm non-religious from Christianity's perspective but I'm quite religious when it comes to humanism and transhumanism. 

 

The term pagan was initially brandished as a kind of epithet by the early Christians (once they had succeeded being the dominant religion in the Roman empire circa 4th century) against any of the other religions/faiths, usually those that observed polytheism or nature-worship. It was used in a similar manner when Christianity was spread, quite frequently by forced conversions of nordic cultures and in other places. There was a return to an interest in paganism during the Victorian period, and it was likely only in the 20th century that the term was reappropriated by those who chose to revive those narratives as a basis of faith/spirituality.