Want Books? is a weekly meme hosted here at Chachic’s Book Nook and features released books that you want but you can’t have for some reason. It can be because it’s not available in your country, in your library or you don’t have the money for it right now. Everyone is free to join, just grab the image above. Leave a comment with a link to your post so I can do a roundup with each post.
The Merchant of Marvels and the Peddler of Dreams by Frederic Clement is a book that comes highly recommended by my friend Chris of Ficsation. It has such an intriguing premise and I’m always curious about books that contain illustrations. Based from the descriptions that I’ve seen, I think The Merchant of Marvels and the Peddler of Dreams has the same feel as Nick Bantock’s books. I have a feeling this would make a great gift for any occasion. Sadly, this book is out of print so it’s difficult to find a copy. Let me know if you know of a place where I can grab one. Or leave a comment if you’ve read it, would love to hear your thoughts.
Here’s the summary from Goodreads:
“What to give the person who has everything?” This is the dilemma of Frederick Knick-Knack who surely must have, somewhere in his bags and boxes, his chests and cases, his collection of collections, the ideal gift for his dear friend Alice. As he draws forth this trinket, that trifle, a world of wonder unfolds. What will he choose? A robe spun from the shooting stars with a veil of the Milky Way? A marble made by Merlin the Enchanter? Perhaps the ticket for a thousand and one flights on a thousand and one nights? Somehow, somewhere amid these myriad gifts is a gift like no other, the perfect present.
What book is in your wishlist? Hope you guys are having a lovely weekend!
Alibris has some used copies available, though I’ve never used that site before, so I don’t know for certain if they do international shipping. Worth a shot.
Hi Jenn, thanks for the recommendation! I’ll try to look it up there.
Wow, I’ve never heard of this. I only looked a few places but it seems like a pretty hard book to find! My library system has only one copy but I’ve put it on hold:-/ I hope you can find one!
Flann, I know! It really is a hard to find, under the radar title. That makes me more curious about it. Let me know when you get to read it because I’d like to know whether it’s good and if it’s worth hunting down.