Book Shops In Chiang Mai

[cambridge]

Has anyone used the new chiang mai bookshop lending library? I am thinking about signing up for a year, as according to their site, I can have as many books as I wish, of my choice, delivered to my door for Baht 3,500 a year. Looks to good to be true! Any experiences will be welcome.

[anonymouse]

Never heard of it, can you give us some more info?

You will have to read a lot of books still to make it worthwile, for instance if you buy 29 books from Gecko books over a year at an average price of 240 baht for one of their premium titles, if you return them within one month you get 50% back on them making each book 120 baht of course he has thousand of cheaper books than that but this is an example.

[NancyL]

You can join the AUA and use their lending library for 400 baht/year. Sure, they limit you to checking out just four books at a time, but how many can you read at once anyway?

The book exchange at the monthly Expats Club meeting is popular and free for members of that group.

As mentioned, you can buy and resell many used books from Gecko and still not spend 3500 baht in a year.

I'd want to see a list of their titles before deciding that home delivery was worth 3500 baht/year. Besides, it's good exercise to walk to Gecko or the AUA library every week.

[mallmagician]

Or, to throw a spanner in the works, buy a Kindle..

Hundreds of thousands of free books out there on the net (Project Guttenburg etc.)

Also, if you put a US address when you register the Kindle, you get a number of free books available each week (Some are really good).

Some top authors also seem to release an older book of theirs for Free in order to entice you to buy their other titles on Kindle

The books you pay for on Kindle start from $0.99 with quite a lot of choice at that price.

New York Times Bestsellers are usually $9.99 delivered instantly to your Kindle.

If you've not seen an E-Ink screen in the flesh, its hard to convince people how good it is, but it really is good.

They're not for everyone, as some people like the smell of a real book, or the feeling of turning the pages, the overall experience of it.

For me, the pro's far outweigh the cons.

Phil

[uptheos]

I suppose it depends if a person reads for pleasure, knowledge, or whether they just read any old rubbish that happens to come along because they have nothing else to do or it's cheap. Stuff like New York bestsellers I usually give a wide berth to anyway, it seems every Tome, Dick and Oprah has been on that list. I usually know what I fancy reading and browsing through a bookstore is great and so often I come across that little gem out of the blue. I couldn't think of anything worse that having thousands of books waiting for me to read.....I can't think of that many that would interest me. However, horses for courses.

[mallmagician]

Hi Uptheos,

I know what you are trying to say, but I think you missed my point, or I wasn't too clear in my post.

By no means are the choices of book for the Kindle limited to Popular Fiction such as the NYT Bestsellers, but I was illustrating a point, and as they are bestsellers, I thought that was a good selling point to most people. The Kindle store has much more choice than that. A lot of the Bookstores in CM have a lot of Popular Fiction, and Bestsellers, but also something for everyone such as yourself perhaps - the same is true of the Kindle, its a mobile bookshop.

You infer that the cheap books and the free ones may not be good, and maybe someone may just be grabbing those ones because they are cheap and have nothing better to do. Whilst this is true for some of the Freebies and 99c bargain books in the Kindle Store, I myself have found a few "gems" in amongst them. I guess you could say its like the bargain bin you will find at most bookstores here in CM.

I too like to browse through bookshops in CM when Im in the city, and like you have found the odd gem. I dont head into the city too often, so I like the convenience of effectively the digital version of the experience. I can browse Amazon on my Kindle, and find a book I find to be interesting, and within seconds, I have maybe the first 5% of the book as a Sample so that I can see if its for me, before I commit to buy. I have the added advantage of customer reviews of the book too, so I can make an informed choice.

You say that you could think of nothing worse than having thousands of books waiting for you to read. Well, I never suggested you should grab everything available to you so its sits on your Kindle ready for you to read. I was merely saying that there are thousands available out there, and thus you have a nice selection. Just as a bookshop would have a nice selection should you wander in off the street.

As you say, horses for courses. E-Readers are not for everyone, as some just like the experience of reading a physical book, or maybe have a taste for the rarer books that are hard to find etc. But I did say that in my original post.

But if you can't think of many books that would interest you, then I guess a Kindle wouldn't be worth it for you. Those that read a lot (Not excluding whatever books you like to read perhaps), may well benefit from my comments. Im a big reader, and the savings and convenience far outweigh the loss of holding a wedge of paper for me.

Phil

PS - I dont make any money from each sale of the Kindle, other E-Readers are available.

[Rasseru]

. . . it seems every Tome . . . has been on that list.

Every one? Incredible! Think I'm a-hafta get me one of those! : )

[CMSteve]

I tend to agree with the other posters. AUA has a selection that can be borrowed for 400B/year or 200B/year for students. There's also the American corner at CMU, that has a selection of English( American-centric) books available to read.

Also, if I have to pay 3,500B/year for home delivery, I'd rather by a Kindle or similar, and get free books for years to come.

edit: after re-reading the post, I decided it was unnecessarily harsh on this new company.

[NancyL]

Well, Cambridge (OP) can you tell us more? What books are available? Do they have a physical store where we can go and browse?

[Asmerom]

I tend to agree with the other posters. AUA has a selection that can be borrowed for 400B/year or 200B/year for students.

I was a member of AUA but handed in my card after a few months not finding the sort of books I enjoy. It's small and has only a very limited stock and I doubt you'll find any English Literature on the shelves. Classics, that is. It is of course the American library so its appropriately stocked with american books. Though I recall I couldn't find any of the american- born Henry James' novels ; perhaps because, one year before his death, he saw the light and became a British citizen. No Trollope,Dickens,Jane Austen,Hardy (Thomas),Eliot (George),Proust. For a rich selection of the world's literature get thee to the bookshops.

[CMSteve]

Most Americans have read many of the works of the authors listed below in grade-school. The few that I enjoyed have been re-read, and rest are just relics only the English relish.....

kidding aside, AUA takes donated books of all types. (They may even accept some English literature as well...)

This can be your chance to enlighten us heathens

I tend to agree with the other posters. AUA has a selection that can be borrowed for 400B/year or 200B/year for students.

I was a member of AUA but handed in my card after a few months not finding the sort of books I enjoy. It's small and has only a very limited stock and I doubt you'll find any English Literature on the shelves. Classics, that is. It is of course the American library so its appropriately stocked with american books. Though I recall I couldn't find any of the american- born Henry James' novels ; perhaps because, one year before his death, he saw the light and became a British citizen. No Trollope,Dickens,Jane Austen,Hardy (Thomas),Eliot (George),Proust. For a rich selection of the world's literature get thee to the bookshops.

[cambridge]

Never heard of it, can you give us some more info?

You will have to read a lot of books still to make it worthwile, for instance if you buy 29 books from Gecko books over a year at an average price of 240 baht for one of their premium titles, if you return them within one month you get 50% back on them making each book 120 baht of course he has thousand of cheaper books than that but this is an example.

Dear anonymouse & Nancy L,

This is an internet based lending library in Chiang Mai with a reasonable selection of English titles to choose from. They are delivered to your door and collected next time you order more. You can join for 3, 6, or 12 months. Looks good to me and no parking problems!

[Asmerom]

Never heard of it, can you give us some more info?

Dear anonymouse & Nancy L,

This is an internet based lending library in Chiang Mai with a reasonable selection of English titles to choose from. They are delivered to your door and collected next time you order more. You can join for 3, 6, or 12 months. Looks good to me and no parking problems!

So, are you both now quite clear?

[venturalaw]

Most of the books are nothing special - although there are a few decent ones scattered in with the rest. The only real benefit seems to be not having to go into town to a shop to pick out one on your own.

My guess is that the free delivery will not last for long if the business model is not successful and I just don't see many residents biting. I'd rather just save 3,500 baht and go to Thapae Gate once in a while and have a number of large, well-stocked bookshops to peruse.

[anonymouse]

Never heard of it, can you give us some more info?

Dear anonymouse & Nancy L,

This is an internet based lending library in Chiang Mai with a reasonable selection of English titles to choose from. They are delivered to your door and collected next time you order more. You can join for 3, 6, or 12 months. Looks good to me and no parking problems!

So, are you both now quite clear?

I've done a google search for it and nothing appears maybe Mr Cambridge is just testing the water first?

[uptheos]

But if you can't think of many books that would interest you, then I guess a Kindle wouldn't be worth it for you. Those that read a lot (Not excluding whatever books you like to read perhaps), may well benefit from my comments. Im a big reader, and the savings and convenience far outweigh the loss of holding a wedge of paper for me.

There are a lot of books that interest me and I'm a very big reader, but I do not read 'run of the mill' stuff. In Chiang Mai I've usually found what I want mainly in Gecko's, as they seem to have a good selection of what I need and at a good price.

It's not a competition and who knows one day I'll try Kindle. But seeing that I won't try an iPhone and reluctantly have one with a camera, I doubt very much that Kindle is for me.

[CMX]

I cannot see that such a service would succeed at all, at all.

Two things might suggest its use: Readers of limited mobility, or an exceptionally large or possibly specialized collection.

But that's me. Between local second hand shops and Amazon's reader, I almost happy as it is.

[NancyL]

If I were housebound or otherwise wasn't able to trot down to the Thapae Gate area whenever I wanted a book, then I'd probably invest in some sort of e-reader from a company I know, with a decent website and large selection of titles, rather than plop down 3500 baht for a home-delivery book service from an unknown local company.

[orang37]

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun Cambridge,

"Has anyone used the new chiang mai bookshop lending library?"

We haven't tried it, not heard yet from anyone else who has tried it, but whether we would try it would depend on their inventory, and their turn-over, and our estimate of whether they will likely remain in business. And, unfortunately for them (?), we would not be willing to be among the "first subscribers."

This kind of business "value-proposition," ioho, has the problem of attaining "critical mass:" if a few hundred people were using it, it might have a chance. If they survive for a year, and we see their inventory is full of the kinds of books we like to read, we would certainly consider it.

Meanwhile, we're very happy with CM's current wonderful bookstore resources, Gecko, BackStreet Books, and Shaman, which regularly meet our needs, and continually surprise us by what we find, as well as being "friendly" places, with good customer service.

Re "e-readers:" right now there's a clear visual advantage in e-Ink technology (no, we don't have a Kindle or a Nook), but in the next six-eight months there is going to be an "explosion" in the small-form-factor, so-called "post-pc," tablet size, or smaller, consumer marketplace. To those of you "enchanted" by the iPad: yes, we know your "salvation" has already appeared on earth

And, with higher resolution, higher-contrast, higher-luminance, greater pixel density, screens on these devices, which we believe, will be very cheap by the winter of this year, "tuning" them to be equally readable as e-Ink (with the exception of reading in direct sunlight) should be possible: plus, for the same cost (as higher end Kindle, or Nook, now), you'll have a general purpose light-weight portable computer.

At the same time, perhaps, the Nook and Kindle, in order to remain competitive, will become even better, and cheaper.

And will there be "clones" galore ? Can you say: "Shenzen," and "Guangzhou" ?

The ability to download-on-demand publications and books, for any computing platform, will, also, ioho, "explode:" in terms of numbers of outlets, for example, as in Amazon's newest services.

Of course some people already are "rooting" (meaning turning it from a dedicated e-Reader into a general purpose computer) their Kindle Nooks (which under the hood is an Android OS computer), and making using apps for Android (we haven't actually seen this, only read about it, and it is technically not difficult to do).

For us, there remains no substitute for a printed book: that's the result of a lifetime of growing up without television, and love of books. It's wonderful that hard-bound books in the bookstores here are often cheaper !

best, ~o:37;

[uptheos]

If I were housebound or otherwise wasn't able to trot down to the Thapae Gate area whenever I wanted a book, then I'd probably invest in some sort of e-reader from a company I know, with a decent website and large selection of titles, rather than plop down 3500 baht for a home-delivery book service from an unknown local company.

Sounds about right, Nancy.

[CMSteve]

What is the web address for your company?

Never heard of it, can you give us some more info?

You will have to read a lot of books still to make it worthwile, for instance if you buy 29 books from Gecko books over a year at an average price of 240 baht for one of their premium titles, if you return them within one month you get 50% back on them making each book 120 baht of course he has thousand of cheaper books than that but this is an example.

Dear anonymouse & Nancy L,

This is an internet based lending library in Chiang Mai with a reasonable selection of English titles to choose from. They are delivered to your door and collected next time you order more. You can join for 3, 6, or 12 months. Looks good to me and no parking problems!

[uptheos]

Never heard of it, can you give us some more info?

You will have to read a lot of books still to make it worthwile, for instance if you buy 29 books from Gecko books over a year at an average price of 240 baht for one of their premium titles, if you return them within one month you get 50% back on them making each book 120 baht of course he has thousand of cheaper books than that but this is an example.

Dear anonymouse & Nancy L,

This is an internet based lending library in Chiang Mai with a reasonable selection of English titles to choose from. They are delivered to your door and collected next time you order more. You can join for 3, 6, or 12 months. Looks good to me and no parking problems!

I think most people would like more than "a reasonable selection of English titles to choose from".