The Boat

I have just finished The Boat by Nam Le - great book! I thoroughly enjoyed it and as I have spent a bit of time in bed recently and sitting around waiting for removalists it didn't take long to get through. The book is a series of short stories set in vastly different settings; including Australia, Vietnam and Iran. I am loving books set in or about Vietnam at the moment due to my recent visit and family connection over there. Recently also read When heaven and earth changed places which was very interesting. Set during the Vietnamese (American) War and provides insight into their culture and beliefs.



I was talking to someone last night about online book stores and thought it'd be interesting to compare a few. Often when you throw in postage it works out dearer than buying from a physical book shop. Especially because as soon as the online stores 'recommend' other titles I might like, I end up spending more than I planned, although I have the same problem when I browse the shelves in a shop (in non-fiction especially). So, I paid $24.95 for The Boat in a store.

Fishpond - AUS$19.82 free deliver over $50
Amazon US$10.20 + postage
The Book Depository £7.19 free delivery
Booktopia AUS$19.96 + postage

All much of a muchness I guess. The difference for me is in the delivery charge and not having to worry about exchange rates and conversions. Fishpond have regular free delivery offers so I take advantage of those. Would be interesting to look at the environmental aspects too - cost to environment of delivery via stores vs from online shops to clients.