A good day

[threemonkeys]

My world has just become a little bit better place.

I have been a regular shopper at Unity Books ever since I moved to Wellington. It is an independent store that really feels dedicated to books. I just like the atmosphere of the place. But the thing is, I do a significant portion of my shopping at the "SciFi/Fantasy" sections of bookshops. In the early days, Unity did this very well indeed. It was only a small section but it was stocked creatively by a buyer who was a real fan of the genre. Despite it being a small section I knew I could go there and find books that were not on sale at any of the competition around town. Once that buyer left though, things changed. The stock in the section reverted to the same stuff that the other places stocked. Titles that the local reps pushed basically. Once Dymocks and Artie Bees got their acts together locally, Unity offered no point of difference and significantly less than those places.

But I still go into Unity fairly often. Their NZ, history and pop science sections are of interest to me and are still very good and as mentioned above, I like the atmosphere there. I went in there today and thought I'd have a quick look at the SF section just in case they had accidentally scored something I hadn't yet seen. But it was rather more than a quick look. There was lots of good stuff there. A whole bunch of stuff that I was interested in. I showed great restraint in just grabbing two books including a Kage Baker title that I had been meaning to order from the states.

I asked the person serving me if they had got a new buyer for the SF section. She confirmed that they had got a new person for that section recently and seemed quite impressed that I had noticed. She introduced me to him and we had a bit of a chat. He is a fan from a family of SF fans and is determined to change the Unity SF section into something distinctive again. He is also interested in the local goings on in the fan scene.

Now isn't that a good way to brighten up your day.

Comments

[capnoblivious.livejournal.com]

I'm impressed you could notice, too. I'm not sure I would (though on reflection, I don't know that I go book shopping often enough).

But, cool. Reckon he's interested in niche products such as, oh, I don't know, small press sf magazines or anthology/cookbooks? ;)

[threemonkeys.livejournal.com]

Reckon he's interested in niche products

I actually got that into the conversation - using Agog as an example. Unity are, and always have been, very strong about selling NZ publications from small presses*, but the attitude does not appear to extend across the Tasman. He got that "I don't want to offend but..." look as he made his excuses. I am getting pretty familiar with that look and those excuses by now.

* Obviously not specfic small presses because there aren't really any here.

[capnoblivious.livejournal.com]

Was worth a shot. :)

[darthsappho.livejournal.com]

Not yet, anyway.

[threemonkeys.livejournal.com]

I live in hope. Anybody who starts one up can pretty much count on me as a subscriber/buyer of what they produce.

[russellk.livejournal.com]

Excuse my ignorance, but have there *ever* been any sf small presses in NZ? I suppose not ...

[threemonkeys.livejournal.com]

There have been a couple of attempts at magazines. I think one of them lasted quite a few issues but that was a long time back.

Other than that I really cannot think of one. The closest I can get is Hazard in Christchurch. But they aren't quite what I think of as "small press" - just small. They are big enough and make enough money for two or three people to actually make a living. They have published 3 SF titles to my knowledge but more than that out of the genre.

[punkrocker1991.livejournal.com]

Are they a good bookstore for unusual stuff? We're in New Zealand next month and any shopping is good shopping.

[threemonkeys.livejournal.com]

I guess it depends by what you mean by unusual. If you are primarily interested in specfic, then no not really - they have broken the narrow shackles of the local distributors, but are still within the broader mainstream. If, on the other hand, you are interested in, say, general New Zealand writing or gender studies then Unity has a very extensive range.

For SF related stuff in Wellington, I usually suggest people go to Arty bees (http://www.artybees.co.nz/) on Manners st who sell imported new and secondhand books. In Auckland I suggest Barbara's Books (http://www.barbarasbooks.co.nz/). Barbara & Peter there are the current FFANZ delegates.

Thinking of FFANZ, there is a fan contact guide on the FFANZ web site (http://ffanz.sf.org.nz/travelnz.htm) which I put together a while back.

I am (probably too) happy to rattle on at length with this sort of travel advice if you are interested - feel free to drop me a line - mittsusaru at gmail dot com.

[lauriefleming.livejournal.com]

Unity is also a good place to (unofficially) buy CDs as well. The world-famous-in-Wellington Colin Morris works there most mornings and early afternoons and takes orders for hard-to-find (and easy-to-find as well) CDs and DVDs.

[threemonkeys.livejournal.com]

I have chatted to Colin there occasionally, but never thought of using him to source CDs.

Kage Baker in Unity

[netzl.livejournal.com]

I think you can credit that Kage Baker acquisition to me - I was lurking somewhere near Unity reading one of the Company novels and got chatting to one of the Unity staff. Talk turned to the SF section and their new buyer and I heartily recommended Kage. She promised she'd pass on the word. Nice to know it happened!

Re: Kage Baker in Unity

[threemonkeys.livejournal.com]

Then I say thank you to you. :-)