I went to New Editions bookshop yesterday in order to buy a book BigSquib is supposed to read for school over the holidays. New Editions is like the West Australian equivalent of Readings. IE You would not under any circumstances ask them if they’ve got anything by Dan Brown in the same way that you would not go to La Tour d’Argent in Paris ask for a Happy Meal
‘Have you got Mao’s Last Dancer?’ I asked them. They didn’t have it as it turns out. So I continued on my merry way to Dymocks where I again asked, ‘Have you got Mao’s Last Dancer?’
The bookseller passed me the book
‘OH! OH! Well there’s so many Maos, aren’t there? I didn’t realise it was Mow as in The Mow, as in Chairman Mow… I didn’t know it was Mow’s Last Dancer.’
The bookseller smiles sympathetically
‘OH MY GOD! I asked for Mao’s Last Dancer in New Editions. I can’t believe I did that. I’m sorry, this is horribly embarrassing.’
The bookseller says, ‘A lot of people say it like that. You’d be surprised.’
‘But I don’t normally… I don’t normally say it like that. Really you’ve got to believe me.’
Bookseller nods politely
3 responses so far ↓
1 warthog // Jul 3, 2008 at 11:27 pm
Oh right!
I get the picture.
One goes to “La Tour d’Argent”, does one?
Having presumably checked out “La Tour d’Eiffel”
I rest me case, Milady.
2 squib // Jul 4, 2008 at 9:32 am
No, one goes to La Tour d’Argent after having checked out the Eiffel Tower
3 warthog // Jul 6, 2008 at 8:32 am
Hmmmm.
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