Folio Society to release Mort?

[RathDarkblade]

Hi Rath, I've been a member* of the Folio Society since 2009 so know quite a bit about them and how they work. They're a small publisher of fine editions which they design and produce themselves, commissioning a series of illustrations for every work, so not remotely like TheBookDepository which is just a conveyor belt seller of books, owned by Amazon.

They are?! Aw, sod it - now I feel like a philistine heathen barbarian for mentioning TBD and FS in the same sentence. :doh:

*removes fur helmet (with obligatory spike) and sends it to the cleaners*

I've ordered quite a few books from TBD before - mostly history, but also sometimes comedy - and I enjoyed them very much. I wasn't aware they were owned by Amazon. I thought they were independent, like FS. Have they ever been independent?

The FS is based in London, so all their books are sent out from the UK, hence the postal charge, which is standard. Bear in mind also that their books are well made hardbacks (proper sewn bindings, expensive acid-free paper) that come in slipcases so they're heavier than most books including usual trade hardbacks. Their Discworld series should look pretty impressive once all the books are lined up on a bookshelf. The 'Shifting Sands' notebook is a nice freebie, worth about A$25 or so, also a sewn-binding with acid free paper, so I wouldn't delete it: you could always sell it on eBay.com.au or give it to a friend as a present if you don't want it yourself. I imagine you'll be delighted with it if you go ahead and order it: a standard Folio Society edition is better than most other publisher's 'deluxe' editions, and Omar Rayyan's illustrations for Mort are just wonderful.

(*there's nothing too exclusive or arcane about being a member of the Folio Society: anyone who buys four books a year or spends above a certain amount on a lesser number automatically becomes a 'member' which entitles you to certain discounts, around 10%, on new volumes for an introductory period, and access to sales and special offers throughout the year)

Very interesting! I'll have a look at it again, and decide what to do. Thanks, Dingleberry!

 

[Molokov]

The Book Depository got bought out by Amazon about 3 or 4 years ago, but AFAIK they're still based in the UK and their service level hasn't really dropped since the buyout. I do get a lot of books from the Book Depository and it's never been a problem, but supporting independent and local stores is also a good idea

 

[RathDarkblade]

Yea! I have now bought Mort, as well as Simone Roux's book, "Paris in the Middle Ages", from the FS. I am no longer a philistine barbarian! Phew. What a relief.

By the way, does anyone know how long the FS would take to ship to Australia? It's my first time buying from the FS, so naturally I am curious.

Thanks!

 

[Dingleberry]

Congratulations RathDarkblade, I hope you really love the books! I bought Folio's 'Paris in the Middle Ages' last year (though I've not read it yet ), the binding design is quite original. Although The Book Depository is Amazon-owned and they don't always package books as well as they ought, it's a useful service for Australians, considering how expensive books are in Australia generally, and that P&P is free! I think Folios take about two to three weeks to arrive in Australia, from what customers have mentioned on LibraryThing, though a lot must depend on Australia Post and whereabouts you live. There's a group called 'Folio Society Devotees' and a long, long entertaining thread all about the 'Mort' edition!

 

[The Mad Collector]

A limited edition Mort has sold this morning on Ebay for £313 (AU$629) so three times what I paid for it new three weeks ago.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Folio-soc...QIcyrLMHvBtfEhlFvbDWA%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

 

[Dingleberry]

I wouldn't be surprised if the Folio Society's limited edition Mort steadily increases in price on the second hand market over the years, even from £313, since it's crafted in a beautiful leather with raised bands and genuine gold titling on the spine, is an actual facsimile of the book Pratchett described being handed to Mort himself by Death on the last page of the novel, and because 500 copies of a unique facsimile doesn't stretch far among tens of thousands of diehard Pratchett fans. At least that what's I'd imagine looking at the now astronomical prices on Amazon marketplace, abebooks and eBay for second hand copies of the Folio Society's limited editions of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, even though those limited editions saw 1,000 copies of each being produced, twice the number of the Mort limitation.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Congratulations RathDarkblade, I hope you really love the books! I bought Folio's 'Paris in the Middle Ages' last year (though I've not read it yet ), the binding design is quite original. Although The Book Depository is Amazon-owned and they don't always package books as well as they ought, it's a useful service for Australians, considering how expensive books are in Australia generally, and that P&P is free!

Please call me Rath. I wanted to call myself Rath Darkblade - that's my nick across other forums - but apparently this forum wouldn't let me for some reason. :doh: Oh well.

A "rath" is an ancient Indian chariot, in case you're wondering. It is the basis for the rook piece in chess. The word "rook" is borrowed from the Persian rokh and Sanskrit ratha, or "chariot".

P&P means Package & Postage, yes? I've never heard of that term (I googled it), but over here in Ozzie Land it is called P&H (Postage & Handling). Basically the same thing.

I think Folios take about two to three weeks to arrive in Australia, from what customers have mentioned on LibraryThing, though a lot must depend on Australia Post and whereabouts you live.

I live in Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, which is the south-easternmost state in Australia. So it's not like I'm in the middle of nowhere. Any better ideas now?

There's a group called 'Folio Society Devotees' and a long, long entertaining thread all about the 'Mort' edition!

OK... where can I find this?

 

[Dingleberry]

Hi Rath,

thanks for explaining the origin of the word 'rook' for the chess piece. I love chess and have often wondered why the 'castle' is called 'rook' and the only connection I could think of were the ravens at the Tower of London! Desperate, I know.

To access all the information you could ever want about Folio Society books (and read the Mort gossip), on LibraryThing, first go to LibraryThing.com, then under the tab for 'Groups' look for 'Folio Society Devotees'. There are a huge number of threads listed under that group going back years, including a recent one, 'Mort' which is hilarious just to read through. There are also several Australians who take part in the various discussions who should be able to tell you more reliably than me how long FS books usually take to get to Melbourne!

Edited to add: I forgot to confirm: yes, P&P is postage and packaging! - which reminds me, another useful new book selling service for Australians is Wordery.com, they're often cheaper than Amazon or BookDepository, aren't owned by Amazon (well not for now) and they offer free P&P worldwide too :clap:

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

thanks for explaining the origin of the word 'rook' for the chess piece. I love chess and have often wondered why the 'castle' is called 'rook' and the only connection I could think of were the ravens at the Tower of London! Desperate, I know.

To access all the information you could ever want about Folio Society books (and read the Mort gossip), on LibraryThing, first go to LibraryThing.com, then under the tab for 'Groups' look for 'Folio Society Devotees'. There are a huge number of threads listed under that group going back years, including a recent one, 'Mort' which is hilarious just to read through. There are also several Australians who take part in the various discussions who should be able to tell you more reliably than me how long FS books usually take to get to Melbourne!

Edited to add: I forgot to confirm: yes, P&P is postage and packaging! - which reminds me, another useful new book selling service for Australians is Wordery.com, they're often cheaper than Amazon or BookDepository, aren't owned by Amazon (well not for now) and they offer free P&P worldwide too :clap:[/quote]
Ancient castle chess pieces were in the shape of Elephants with howdah's on their backs think "LORD OF THE RINGS" film battle scenes with the Orcs.

 

[Dingleberry]

Thank you for explaining that, my learning curve is getting steep here!

 

[The Mad Collector]

Another limited edition sold on Ebay for £400 over the weekend

I also got my standard edition on Saturday and it's lovely with an interesting fabric binding which has a velvety feel

 

[RathDarkblade]

Hmm. It's been just over 2 weeks since I ordered mine... I wonder when it will arrive? *looks out the window expectantly*

****Flash forward 4 days later...****

It has arrived! Whee!

I wonder what it would be like. I picked it up at the parcel place this morning but I haven't yet taken off the shrink-wrap... savouring the expectation of a good book to come.*

______________________________________________
* Yes, yes, I know - gee, I'm a nerd. Hey, I'm a bibliophile!

 

[Mixa]

Well, well… Did you finally open it? Please don’t force us to live with this intrigue!

Mx

 

[RathDarkblade]

I opened it, but I haven't read it all yet. I have read the part about Princess Keli and the doorknocker, though. 'Tis v. funny.

I wonder if anything is different, since I've read the original. This new one seems cleaner (because it's new), and also bigger font (because it's a bigger book). But $80.... sheesh. Oh well...

 

[Mixa]

Well, well, I’ve been told the illustrations are great! You’re so lucky to have got one! :dance:

Mx

 

[Dingleberry]

In case there's any Discworld fan who wanted a Folio Society Limited Edition Mort but missed out, no, 231 out of the limitation of 500 has just been listed on eBay BuyItNow for £150 which is a bargain seeing as this edition has been selling for anywhere between £300 and £400 on eBay!

(Please note I've no connection with the seller and have no idea who the seller actually is)

 

[Dingleberry]

Egads, that went quickly. It's been sold already: I hope to an ardent fan here rather than just an obsessional book hoarder somewhere.

 

[=Tamar]

Discworld fan, obsessional book hoarder, not a lot of difference in some cases... but heck, whatever brings you in is good! One of Paul Kidby's drawings for Nanny Ogg's Cookbook got one woman interested, then the rest of the book drew her in. Another wasn't sold until her third novel (read more or less at random), when a few lines grabbed her and her husband and they were in.

 

[RathDarkblade]

Egads, that went quickly. It's been sold already: I hope to an ardent fan here rather than just an obsessional book hoarder somewhere.

HEY! Speaking as both an ardent Discworld fan and a bibliophile (i.e. obsessional book hoarder)... I resemble that remark!

 

[Dingleberry]

I see that Folio Society has just released an edition of Small Gods to match their recent non-limited Mort edition. It matches in terms of binding design, and also has illustrations throughout by the artist Omar Rayyan, so the final series when complete should be pretty impressive. The Folio Society have just this month changed from being a membership-based publisher to selling direct to the public with no commitment to buy any number of books and the same prices for everyone, so any Discworld fan can order direct from their website rather than having to resort to buying at inflated prices from eBay sellers. The Mort edition (non-limited) is still available. It'll be interesting to see how quickly they go out of print ie. what the overall print run is. I can imagine the complete set will be hugely coveted by Discworld aficionados as I'm unaware of any other editions that are quite as sumptuous.