Filipino Friday 3 - The (Attempted) Pinoy Book Drop

Last Saturday, I attempted to leave three books--The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens by Sean Covey (very used), Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (brand new), and The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (brand new), but my plan was thwarted by the staff of Starbucks 515 Shaw.


The photo's a bit glared, but here's where i was supposed to leave The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens

That particular Starbucks being my second home ever since my college years (when it was still located in Lee Gardens a block away), I decided to ask the barista (whom I knew) for permission to leave the books on empty tables. He said 'yes,' but a few minutes later his superior said 'no.' She said I had to have permission from their head office prior to doing the book drop. I didn't want to argue, so I just let the issue go and sat down to read The Dome by Stephen King.


John Green's The Fault in Our Stars is one of my favorite novels

Like my college friend once said after watching Cyclops get obliterated in an X-Men movie: "See what happens to good boys? They blow up!"-- I should have just dropped the books and ran. :)


Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is an amazingly spooky book with lots of spooky photos

So, I'll be talking about my favorite book hunting experience instead. I remember the first time I walked into Fully Booked, Bonifacio High Street, Taguig. I was like woah!!!...I'd never seen so many books (and so many floors) in one bookstore before.

But while I buy most of my books from Fully Booked, and thoroughly enjoy and appreciate how they really text or tweet me when a book I reserve arrives, my most satisfying book hunting experience was in a Booksale branch in the now deceased Cherry Fooderama along Shaw Boulevard, Mandaluyong City. Now, there's a nearly completed SNR on that lot.

After reading IT, paper boats will never be the same again.

The space was tight, the book selection was poor. The saleslady couldn't help me with anything other than magazine titles, so I had to dig. I dug, and dug, and dug, and knelt, and stood up, and knelt again, and found a hardbound copy of Stephen King's IT. And I was like 'Oh, my freaking gosh, I can't believe this!'

Book digging is a really exciting experience because I never know what I am going to find, but when I do find something great, I'm sure I can afford it. That's what makes what would have been an otherwise miserable book shopping experience enjoyable for me.