Secondhand Bookshops – Three – Afzal Ansari of Matunga, Mumbai … and the 6 books I bought from him …

The Sunday we last met (the day which set off this Macd(D)onald frenzy in me…), Vinod also told me about a second-hand bookseller in Mumbai, with whom he had placed an order for Ross Macdonald novels … I couldn’t gather the name then … I asked him again after I came home and he told me that it is one Mr Afzal Ansari who sells secondhand books in Matunga, Mumbai … Vinod gave me Mr Ansari’s number and told me to send him a text message with my email … once Mr Ansari receives my message, he would then send me his list of books as attachment … I then see what I want and send him a mail with my requirements … he sends the books across …

I wanted to find out more about Mr Ansari and while browsing for information, I found this article … http://www.thealternative.in/lifestyle/afzal-matungas-bestselling-bookselling-secret/ … 

This article reveals quite a lot about Mr Ansari’s passion for books and commitment towards his customers … this article also gives a link to his book lists, and also his phone number … the book lists could be dated and so it is always better to send him a message and wait for him to send the lists to your mail box … Mr Ansari’s phone number is 09967960583 …

I sent a text message to Mr Ansari immediately, and by evening he had sent me a mail with an attachment that contained three lists of books … I went through the lists eagerly to see if any Ross Macdonald novels were still left … I found two and sent my request … he wrote back saying that the books I saw had already been booked by Vinod, and he sent me a list of 5 books, of which 2 each were by Ross and John D., respectively and one by Jonathan Ross … out of these, I already had one John D. novel and told him that I’d glad to have the other four in the list … then there was some toing and froing of mails to decide what was the best way to send the books across … I didn’t want a VPP or COD method, and we finally decided to rely on our good old India Post …

A couple of days later, I received a text message asking me if I would be interested in 2 books by John Dickson Carr … I hadn’t read any books by Carr, and didn’t know about the author either, but no harm in trying a new writer … I was anyway trying out Ross Macdonald and John D. MacDonald …

These 6 books were packed and sent through India Post and I received them on Friday (7 Aug 15) … the books were packed well and the package looked safe and sturdy …

I enjoyed this interaction and made a new book-friend in Mumbai … and received 6 books in really good condition … thanks Mr Ansari, but yeh dil maange more … aah yes, these are the 6 books … most importantly, two Lew Archer novels by Ross Macdonald, The Wycherly Woman and The Blue Hammer ... John MacDonald's A Deadly Shade of Gold ... John Dickson Carr's The Mad Hatter Mystery and The Curse of the Bronze Lamp ... and Jonathan Ross' A Rattling of Old Bones ...  

Secondhand Bookshops - Two - Best Book Centre, Lakdi-ka-Pul, Hyderabad …

I won’t say too much here and let the pictures do the talking …

Ok … just a wee bit, otherwise I will feel odd …

I have been buying books from Best Book Centre for a long long time … I visit their exhibitions at YMCA, Secunderabad, whenever they hold them there and after they set up a permanent shop there, I visit that too … but I visited their main shop at Lakdi-ka-Pul for the first time last week … I was speechless, overwhelmed, and never thought I could see so many secondhand books in two rooms … I went around, and every author worth her/his salt is represented there … all kept in neat piles on the tables and stacked on shelves … I am a total idiot … because earlier I kept thinking that LKP is so far away … I’d have to spend money on auto-rickshaws, can’t depend on buses, etc. … but last week’s visit was a breeze, the kind of first visit that puts a spring in your step and makes you want to go there again and again … there is a direct bus from my place to LKP and back … I just had to explore a bit, that’s all …

After buying the books (that I showcased in the previous post), I asked Mr Hamed Ali at the counter if he would be willing to send books outside Hyderabad if there are requests, and he showed me some India Post receipts saying that he has been sending books to people outside Hyderabad and he would be glad to continue to do so … so, here is the address and contact details … phoning is better … and then you can follow up with emails …

BEST BOOK CENTRE

# 6-1-70/1, 1^ST FLOOR, ABOVE TIP TOP DRY CLEANERS

BESIDE ASHOKA HOTEL

LAKDI-KA-PUL HYDERABAD – 1

PHONE: 040-24761428

MD. HAMED ALI – MOBILE: 9948118272

Email: bestbookhyd@gmail.com

Best Book Centre also has a website … www.bestbookcentre.com

(and if you found the info here, please tell him where you got it from … will get some brownie points … he he he … )

Sorry … wee bit went on just a weeeeee bit longer than intended …. and, now the pictures … I didn't intend to click any pictures, but when I saw these two rooms so full of books, I felt I had to take pictures and used my mobile phone for that ... it is a simple phone, so the pictures are not as sharp as one might want them to be ... but ...

A greedy haul of Macdonalds at Best Book Centre, Lakdi-ka-Pul …

There were supposed to be three more Ross Macdonald novels at the Lakdi-ka-Pul branch of Best Book Centre (which is actually the HQ of Best Book Centre), according to Vinod’s tip … I had opted to go on Wednesday to the YMCA branch to get Black Money, as it was closer … considering the price I paid for Black Money, I was not very sure about going to Best Book Centre Lakdi-ka-Pul, wondering what the prices there would be … but by Thursday evening, I thought, why not go and see (half the troubles in this world start with ‘why not just go and see..’) … so the next day, I took off in the late afternoon and reached Lakdi-ka-Pul … Best Book Centre is just opposite the Lakdi-ka-Pul bus stand … this was the first time I was visiting the Best Book Centre HQ and I was just amazed at the range and number of books that were arranged in those two long rooms … searching for three books in this sea of books was going to be a difficult task … I took the easy way out and used the search option (i.e. asked the person there to assist me …) he showed me a stack of John D. MacDonald-Trevor McGee books … no, no, the other Macdonald … Ross Macdonald … he then went to the shelf at the end of the room and plucked out two Ross Macdonald-Lew Archer novels and gave it to me … but there was supposed to be three, Vinod told me … never mind, maybe somebody picked up the third one … I was happy with these two ... for the time being … he he … I got these two …

  

And then the stack of John D. MacDonald-Trevor McGee books smiled at me … won’t you even look at the titles, they seemed to ask … how can you go away like that … by now, I was emboldened by the fact that the two Rosses hadn’t cost as much as I had imagined … but these were older and not in as good condition as Black Money … but I had some ‘unspent’ money and I moved towards the John D. MacDonald stack … just to see only (another killer) … and to cut the long story short … I just couldn’t resist … the prices were also considerably modest and I ended up buying 6 John D. MacDonald-Trevor McGee novels … greedy fellow … but what to do ya, that money was marked for books … if I hadn’t bought these books, then the ‘unspent’ money will become sad, no … dil ko khush rakhne ka jai-lib yeh khayal achcha hai …

As I was hauling the haul back to my den … I thought I should tell Vinod that his tip was good as gold and thank him …

Coming back from BB LKP; got 2 Ross McDs…who teesrawala ud gaya shayad…thanks for the tip…

Which two? Small hardbacks?

Ek HB one PB…find a victim & ivory grin…

The third one is another shelf.  Poochna tha na bhai.

Woh hamed ali se poocha, une yeh donon booksaan nikaalke diye…tumhaarse poochna tha…woich…

Asal aadmi se nai poochey tum.  Kya bhai aisa kaiku kar re aaj kal?

Galti ho gayi bade bhai, tengshung mein bhul gaya ji…agli baar yaad nahin bhooltoon…

Theekh hai.  Jaando abhi.

Tumhaara dil nahin, dariya hai, bade bhai…

Bahut khush hua main.  Kabhi chai pilaathoon.

My first Ross Macdonald - Lew Archer novel

It started with a text message from Vinod last Wednesday … he texted me to tell that Amitav Ghosh would be visiting Hyderabad to launch Flood of Fire¸ which was good news indeed … have to finish the novel before that, I responded … I’ll buy it there, Vinod said … and then off-handedly, Btw, saw three Ross Macdonald titles at Best, Lakdikapul.  Go grab them.  This was also good news!! I had sort of placed an order with another second-hand bookseller who said he had two ‘Ross’ titles, and said so to Vinod and asked him if he could remember the titles … he texted me the names … good, these were different … well, this was exciting!  Suddenly Ross Macdonald novels are coming into my orbit … will see if I can get off today early, I said … then Vinod dropped another innocuous bomb … reading all those Hammetts and Chandlers and Leonards have made Vinod very hardboiled and his responses are becoming laconic and crackling … Black Money at BB, YMCA, he texted …  What the kangaroo! How the hell did he uncover that? 

Anyway, that was the name of another Ross novel … I thought quickly and decided to go to Best Books, YMCA, Secunderabad, as it was comparatively closer … Lakdi-Ka-Pul can wait, for now … I searched for Black Money in the usual places and even asked that obdurate chap who minds the store … he uttered the name a few times and then kept quiet … I had no other alternative but to text Vinod and find out where Black Money was stashed … he helpfully navigated me to that particular shelf … I found a John D. novel first, I didn’t pick it up, as it would have compromised my search … and then lo and behold, Black Money was there … it is a good copy, but I had to pay quite a sum for it, compared to Abids prices, I mean … the next day, while chatting, I told Vinod that I felt like crying when I paid that much … Vinod said, it is a good copy compared to the ones I got. I had planned to pick it up actually but left for people like you. so no ronaa. Kismat samjho mil gayaa … Thank you, Vinod bhai … for facilitating Black Money, my first Ross Macdonald–Lew Archer novel …