# Got any books you just can't find? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 4, 2010, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910 "2010-04-04T14:51:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2010, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/1 "2010-04-04T14:51:37Z")
I want _Philogelos_, the ancient Greek joke book, but I can’t find it anywhere! There are a couple of partial copies online, none in my state’s library system, and the only ones for sale I can find online are either not in English or about a billion dollars. To show you what I’m missing, here’s a joke from it (from the Greek.): #234. A man with bad breath asked his wife: “Madame, why do you hate me?” And she said in reply: “Because you love me.” See! It’s funny! And all ancient and stuff. Anyone else got an elusive book? Or DVD/CD etc.? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2010, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/2 "2010-04-04T15:37:04Z")
The Last Dangerous Visions, by Ellison. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/3 "2010-04-05T03:59:10Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > The Last Dangerous Visions, by Ellison. 😉 There’s hope for that! (Apparently.) ---
**Author:** ![F.Pu-du-he-pa-as](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@F.Pu-du-he-pa-as](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.Pu-du-he-pa-as)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/4 "2010-04-05T04:08:44Z")
I work on ancient languages, and so many of the standard scholarly reference books are long, long out of print, this sort of thing happens to me _all the time_. I have designated book money, so the high prices aren’t necessarily what kills me-- it’s the fact that so many books are simply not available on the open market! For the _Philogelos_, I found a used Teubner listed online for about $70 plus shipping, but that’s in German, and not especially cheap. ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/5 "2010-04-05T06:40:48Z")
> [@F.Pu-du-he-pa-as](#): > > I work on ancient languages, and so many of the standard scholarly reference books are long, long out of print, this sort of thing happens to me _all the time_. I have designated book money, so the high prices aren’t necessarily what kills me-- it’s the fact that so many books are simply not available on the open market! > > For the _Philogelos_, I found a used Teubner listed online for about $70 plus shipping, but that’s in German, and not especially cheap. ☹ Makes one want to start a press. I think for my part it’s Athena punishing me for not taking Greek at uni and opting for the easier options like Latin and various English-language ancient literature courses. (And ultimately abandoning the whole discipline for History.) Damn grudge holding Olympians! ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/6 "2010-04-05T08:14:19Z")
There’s a book on the East India Company called _The Honourable Company_ which appears to be about the _only_ fairly comprehensive overview of the EIC and their activities- but it’s out of print and completely unavailable anywhere, as far as I can tell. ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/7 "2010-04-05T09:19:43Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > There’s a book on the East India Company called _The Honourable Company_ which appears to be about the _only_ fairly comprehensive overview of the EIC and their activities- but it’s out of print and completely unavailable anywhere, as far as I can tell. Hey, look! I searched for you, out of curiosity… The guys ship from the UK: > **[Pardon our interruption...](https://www.ebay.com.au/splashui/challenge?ap=1&appName=orch&ru=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com.au%2Fitm%2FThe-Honourable-Company-History-of-the-English-East-Ind_W0QQitemZ280410702296QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Nonfiction_Book%3Fhash%3Ditem4149c7c1d8&iid=21870166-b7c4-4a56-9205-922a43056e57&iim=kMTg0LjE&iia=ohEwNS45kB&iiz=jCXOS4xMDA*Gkr)** > **[Pardon our interruption...](https://www.ebay.com.au/splashui/challenge?ap=1&appName=orch&ru=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com.au%2Fitm%2FThe-Honourable-Company-History-of-the-English-East-Ind_W0QQitemZ220496358993QQcmdZViewItemQQptZFiction%3Fhash%3Ditem33569b6e51&iid=df711bb2-0804-4b24-b42a-cfb79b95e7ce&iim=JMTg0LjF&iia=BlEwNS45BM&iiz=NVrOS4xMDA*DHj)** This one is cheapest and ships from the US: > **[Pardon our interruption...](https://www.ebay.com.au/splashui/challenge?ap=1&appName=orch&ru=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com.au%2Fitm%2FThe-Honourable-Company-A-History-of-the-English-East-I_W0QQitemZ380220556197QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Nonfiction_Book%3Fhash%3Ditem5886e943a5&iid=ffd6b2df-1bb5-4ef9-8fcd-ee7bca16aa0a&iim=vMTg0Ljs&iia=pEEwNS45wm&iiz=xKaOS4xMDA*Etj)** abebooks is usually pretty good for these things, too. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/8 "2010-04-05T10:16:10Z")
Well, I might as throw this one in here since it’s a recent loss - _To The New Generation_ (К новому поколению), a collection of essays and speeches by Nikolai Bukharin. Bought it in Russia when I was in St. Petersburg, and it got a bad case of mold so I finally had to throw it out. Never got to read it, and all the websites I’ve found it on indicate they don’t have any in stock. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/9 "2010-04-05T10:38:13Z")
> [@wombatinspats](#): > > Hey, look! I searched for you, out of curiosity… > > The guys ship from the UK: > [http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Honourable-Company-History-of-the-English-East-Ind\_W0QQitemZ280410702296QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS\_Nonfiction\_Book?hash=item4149c7c1d8](http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Honourable-Company-History-of-the-English-East-Ind_W0QQitemZ280410702296QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Nonfiction_Book?hash=item4149c7c1d8) > > [http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Honourable-Company-History-of-the-English-East-Ind\_W0QQitemZ220496358993QQcmdZViewItemQQptZFiction?hash=item33569b6e51](http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Honourable-Company-History-of-the-English-East-Ind_W0QQitemZ220496358993QQcmdZViewItemQQptZFiction?hash=item33569b6e51) > > This one is cheapest and ships from the US: > [Pardon our interruption...](http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Honourable-Company-A-History-of-the-English-East-I_W0QQitemZ380220556197QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Nonfiction_Book?hash=item5886e943a5) > > abebooks is usually pretty good for these things, too. Thanks for the links! I don’t use eBay (I know entirely too many people who’ve had problems there) but I’ll check abebooks out… ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/10 "2010-04-05T15:20:40Z")
The Occult and the Third Reich by Jean-Michel Angebert ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/11 "2010-04-05T15:37:03Z")
> [@wombatinspats](#): > > I think for my part it’s Athena punishing me for not taking Greek at uni and opting for the easier options like Latin and various English-language ancient literature courses. (And ultimately abandoning the whole discipline for History.) Damn grudge holding Olympians! You’ve done nothing that a few thigh-bone offerings and/or a small temple can’t fix. ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/12 "2010-04-05T15:50:25Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > You’ve done nothing that a few thigh-bone offerings and/or a small temple can’t fix. As risk of using an emoticon, 😃 ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/13 "2010-04-05T15:51:34Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > Thanks for the links! I don’t use eBay (I know entirely too many people who’ve had problems there) but I’ll check abebooks out… No worries…there are billions of copies at abebooks. I shall correct my slight hyperbole. There are 31. Some relatively cheap! ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/14 "2010-04-05T15:56:02Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > The Occult and the Third Reich by Jean-Michel Angebert I am the book fairy! Fairly dear ebay copy: [http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Occult-and-the-Third-Reich-The-Mystical-Origins-of\_W0QQitemZ380188617073QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS\_Nonfiction\_Book?hash=item588501e971](http://cgi.ebay.com.au/The-Occult-and-the-Third-Reich-The-Mystical-Origins-of_W0QQitemZ380188617073QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Nonfiction_Book?hash=item588501e971) abebooks search yielding varied results: > **[The Occult and the Third Reich by Jean Michel Angebert - AbeBooks](https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?an=Jean-Michel%2BAngebert&fromanz=fromanz&sortby=93&sts=t&tn=the%2BOccult%2Band%2Bthe%2BThird%2BReich&x=0&y=0)** > > The Occult and the Third Reich: The Mystical Origins of Nazism and the Search for the Holy Grail by Angebert, Jean-Michel; Lewis A.M. Sumberg \[transl.\] and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at AbeBooks.com. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/15 "2010-04-05T16:19:18Z")
> [@wombatinspats](#): > > There’s hope for that! (Apparently.) Really? What kind of hope? I was there when Ellison first started soliciting stories for his new anthology. A good friend of mine sold him the very first story bought for the book. I’ve been watching the progress closely for 38 years. What don’t I know about what’s changed? Anyway, the book I want is the Gnome Press trade paperback edition of Clifford Simak’s Cosmic Engineers. Not available anywhere from anyone at any price. ---
**Author:** ![wombatinspats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ce7236/32.png) [@wombatinspats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wombatinspats)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2010, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/16 "2010-04-05T21:37:37Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Really? What kind of hope? > > I was there when Ellison first started soliciting stories for his new anthology. A good friend of mine sold him the very first story bought for the book. I’ve been watching the progress closely for 38 years. > > What don’t I know about what’s changed? > > Anyway, the book I want is the Gnome Press trade paperback edition of Clifford Simak’s Cosmic Engineers. Not available anywhere from anyone at any price. I don’t doubt your Ellison-qualifications but thanks for getting into them anyway. 😛 I’d never heard of it, Googled it, found some dubious claim that he still wants to publish it, and mentioned it. I thought it was equivalent to hope. The end! ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2010, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/17 "2010-04-06T18:36:07Z")
The Dune Encyclopedia Thank you ---
**Author:** ![infinitii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e8c25b/32.png) [@infinitii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/infinitii)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2010, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/18 "2010-04-06T23:00:16Z")
I’ve been looking for René Brus’s _De juwelen van het Huis Oranje-Nassau_ for a while with no luck. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2010, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/19 "2010-04-06T23:12:53Z")
I loaned out the Dune Encyclopedia back in high school and never got it back. _Phineas Finn_ is lurking around my house somewhere, but I have no idea where. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2010, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910/20 "2010-04-07T05:59:21Z")
Back in the late 60s I had a book called \*See the Merino Standing There with His Long Hair. \*It apparently was originated by the \*Harvard Lampoon. \*I’m finding reference to it via Google, but no way to find the book itself. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/got-any-books-you-just-cant-find/534910.md?page=2)