The book club and the book fair

[Jingbang]

Did anyone else have a book club at school? where you bought stamps for 10p and 20p (think they had a owl on them) popped them in a savings card until you had enough to buy a book?

We also went to a book fair once how it worked was you had to take all your old books into school and would get points for them 1 point for tatty rag books, 2 points for good condition books and 3 points for mint condition books then after a few weeks you would go to the book fair on Saturday and could spend your points on loads of books and lots of other schools were also involved, i have asked many peeps about this but no one has a clue what im on about, maybe it was just a west midlands thing?

[Richard1978]

Re: The book club and the book fair

I remember the owl saving stamps & the card to collect them on. My first primary school had this scheme.

I can't remember being asked to being in old books, but once a year at school a selection of new books would be brought into school & put on display. We could write down the titles of books we liked, & just after closing time we would buy them at a discounted rate, subject to parental approval.

At the other primary there wasn't anything like that, but about once a month were had a couple of leaflets for discounted books called Lucky & Chip (for different age ranges). I ordered a few books with them, & still have most of them, parental purges permitting

I remember some had the original publishers logo replaced by a Scholastic one, no idea who they were, possibly a wholesaler for schools.

[scooby365]

Re: The book club and the book fair

I can remember buying a pile of books at a book fair during my first year at Middle School, and then my parents receiving a letter from the Headteacher to say they had to write a cheque to cover the cost. Nobody told me the books were to buy, I just took the books I liked and assumed I could take them home Parents not overly pleased but they did pay AND I still have a few of them in our playroom.

[Richard1978]

Re: The book club and the book fair

I think I would still be on life support now if I had done something like that! ;-D

[Wil]

Re: The book club and the book fair

a couple of leaflets for discounted books called Lucky & Chip (for different age ranges). I ordered a few books with them, & still have most of them, parental purges permitting

We had the Chip club for books when I was at primary school in the early '70s. I remember it as a small b&w with one extra yellow colour leaflet. I've still got the three books I got from there - Flight of the Doves (the film had Jack Wild in it), Witches and a Dougal (from the Magic Roundabout) adventure. They're now passed onto my son's bookshelf

[Trickyvee]

Re: The book club and the book fair

We had the Chip club. I can't remember much about it except for a couple of things that everyone went crazy for - including me. The first was the Chip club diary 1986 that I think came with a free pencil and chipmunk pencil topper (how easily sold were we)? The other was the 'WHAM, the story of their life' book. Never has such hysteria erupted over a paper back book with about 20 pages in it. It was always sold out and there was a waiting list of about two months.There were bust ups in the playground over it. People were swapping half their toys for a copy. I was beside myself when I eventually got mine. The big draw was that it had the band's signatures in the back. We were all stupid enough to think that George and Andrew had personally signed each one!

[battyrat]

Re: The book club and the book fair

Cannot remember if we had a book club in priary all those years ago(1970's).I do remember being lead into the school hall by our teacher where they had a temporary book stall set up on the stage with mobile shelving etc and a table.I chose a couple of books from the shelves,and they arrived in class possibly several weeks later.Parants were surprised to learn that they had some books to pay for,and after some persuation by my teacher they eventually paid for them.

The strange thing is out of nearly all of my childhood stuff these two books have survived somehow.I suppose it was because my brothers and sisters had no interest in them,and they were possibly too small to be noticed by my parants and sold on when I grew out of them.I still think they are great little books,Planet earth,puffin explorer 3,and alligators and crocodiles by the scholastic book services.

The only thing I consider was wrong was that my parants knew nothing of the book stall at the school at the time,and should of been told before it happened so not to get a nasty shock of having to pay out for something they did not account for.Possibly just as well they did not know otherwise I would not of had the books.Still these books are kept pretty safe now,so hopefully they will remain with me for another 30 odd years.

[RezinaHamid]

Re: The book club and the book fair

We had the Chip club for books when I was at primary school in the early '70s. I remember it as a small b&w with one extra yellow colour leaflet. I've still got the three books I got from there - Flight of the Doves (the film had Jack Wild in it), Witches and a Dougal (from the Magic Roundabout) adventure. They're now passed onto my son's bookshelf

I just placed an order on Amazon fro Flight of the Doves and was just reminiscing the Chip Club. Googled it and found myself here. Does it still exist, I wonder?

We also had the Bookworm Club, I recall.

[RezinaHamid]

Re: The book club and the book fair

Books I ought from the Chip Club between 1975 and 1978:

So You want to be a Magician
The Picolo Book of Giants
The Dolphin Rider
The Usbourne book of Spycraft
Origami

That is all I remember, anyway.

What did others buy?

[Suzy]

Re: The book club and the book fair

I bought The Box of Delights from Chip Club and was so excited I took it out at playtime and subsequently dropped it in a puddle (I still have it to this day).

[havasack]

Re: The book club and the book fair

WOW!. Couldn't remember any book club or anything like it..................then you mention the owl stamps and it all comes to me. Shows you what you can forget till theres a trigger to bring it back.

[SteUK]

Re: The book club and the book fair

I remember the Chip Club well. It was always exciting when we got the new catalogue leaflets in school and we all had a look through what we wanted to buy. There was also the Lucky Club, which was for younger kids at school. Books I bought from the Chip Club between 1977-80 included:

The Magician's Trap
The Big Book of Secrets
Two Minute Mysteries
The Little Witch
The Star Wars Question and Answer Book About Space
The Chip Club Diary 1979 (and 1980)

Although I lost all of these books over the years, I've managed to recollect all of them from eBay and Amazon (except the diaries). I remember buying a factual book about dolphins too but can't remember the name of it.

[amethyst]

Re: The book club and the book fair

I have joined the book club at my local library.Where book lovers meet up once a month to discuss the obvious books,the librarian decides what book as long as there are enough of the same title in other branches for all usually there are about 12.At least it keeps libraries open which is a good thing to meet up and chat for company it usually about an hour.One of the managers came today to discuss 2 reading clubs a month also maybe a singing group,one branch have started singing ABBA songs I told the lady put my name down I am up for that lol