Baldwin's Book Barn (& Then Some)

Yesterday Nicole and I drove out to West Chester to check out the Book Barn, and man, did it deliver. This place makes Murphy's Loft look like a shack. The man who worked the front desk was wonderful and charming - exactly the face you want to greet you as you cross the threshold. I picked up an old leather bound copy of Far From the Madding Crowd which was previously owned by Elizabeth C. Smithers. She kindly left newspapers clippings between several pages. They date back to 1964 through to 1981 and are mostly regarding author Thomas Hardy but she did include a few on John Schlesinger's film version of the book. I also managed to locate a cute little travel book on Belgium and of course, postcards and pictures of strangers. (I was so excited to see that they have a small wooden box at the front desk with old photographs labeled "Instant Relatives" - more on them in future posts!)

After I spent the afternoon with one of my nearest and dearest I dropped her back home then dashed over to The Ritz at the Bourse to finally see The Broken Circle Breakdown. Yup, it was wonderful and even though no one wanted to see it with me and I had to go solo, it was totally worth it. I had seen Johan Heldenbergh in Moscow, Belgium, Antonia, The Misfortunates, Any Way the Wind Blows, and tonight I'll watch him in Ben X, but his performance in Broken Circle Breakdown was simply outstanding. Such an authentic actor. Who's obsessed with Belgian Cinema? Um, that would be me. But enough about my silly, little life. Check out Baldwin's Book Barn and I double dog dare ya to not go for a visit.