vilakins | Behold: the Book Seat!

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Behold: the Book Seat!

We went to Whitcoulls bookshop last week so that I could spend some vouchers. I rarely buy books unless I know I'll reread them, so I looked at DVDs. There again, unless I want to watch them more than once, I'd rather rent them. I did fancy Doctor Who: War Games, and would have bought it too, but it was twice the price of the other old Who serials there--and two thirds the price of a whole season of new Who. So I wandered around disconsolately, wondering what I could use my vouchers on. I was sniggering at a book of Barack and Michelle Obama paper dolls when I saw it.

The Book Seat.

I've got a lot of use out of it already. It's a great design which holds a book firmly and still lets you turn the page easily, and I use it on the table when eating and on my lap. It stops my hands getting sore when holding up a large book for hours and I can drink tea and read. :-)

Let Vic show you how it works. Once again, not posed. I just saw him sitting there and grabbed the camera.

Vic, by the way, is a very intellectual cat. He reads the newspaper, and also does crosswords.

The book is the hard-cover library version of Blind Lake by Robert Charles Wilson, and I highly recommend it. It isn't just excellent SF, it also has fascinating characters.

The cushion is brown suede and one of a set of three I bought. They're "Delta" brand which is very appropriate as they look (and possibly feel) like my favourite Vila outfit. :-)

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wow, I want one! Does it come with a free Vic to demonstrate it, BTW?
I looked on the website and they don't seem to do my side of the planet :0(

They do! I looked under "Contact us" and found this:

Emerging Products trading as
The Book Seat Ltd
78 York St
London W1H 1DP
United Kingdom
Ph: 0197 8715 073
Fax: 0207 9003 471
Email: info@thebookseat.co.uk

I don't think they stock Vics, and your furry little guys would object anyway. ;-)

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zoefruitcake - 2010-01-10 20:35 (UTC) - Expand

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vilakins - 2010-01-10 20:41 (UTC) - Expand

I've been thinking how useful it would be a work, when we are working from large books

You'll have to make them pay for it--and make sure no one nicks it from your desk. Or did you mean getting a few as shared property?

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zoefruitcake - 2010-01-10 20:52 (UTC) - Expand

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vilakins - 2010-01-10 21:19 (UTC) - Expand

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zoefruitcake - 2010-01-10 21:24 (UTC) - Expand

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zoefruitcake - 2010-01-10 21:39 (UTC) - Expand

If I were to get one of those, it would have to be the one in Shiraz Red *points to icon*

Of course you would! It's a nice colour too. I got latte because there was only one Book Seat in the shop from what I could see, but it's perfect for the living room furniture.

Edited 2010-01-10 04:06 (UTC)

I really must read Blind Lake. I liked Wilson's Spin a lot.

My immediate reaction to the book seat is something along the lines of, "Bah, the day I can't hold my own book...!", but I nevertheless have the suspicion that it might be one of those things it's hard to live without once you've tried it. :)

I already borrowed Spin to read.

And really, it's so convenient, especially when I'm eating or drinking. I never found a good way of propping a book up at the table so I used to lean over it. I do sometimes get sore hands holding up larger books.

Greg wasn't impressed with the purchase, but he thinks it's a really cool idea now.

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astrogirl2.livejournal.com - 2010-01-10 05:26 (UTC) - Expand

I saw them in another town last year and was tempted... I think I'll seriously look for one, quite a lot of my books are large and heavy, and it would, methinks, make them much easier to read...

You can buy them on line too. I'd certainly recommend it; it's really comfortable to use, and it's also very light so there's hardly any weight added to that of the book.

I already have a perspex book stand which is good for recipe books, but it only goes on flat surfaces, and you have to take the book out to turn the page, so I never used it to read from. This is good for use anywhere.

Oh wow. I so want one of those.

It looks as if they'll post to overseas. It's very light so it shouldn't cost much in freight.

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arenee1999 - 2010-01-10 04:51 (UTC) - Expand

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vilakins.livejournal.com - 2010-01-10 05:42 (UTC) - Expand

Well if Vic thinks it's a good buy...

It definitely is; I'm using it every day. I don't think Claudia and Tessa (my previous cats) would have like it because they loved to sit on me while I read, which meant I had to balance books on the arm of the chair.

The War Games is ten episodes compared to most four/six episode serials, so that's why it's so much more expensive. The bookseat looks very interesting and useful though. I definitely get tired of holding up books.

I wondered if it was that, but it's still expensive compared to the new Who season sets (not that I'd want to buy those anyway).

I have one of those. :) They are great, aren't they. :)

They certainly are! How long have you had yours? I note they don't seem to make then in purple. ;-)

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imhilien.livejournal.com - 2010-01-10 08:21 (UTC) - Expand

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vilakins.livejournal.com - 2010-01-10 09:39 (UTC) - Expand

The Book Seat

(Anonymous) - 2010-07-04 05:35 (UTC) - Expand

That looks marvelous--hope they're for sale here. And Vic is quite the intellectual--precious pictures.

arenee1999 says they have a location in New Jersey.

He is! He liked computers too (see icon).

Ooooooh, that is of the awesome. WAAANT.

*waits patiently until the price on the War Games goes down and how you will eventually see it, for it is awesome*

Isn't it great! You can also use it to prop up a picture to use as reference, though I haven't yet.

I can probably rent it. :-) I doubt any prices of those will go down.

ahaha, that's cute. Vic is awesome. I think I like the crossword one the best because it looks like he's holding the pen. Yay for Vila-esque-ness!

The book holder thing looks good too though not much use for me since I usually walk around while reading...Just can't sit still XD

I do get fed up with sitting too long, but then I get up and make myself a cup of tea or something (and I drive Greg crazy jiggling and swinging my legs while watching TV).

That does look useful for hardbacks, but how well does it cope with paperbacks?

Fine! I've read two in it already.

There's a stretchy cord you adjust to hold the perspex panel tightly against the book, so it's adjustable.

Edited 2010-01-10 20:34 (UTC)

That's a good idea. I'm always struggling to prop mine open.

Me too, especially when I'm eating at the table. I try to lean the book on things and it just slides down till it hits my plate. This gives me a much better reading angle too.

You can get them the UK. Since people are interested, I'll post a link to the dealers. :-)

Awww! He's going to have a job turning the pages from over there, though. Or maybe that's what you're for. :-)

I'm surprised he was interested in that book. There weren't any cats in it; just a minor hound.

I love it all!
Applaus for Vic the Intellectual! :-)

[Vic takes a bow in his best evening clothes]

"So easy, even the cat can use it!"
Interesting design idea, a bean bag "chair" for a book.

What's so good is how you can adjust it to fit the book, and pull down the perspex panel to turn the page easily. Great design and it goes anywhere.

That looks very cool. I may have to invest in one of those...I always like to drink tea while I'm reading.

Vic seems to be enjoying your book, there. :D

I've just sipped some tea while reading! It's also very light so won't add much at all to the weight of the book.

These look like a great idea! Thanks for the links.

And Vic doesn't seem very impressed with whatever the news was he was reading.

Greg thought is was a silly purchase, but I'm getting so much use out of it, and he now agrees it was inspired and An Idea Whose Time Has Come.

There wasn't anything about cats.

Glad you could get a Vila reference in there ... makes the purchase seem 'fated'.

Kitty photos are fantastic!!!

I've had those cushions for years. And Vic for that matter. ;-)

Ooh! ::sees brave new world of knitting and reading more easily opening up before her::

How does the page-turning work? It looks like you would have to lift it out of the perspex thingy every time you wanted to turn a page?

There's a photo of someone knitting and reading on the site, on the "About Us" page. :-) To turn pages, you just pull the perspex panel down flat; no need to lift the book out at all. They describe that here (http://www.thebookseat.com/getting_started.asp). The adjustable cord is stretchy so it's very easy.

That book seat looks interesting! Vic looks like he's very engrossed in your book. :o)

I'm not sure what he was looking at. Perhaps the stretchy cord?

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