Who We Are
A Brief History
Asia Bookroom (formerly The Old Bookroom) was established as a branch of Weekend Gallery Books Pty Ltd in July 1982. Since the late 1960s Barbara Burdon had been operating Weekend Gallery (as it was originally called) from a converted flat underneath her house in the Canberra suburb of Hughes. In the early days it sold only antique prints and maps and some reproductions. A chance buy at a local auction was the catalyst for Barbara's bookselling career. She and her husband Tom were attending the auction with the hope of buying some prints and maps. During the viewing they had also looked at the books that were to be sold. They saw a fine library of history, literature and reference. Although their intention was only to bid on a few lots of books for personal interest, by the end of the auction almost all of the books offered were theirs. Gradually over the next few years the books overtook the prints and maps as the mainstay of the business and Weekend Gallery became Weekend Gallery Books.
Weekend Gallery Books, as the name suggests, was open at the weekends and by appointment during the week. During the early 1970s Barbara bought a library of books on China. This marked the beginning of the emphasis on travel, in particular Asian, Middle Eastern and African travel, which is one of the most distinctive characteristics of the business to this day. As Barbara and Tom had lived and travelled in a number of Asian countries this collection was an exciting departure that they intended to build on. Tom Burdon was a marine biologist and his work had taken him to many parts of the world. He was Deputy Director of Fisheries Singapore and Malaya in the early 1950s and wrote a number of publications describing the fishing industry of the area at the time. There is a lovely vignette in F.D. Ommanney's Eastern Windows which describes Tom's work in Singapore at that time.
"...Tom was a man of great energy and real ability in the middle thirties. He had been in Singapore for three years, and in that time, by sheer driving and hammering, by ceaseless churning out memoranda, he had succeeded in building up an organization the value of which was known and recognized by the fishermen themselves. There can hardly be a greater tribute than that, for fishermen as a rule are apt to despise and resent anything in the nature of Government control or interference. But when Tom's contract came to an end after three years the fishermen sent a petition to the Government expressing their appreciation of all that he had done and begging for his services to be retained..."
The 1970s saw the gradual build up of Weekend Gallery Books. Barbara Burdon joined ANZAAB, the Australian and New Zealand Association of Antiquarian Booksellers within a few years of its inception and began exhibiting at the bookfairs run by the Association in Sydney and Melbourne and issuing catalogues. The mail order side of the business had begun. Tom's ill health meant that he could no longer play a part in the business although his vital enthusiasm, imagination and work in the first years were the base from which all else has grown.
In 1982 Barbara's youngest daughter, Sally, returned from living in England and Ireland. Sally had always been interested in the business and it was decided that this would be an ideal time to expand. Thus Asia Bookroom - then known as The Old Bookroom - opened in the Belconnen Churches Centre in July 1982. Since this time it has expanded considerably. Asia Bookroom recently moved into its fifth premises - 9 times the size of the original shop.
Asia Bookroom As It Is Today
Over the years the business has grown and changed enormously. Fortunately, Sally's husband, Martin Nagle, runs InfoMining, an Information Technology company which works with book businesses providing very sophisicated software. Asia Bookroom has been the happy Beta tester for this most comprehensive and effective program. If you are interested in software for bookshops and distributors visit
Infomining's site
Asia Bookroom's "sister" business in the Portland, Oregon, owned by Elisabeth Burdon, Barbara's second daughter, specialises in antique prints, maps and illustrated books. Oldimprints.com deals on the internet, by appointment and exhibits at shows throughout the Pacific Northwest of the USA. Please visit her on the internet at
Oldimprints.com
Our aim at Asia Bookroom is to give excellent service to our customers. We are committed to finding the right books for you and are always pleased to keep a record of titles that you are searching for. We take the time to check that the out of print books we sell are complete and to answer any queries you might have. We keep our records on the internet up to date by refreshing the listings daily.
We hope that you will find the time to visit us regularly, either in person or on the net. Please bookmark our site.
Barbara Burdon
Barbara founded the business in 1968, and her more that 30 years experience in the book trade has given her a vast knowledge of books - especially antiquarian books, prints & maps. Barbara lived in India before Partition in the area that is now Pakistan. She also lived for a time in 'Malaya' (as it was then called), and later in Singapore. Barbara is very widely read, with her keenest interest lying in the British period in Malaysian history - (Colonial Malaya), as well as the Holocaust and WWII (as it pertains to Malaya).
Barbara is Asia Bookroom's antiquarian specialist and along with being responsible for research and collation, she also directs our print & map department.
|
|
Sally Burdon
Sally, Barbara's youngest daughter, grew up against the background of a growing book business, meaning in effect that she was a bookseller in training from the age of 10. In 1982 after a period of living overseas, she returned to Canberra and started working full time in the business. With the many changes that the business has gone through (and the world has gone through!) since then it is a very different job. The internet has of course made a great difference and the change to dealing only in books on Asia made about 10 years ago has also kept Sally far from bored!
Sally has always been intrigued by the history and culture of Asia and the Middle East, and has travelled in India, East Asia & Southeast Asia. She is also very passionate about the multi-cultural nature of Australia today.
"We are so lucky to live in this part of the world, with the energy and special feel that our culturally diverse country has. We need to nurture this and one of the best ways to do this is by promotion of knowledge about our region and the people who live in it. As history shows us, time and time again, freedom and diversity are very special fragile things. We need to work at it and guard it carefully" Sally stated when asked about what the driving force behind the business is.
The events that Asia Bookroom runs on a regular basis throughout the year help achieve this end. Another passion is exciting children about Asia - and with the wonderful books that are now available for kids it is a relatively easy task! Check out our children's books to get a taste of this!
Sally is equally serious about bookselling as a trade where expertise is required. She is a member of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Antiquarian Booksellers (currently serving as vice-president) and a member of the Australian Booksellers Association. She sees the role of the bookseller as much, much more than just selling books. Advising general readers, collectors and libarians on the best title or titles is just the beginning!
Sally reads widely on Asia - fiction and non fiction and given half a chance will discuss her current favourite Asian books any time you call in!
|
|
Lynette Thomas
Lynette joined the staff of Asia Bookroom in September 2008. Her principal duties revolve around customer service and she is also largely responsible for the children’s department. Previously a manager with children’s bookseller Bookaburra in Singapore, where she lived for 28 years, she comes with 13 years’ experience in the book trade and a conviction that independent bookshops can offer not only the personal service that is now largely lacking in modern retail but also the breadth and depth of knowledge that book buyers appreciate.
She has traveled widely throughout Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. Previously she also lived in East Africa, and the UK. She holds a Masters in Education from the National University of Singapore during which she found that parents who read books with their preschool children were able to generate significantly richer and more complex language than when performing most other activities with them.
Besides reading, Lynette enjoys walking, volunteer work - principally with young people, and eating spicy food! Her first picture book for children, “My Day”, was published with the assistance of the First Time Writer’s and Illustrator’s Publishing Initiative in Singapore in 2007. She hopes to have more children’s books published in the future.
|
|
