5 February 2012

One of the perks being a part time college student is that you enjoy some of the perks given to full time students you know like movie ticket discount and the latest being this student book voucher by the government. While I'd like to thank them for the thought, it is ultimately our money that pays for the book in the end through various taxes. So this is not really a big deal.

Since we've already got our skimpy modules for our studies and we don't really need to buy any of those big heavy text books, I used the vouchers like many other students - to buy fiction books and stationery. Come to think of it, 200 ringgit is not much really in today's book market. Most of them started from RM50 and that will get you an average of 3 to 4 books only. I went to three major book stores in Equine and Mutiara Damansara to find something that I like. Popular allows you to buy books, stationery, computer accessories, food, everything except for prepaid topup. MPH would let you buy books and stationery but no magazines. Borders on the other hand allows for books and 10 bucks worth of stationery which is so not cool. In the end I spent most of my voucher at MPH at The Curve.

My 8 years old son got himself two books for himself. Me I had a tough time trying to find a good book to buy. First I wanted to get any of those Fixi books that was recommended by my Twitter friends. But since the vouchers came out, most of them were sold out and only a limited copy were available left. It's a pity that Amir Muhammad, the big boss didn't have the foresight to stock up on the books in anticipation of the rush to buy them. Total marketing blunder on their part. Other than that, I don't see much rational in buying Malay books. Many of them are either sappy love stories or one of those get rich quick books. In the end, another Twitter friend recommended Haruki Murakami's IQ84 which is a thick, thousand page book worth RM92.00. The other book that I got was Inside Apple which after reading 2 chapters I find a little bit underwhelming. There's little that I don't already know from reading Jobs' biography and other online blogs inside that book. Murakami's book on the other hand was sheer reading pleasure. I was instantly hooked after reading the first seven pages. Can't wait to finish reading them.

Hope that they will give out more of this vouchers thingy next year. That's the only way I'm ever going to buy books.