What was the first book you ever purchased?

A Nancy Drew novel. Too long ago to remember the name, but I remember loving all her books.

“The Universe” (a thin book for kids from a local planetarium bookshop) It contained some brief info about the origin of universe, galaxies, quasars, pulsars, solar system and each planet, man-made satellites, astronauts and the Apollo mission.
My love for astrophysics and astronautics started from that book and its going on strong ever since :)

I had read quite a few books before from the library and I had received quite a few as presents as well, but the very first book I myself bought, all alone, as a little shy boy in a big bookshop, with ten pounds in my hand and a popsicle in the other, was The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, which is fun fun fun!

Another vote for a Nancy Drew book. They were $2.50 back then, and seeing the whole collection on the shop’s bookshelf made me drool. @AmWiser A year or so ago, I rented three of them on tape for an 11-hour drive. By the end of the trip, it took a day or two to recover from thinking in the language of the day. I doubt many young people would know what a ‘frock’ or ‘roadster’ are.

The first book I remember purchasing with my allowance money would have been a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book, circa 1983.

cf. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choose_Your_Own_Adventure

I think it was a book about the life cycle of leopard frogs.
I had to have it!

I used to be much more into the Star Wars Expanded Universe, so most of the books I’ve bought have been in that genre. I think the first one was Rogue Squadron by Michael Stackpole.

It’s hard to believe I’m actually less geeky than I used to be.

The Thief of Always.

I’m sorry…we only had stone tablets back then. I think later scrolls came out…

Alien ( the novelization by Alan Dean Foster )

I grew up in a house full of books, and my mother’s childhood books were my primary childhood reading. Books were a staple gift at every birthday and Christmas. I was also a steady visitor to the children’s section of the nearest public library. So my own first purchases were more than likely some forgettable Junior Scholastic offering at school.

If you want to count comic books, it was almost certainly the then-current edition of Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories for 10 cents at Woolworth’s. One of those and a nickel candy bar took my whole allowance.

I don’t remember exactly, but I’d almost bet my current allowance that it was something by L. Frank Baum, Gary Paulsen or Judy Blume.

I had so many books through out my life, I can’t begin to remember which ones were given to me and which ones I purchased. It was probably a children’s prayer book or Bible stories.

I have no idea. Probably a Nancy Drew or a Babysitters’ Club, but that’s just based on what I was reading at the time – I have no recollection of it being my first time buying a book, just of the act already being regular.

A college text book. I’ve always been big on using libraries.

I can’t lie. Forever… by Judy Blume at a jumble sale. It was only 25 cents. I wasn’t supposed to read such books, as I was 10.

Comic books! My parents bought really good educational books for me and wouldn’t in a million years have let me read a comic is they could’ve stopped it but my grandparents would let me buy one of each off the 7–11 racks. They were .05 cents on up to .25 cents.

The first hardcover book I bought for myself was in high school, it was a book on Japanese woodblock prints. Before then I bought several books as gifts for other people. Books have been one of the top wanted/given gifts between family and friends.

I think it was either a Sherlock Holmes collection or a Nancy Drew Famous Five book.