Aussie book prices suck

[samvara]

Those of you who have had the great good fortune to avoid seeing me in the last week will have missed a lot of ranting on the subject of international book prices. Have been reading, grumbling and comparing.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission report. The surveys confirm that in many instances Australian consumers are paying too much for their best-selling books and software compared with their counterparts in the USA, UK and New Zealand.

Top 100 Science Fiction / Fantasy list - price comparison.

Title and Author	Dymocks	Amazon	US/AUS
1. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien	$29.95	$26.34	88%
2. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card	$16.95	$21.69	128%
3. Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake	$44.95	$22.32	50%
4. The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy G. Kay	$18.95	$10.52	56%
5. The Vorkosigan Series by Lois M. Bujold (Diplomatic Immunity)	$18.95	$10.52	56%
6. An-ls of the Black Company by Glen Cook (Water Sleeps)	$17.95	$9.20	51%
7. Tigana by Guy G. Kay	$19.95	$16.08	81%
8. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burges	$17.95	$14.70	82%
9. Dune by Frank Herbert	$19.95	$10.52	53%
10. The Discworld Series by Terry Pratchett (Wyrd Sisters)	$16.40	$9.20	56%
11. Hyperion by Dan Simmons	N. A. N.	$10.52	-
12. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes	$19.95	$10.52	53%
13. Watership Down by Richard Adams	$14.95	$10.52	70%
14. The Stars my Destination Alfred Bester	$19.95	$13.64	68%
15. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein	N. A. N.	$13.39	-
16. The Illumi-tus Trilogy by Robert A. Heinlein	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
17. Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny	$19.95	$13.64	68%
18. The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan (per book)	$21.95	$20.57	94%
19. Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll	$9.95	$5.20	52%
20. The Intervention by Julian May	$22.00	N. A. N.	-
21. Feersum Endjinn by Iain M. Banks	$21.00	$25.02	119%
22. The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester	$19.95	$11.85	59%
23. The Gap Cycle by Stephen Donaldson	$18.95	$9.88	52%
24. True Names by Vernor Vinge	$34.95	$13.39	38%
25. A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge	$17.95	$10.52	59%
26. Doorways in the Sand by Roger Zelazny	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
27. Way Station by Clifford Simak (hardcover)	N. A. N.	$23.47	-
28. The First Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny (1-10)	N. A. N.	$21.16	-
29. Liege Killer by Christopher Hinz	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
30. Tales of the Continuing Time by Daniel Keys Moran	N. A. N.	$17.90	-
31. The Hobbit by J.R.R.Tolkien	$18.95	$12.64	67%
32. The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers	N. A. N.	$14.70	-
33. The Princess Bride by William Goldman	$21.95	$10.52	48%
34. The Quest of the Riddlemaster by Patricia McKillip (all 3)	$35.95	$14.33	40%
35. Memory, Sorrow and Thorn by Tad Williams (dragonbone chair)	$21.00	$10.52	50%
36. Ubik by Philip K. Dick	$19.95	$13.64	68%
37. The Last Herald Mage Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey	$36.85	$28.93	79%
38. Something Wicked this Way Comes by Ray Bradbury	N. A. N.	$9.20	-
39. The Chrysalids by John Wyndham	$19.95	$26.34	132%
40. The Fionavar Tapestry by Guy G. Kay	$56.85	$40.29	71%
41. The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson	$22.95	$14.75	64%
42. 1984 by George Orwell	$19.95	$9.42	47%
43. Persistence of Vision by John Varley	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
44. Expanded Universe by Robert A. Heinlein	$16.95	$10.52	62%
45. Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart	N. A. N.	$9.20	-
46. Dangerous Visions by Harlan Ellison	$24.95	$13.39	54%
47. Doors of his Face, Lamps of his Mouth by Roger Zelazny	$16.95	$10.52	62%
48. Dying Inside by Robert Silverberg	$24.95	$12.64	51%
49. Tea with the Black Dragon by R.A.MacAvoy	N. A. N.	$13.64	-
50. Replay by Ken Grimwood	N. A. N.	$13.69	-
51. A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller	$19.95	$14.75	74%
52. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis	$34.95	$36.44	104%
53. Neutron Star by Larry Niven	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
54. Endymion by Dan Simmons	N. A. N.	$10.52	-
55. Callahan's Crosstime Saloon by Spider Robinson	$15.32	$9.20	60%
56. The Dragon Never Sleeps by Glen Cook	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
57. The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov	$56.85	$30.51	54%
58. Futurological Congress by Stanislaw Lem	N. A. N.	$12.64	-
59. More than Human by Theodore Sturgeon	$19.95	$12.64	63%
60. Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson	$18.95	$14.75	78%
61. Dorsai! by Gordon Dickson	N. A. N.	$14.29	-
62. The City and the Stars by Arthur C. Clarke	$19.95	$13.39	67%
47. Player of Games by Iain M. Banks	$22.95	$14.85	65%
48. Lest Darkness Fall by L. Sprague de Camp (62)	N. A. N.	$7.89	-
65. Voice of the Whirlwind by Walter Jon Williams	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
66. The Cyberiad by Stanislaw Lem	N. A. N.	$13.69	-
67. The Once and Future King by T.H. White	N. A. N.	$10.52	-
68. Startide Rising by David Brin	$19.95	$9.88	50%
69. Palindor by D.R. Evans	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
70. Green Hills of Earth by Robert A. Heinlein	$18.40	$9.20	50%
71. A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin	$14.95	$10.52	70%
72. A Song for Arbonne by Guy G. Kay	$18.95	$13.43	71%
73. Good Omens by Pratchett/Gaiman	$19.95	$9.20	46%
74. Vlad the Assassin Series by Steven K.Z. Brust	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
75. The Empire Trilogy by R.Feist/J.Wurts	$59.85	$30.51	51%
76. Animal Farm by George Orwell	$17.95	$9.42	52%
77. Norstrilia Cordwainer Smith	$29.95	$12.64	42%
78. The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe	$19.95	N. A. N.	-
79. The Best of Cordwainer Smith by Cordwainer Smith	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
80. The Door into Summer by Robert A. Heinlein	N. A. N.	$9.20	-
81. The Lyonesse Trilogy by Jack Vance	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
82. Chanur's Homecoming by C.J. Cherryh	$13.80	$9.20	67%
83. Star Wars : Grand Admiral Trilogy by Timothy Zahn	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
84. Permutation City by Greg Egan	$17.95	$7.89	44%
85. Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind	$18.95	$10.52	56%
86. Picnic on the Roadside by Strugatski	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
87. Diamond Mask by Julian May	N. A. N.	$30.29	-
88. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams	$19.95	$7.52	38%
89. Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut	N. A. N.	$14.75	-
90. The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch by Philip K. Dick	$19.95	$13.64	68%
91. Time For the Stars by Robert A. Heinlein	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
92. Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card	$19.95	$10.52	53%
93. The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin	$19.95	$10.52	53%
94. Quarantine by Greg Egan	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
95. City by Clifford Simak	N. A. N.	$15.41	-
96. Gateway by Frederik Pohl	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
97. On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers	N. A. N.	N. A. N.	-
98. The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle	$26.95	$13.79	51%
99. Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey	$21.95	$9.20	42%
100. Exile by R.A. Salvatore	N. A. N.	$10.52	-
Average price difference	-	-	63%

Points to note:

1. List of books from googling "100 top science fiction books"
2. Amazon prices converted at 1.3168 AUD$ per 1 US$
3. N. A. N. = Not available new
4. Does not factor in postage
5. Where a series has been listed I have sometimes elected to compare a single book
6. Bold are ones I've read.
7. What is with people's enthusiasm for Heinlein? He's not that good.
8. Online Dymocks prices != book really costing that much and being in stock

Comments

[juffles.livejournal.com]

7. What is with people's enthusiasm for Heinlein? He's not that good.

He writes a lot about future societies where people get their kit off frequently... what part of the attraction aren't you getting? :)

[black-samvara.livejournal.com]

That might have been titillating 20 years ago but now we have the internet.

[cricketk.livejournal.com]

*cracks up*