The Equestrian Book Society

[Volvic]

I get one of the Equestrian Book Society's leaflets with every horse magazine I buy & they seem to have some very good offers on, but my mum has always told me that things like that are a con.

I was wondering if anyone has ever joined it & if so was it worth it? Did you have any problems? I would also like other people's opinions on it.

Thanks

[Stella2]

Book clubs are not usually a con, but you do need to take account of the small print as it will require you to buy a certain number of their books at full price over the course of your first years membership. I you don't want or can't afford all of the books, it will then seem not so good value.

[Ginger Thing]

I've just cancelled my membership, as I never seem to have time to read the books!
It's not a con, just bear in mind that the introductory offer will be an absolute bargain, but then you will have to buy another 4 or so books from the next few magazines to fulfill the membership commitment. If you would normally buy £15-20 books, then that's fine - the books do have a discount, but by the time the postage is added on, they cost nearly as much as they would from a shop.

I've had some really good books from them, and it still works out cheaper in the long run because of the huge savings on the introductory offer. I just need to read and put into practice all the ones I've already got!

You will often see these books for sale on Ebay - people must join, get the books for peanuts and then sell them.

[Wally]

I was a member once and found that the book choice was quite small. The "sprat to catch a mackerel" opening offers are tempting. If you don't want anything they have to offer each quarter they send you thier own choice and you HAVE to pay for it as it's in the agreement, If it's a book about showjumping and you don't jump, won't jump, can't jump then it's a bit of a waste of money.

I'd rather buy a bok from my local shop or order it from Amazon as I need them.

[augermoon]

I am a member and have been pretty pleased with the service. I agree that the book choice in the magazine can be quite limited, but I have emailed them in the past asking them to source a book other than those in the magazine, and they have always obliged and managed to find the book I want. Also you can order from previous issues if you find you are torn between two in one magazine and then don't fancy any in the next one.

As mentioned earlier, you do need to be quite a book fanatic to get the most out of it - I do tend do order ones which look nice on my book shelf but never get looked at through lack of time.

[kyanya]

Do they have a website or anything? Any contact details. I did a search, but nothing came up.

I'm a big one on books, I can stick reading, and so it's a brilliant way to learn. I'm very interested

[Jamey]

Be careful that there isn't an 'editor's favourite' situation. My OH was a member of a book club and they would automatically send him the editors favourite (and he had to pay for it) unless he sent back a form saying no he didn't want the book. The form had to be sent back fairly quickly and, needless to say, the form never got returned and loads of £25 useless books got delivered and paid for!!!

Grrrr.

He has now cancelled his subscription and keeps getting letters saying "New Offer - Become a member again and get blah-blah-blah-blah .......". Very annoying.

Plus you also get loads of weird junk from similar companies unless you remember to tick that box at the bottom of the form.

[Mazpup]

I just cancelled my membership too because I have so many un-read books. There is an editors choice which will be sent to you unless you choose another book, but I found there was plenty of time to send your form in (and I'm always late to do everything!) and they would take it a couple of days late. Overall I found them really flexible. I cancelled my membership about 5 days after the deadline and they had already sent me the book, but they sent an apology along with postage for the book to be sent back. In the end I kept the book as I'd began to read it! The initial offer is very good value for money and although there are discounts in the monthly magazine, the expensive postage normally balances it out so you end up paying the normal price.
All in all I'd say it's good if you want to expand your equestrian library, aren't particularly keen at ordering off the net and don't have any good horsey bookshops nearby.

[Volvic]

Kyana - buy any horse magazine & there will be one of their leaflets in it (along with an E&L leaflet & a scratchcard that you win every time on!). Well there is in Your Horse anyway.

Thanks for all your replies - they're more positive than I was expecting. I may well join as I would like to expand my equestrian library, but also, I have a friend that would buy a book if I didnt want one so between us, we should be able to make up the requirements!

Anyone else?

[intouch]

I've joined it loads of times - my bookcase is full to busting, can't say I've read every single one, but they are great for reference. Join, get the best deal, stay for your required 4 books then cancel - then you can rejoin and get another 4 cheapies. If you remember to phone as soon as you get the mailing - there's always something interesting, or buy a cheapie for a present. My problem is there's not much left that I havn't already got!

[Lucy J]

i joined for a few years and have some pretty good books, I cancelled after a few years as there was nothing much else i needed. they only sent the editors choice if you didn't order one, and were quite happy to cancel my subscription when i asked.

the books were always a good price and equestrian books are ones you just don't find in the shops!

[bexj]

try instead......

www.equestrianbooksandvideos.com

its not a book club - just a regular on-line store. The choice is amazing, the deliveries were accurate and on time, and the one occasion I needed to call to ask them something, I was dealt with in a very polite and professional manner, and my query was sorted immediately.

You are not tied to buying x amount of books per month either!

[LindaAd]

I think it's worth joining for a while, if you like books and you're disciplined enough to keep sending the forms back. But if you get a book you don't want, you can send it back and it only costs you the postage. I got some really good books that way.