Last week I was holidaying north of the border and we went by train, so I travelled light.

Instead of taking a car boot full of books I selected only one from my collection - Bech A Book by John Updike.

First published by Penguin in 1972, this was a 1973 reprint, and the slim volume kept me company on the trip to Dundee to see my nephew Adam for the first time. He is about 12 weeks old and seemed delighted to see us.

We broke our journey in the walled city of York after the lads requested a stop at the National Railway Museum.

Following a quick stroll around the magical Minster, I spotted the Oxfam bookshop in Low Petergate.

A glass case contained the 1946 edition of the Rupert annual in softback, although I don't recall the price. There was a well-stocked children's section and I grabbed a couple of Horrid Henry stories to keep the boys entertained on our journey north.

I also called in at Oxfam's other bookshop in Micklegate. This shop seemed even more packed, with some volumes double-stacked on the shelves. After locating U in the literature section, I found a collection of Updike stories in paperback called Museums and Women and Other Stories, which cost me £2.49.

On arrival at my brother-in-law's house near Dundee, I was delighted to find a bookshelf full of interesting stuff. The one that immediately caught my eye was a hardback copy of Nevil Shute's novel In The Wet. The 1966 Heinemann edition had once belonged to Cardonald District Library in Glasgow, where it once, no doubt, gave readers hours of entertainment.

On a day trip to St Andrews we saw students strolling around in crimson gowns. I was immediately attracted by a sign saying "Bookshop Open". About 50 yards down the street was Bouquaniste, which smelled strongly of old books.

I spotted a couple of Craig Raine poetry collections but was dragged out of the shop by my pizza-hungry boys before I could make a purchase.

Barnardo's had a strong presence in St Andrew's including a specialist bookshop. In another of the charity's stores I bought a copy of The Boy With No Shoes, the memoirs of Oxford author William Horwood. The paperback cost me £1.87.

Nearby there was a very good Oxfam shop, which contained some real treasures, including a first edition of JB Priestley's English Journey, retailing at £50. There were also some first English editions of Herge's Adventures of Tintin, from the 1960s, with the red binding on the spines.

As they were selling for £25 to £50 each, I didn't make an offer. As my five-year-old son pointed out, as he begged me to buy him a red nose: "Dad, we've got them already."