My books are not on display for visitors to do this sort of inquisitive questioning which is very rarely verbalised. Today I have decluttered the two book cases I own. One in a spare bedroom, the other in the garden cabin. I have books from my former career - theory study books and self-help books; spiritual growth books, writing books. I have long stopped keeping novels I read as I have never read a novel twice. Why keep them? I now take a photo of them and 'pin' them on my Pinterest board - A Good Read. I blog about them too lately. I then give them to friends or family who I think may enjoy them, or to the church for fundraising, or to a charity shop.
I have always loved books and, although I have read a few on my Tablet, I prefer the feel of a paperback novel. I like the cover picture and back page giving me a taste of the story inside. I like turning an 'actual' page rather than scrolling left on a screen. And I like bookmarks - I use them now I value books more; I used to fold the corner of the page down to remind me where I had got too.
If you buy a second hand book and find underlinings, stars in the margins, or scribbled notes at the bottom of the page, it was probably mine. Do you do this too? Some would say its sacrilege to mark a book like this but those who have used books to study, will, I am sure understand this. Having paid good money (and study books are very expensive) I take ownership of it and imprint it with my own learning or relevance to the essay I want to write. I keep it on the bookshelf long after the exam was taken and passed. I keep meaning to revisit its informative pages or re-read it, but I never do.
So now they have been pared down to a few favourites in each category. I'll keep them a bit longer, why I am not sure. There are books I haven't read yet as well, ones I mean to get around to but always see another one more appealing in the moment. One click on Amazon and another book is winging its way to me in the post. Or, on a visit to a town that has a bookshop, I browse the shelves, breathing in the smell of paper and bindings, ink and glossy paper. I so wanted to work in a library or bookshop but never did. Being surrounded by books brings a peace and joy to my soul. Time stands still and there is no rush when in Waterstones, W H Smith or a library. I try to use my library still but sadly I fail each time I enter a bookshop or buy from Amazon.
I grew up with weekly visits to Ward End library in Birmingham, a big old building next to a fire station and across the road from a vast park area that I used to frequent. It's all still there. I went passed it on a coach a few months back. It looked the same from the outside and I guess it still housed as many books only now there would be multi-national languages as a large ethnic population now reside in the area.
I used to take my daughter to our town library when she was little for a 'story-time' group with other toddlers. Afterwards she would choose 3 or 4 books to bring home to read. Do children still do that? The library is certainly a noisier place than it used to be; no-one 'shhhhh-ing' you if you make a noise. People chat and use their mobile phones in libraries just like anywhere else. Computers are available and on the top floor there is still a reference library, but this has less and less on offer since Mr Google came along.
Are you a book or e-reader? Do you keep all your books or have the occasional sort out like I do?Who is your favourite author - do you stick to one author or try different authors? Do leave comments below. Hope this blog sparked some interest?
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