This thought (doubles up as a book mark) was tucked into a recently purchased second hand book. "This Place is a mystery. Every book, every volume you see, has a soul. The soul of the person who wrote it and the soul of those who read it and lived and dreamed with it. Every time a book changes hands, every time someone runs his eyes down its pages, its spirit grows and strengthens. In this place books no longer remembered by anyone ,books that are lost in time, live forever, waiting for the day when they will reach a new readers hands ,a new spirit..." "The Angels Game" Carlos Ruiz Zafon.
I get a bit whymsical like that at the end of the second bottle of red wine. But part of the joy of an out of print book is that someone once felt strongly enough about the subject to write the book & in reading it, yes we are keeping the stories unforgotten. Collecting and reading old books is an honourable hobby for that reason but I believe that in the last ten years there has been a trend towards niche subjects in factual writing (which is fantastic) because of the availability of information on the net, the ability to locate information using the net & the ability to access archives.
A book is a treasured companian! I like reading out of print books and often wonder who was the first owner and why did they purchase the book. The internet was supposed to be they death knell for specialist subjects or niche books yet they still flourish and long my they do so. Books are part of my life I would be lost with out one or access to one it was something I learnt in my infancy and it will be there in my further dotage.
Hi Clive, Read that book and have the following one as well.. And had the pleasure of meeting the author who signed them both for me... Great read The Shadow in the Wind is the first one... Tom
Has anyone kept the first books they ever read? I have 7 and even now, when I see them in the bookcase, I can remember the pleasure they gave me all those years ago. Noticed that my Mum even wrote a Dutch translation above some of the sentences. Maybe she was trying to teach us her language after all. I can't even say they are second hand though, seeing as I still have them from new.
Clive thanks for opening up this topic. I like second-hand books because you do often get a glimpse into the mind of the previous owner: well-thumbed chapters or apt to open up at a certain page every time. It's a real bonus I think, if there are scribbles in the margin, or signed/owned by someone connected to the narrative in some way. I only scrawl over new books though. Has anyone kept the first books they ever read? Rob, I've kept a few of my childhood books, though the Puffin book I'd much prefer to show - Tale of Troy - is 'lost' in one of the kids' rooms. Here's my offering ... printed in 1969 ... not a classic.
