Books

Saturday, December 6th, 2008

Love them. I don't know how many I have but they are everywhere. Yes a lot are neatly lined up on shelves and in bookcases but many others are on the floor, scattered on surfaces, stacked on chairs.... you can't move for books in this house.

Many years ago when in some nerdy mood, I had a stab at counting them. There were over 2,000 then so I guess by now , we have passed 3,000. I simply cannot resist buying them when they take my fancy. I doubt if fiction counts for more than 10%.

Have I read them all? Hell no! Some are not to be read from cover to cover but to be dipped in as the mood takes you. Others are to be read later. Some I may never get around to reading at all for others have taken priority. And , yes, I know this is a middle class chattering thing but a house without books is a desert.

Other people's bookshelves are a wonder to behold and give you a deep insight into the person you are dealing with. Many years ago, a friend of mine took me around to a mate of his, Howard. Howard had many books but his shelves confused me; there was a disturbing inconsistency that I could not fathom. Put simply, I could not understand, 'Why read that?' with 'Why read that?' - they don't fit. It's not a question of a 'Field Guide to Mushrooms' sitting next to 'War and Peace' it has something to do with patterns, I cannot explain it.

Later I gently questioned Howard on this and was relieved to find that his shelves were full of the books of two people - his own and those of his wife who had recently left him. Well that explained that.

And then of course we have the cookery book collection. Well for those that I know who bother to cook real food, they have a surfeit. So do I. I really never need to buy another cookery book in my life but I do cus there is always the 'wow' factor at a new recipe.

Just finished 'Nickel and Dimed,' aka 'On [Not] getting by in America.' Maybe, 'Constantinople' next - it has been a year since Nicole gave it to me.