Book Buying

 I frequently offer advice to those who have the bad habit of buying books. As a contrarian, my aim is to encourage rather than discourage your bad behaviour and I may soon branch out and cover other bad habits which are more popular. If someone is nagging you about your excessive purchases, read on.

What Books Are On Your Bookstand?

  That question is the first one asked in the series, "By The Book," which appears regularly in the "Book Review" section of the New York Times. The authors of books are queried about the books they themselves are reading. When asked about what was currently on his bookstand, the British author, Richard Lloyd Parry,  began by offering this useful remark:

“The books beside my bed are like the expensive, and suspiciously unsullied, pair of running shoes in the cupboard: an aspiration, and a symbol of the man I would like to be rather than the one I truly am…." He then goes on to name a few. Mr. Parry is described as a "journalist and author of “People Who Eat Darkness” and, most recently, “Ghosts of the Tsunami” avoids “lad lit” even more assiduously than he avoids “chick lit.” (See: "Richard Lloyd Parry: By the Book," New York Times, Book Review, Dec. 7, 2017.)

Books Are Like China.

   The Inn at Shelburne Farms in Vermont looks like a very nice place to stay. Apart from roaming around the 1,400 acres, you can browse the bookshelves in the Inn. Here is a description bibliophiles should remember when challenged:

“The Inn at Shelburne Farms belongs to a period when people had libraries, when reading was a central activity in life. It was how you got your information. I doubt the owners of these books read more than a few of them, but who am I to judge? Anatole France, asked if he had read all the books in his library, is said to have replied: “Not one-tenth of them. I don’t suppose you use your Sèvres china every day?” But they look as if they’ve been perused if not exactly read. Bound in leather, their fading pages rough-cut and tissue-thin, they have no jackets; their titles and the names of their authors are stamped in gold leaf on the cover. They aren’t just books; through the gentle weathering of time, they’ve become objects of beauty.”

(See: "Headed For The Graveyard of Books," James Atlas, New York Times, Feb.10, 2017.)

Books As Investments

   If you only buy new books from the remainder bins and old ones from your local Good Will, this section will not apply unless someone mistakenly drops off some incunabula along with the paperbacks.  I thought of this business angle because the value of other investments has dwindled, of late, and is likely to dwindle more. As well, I happened upon an article in an issue of the magazine Garden and Gun which was discussing a Sotheby's auction of rare and valuable books, many of which were related to hunting, and found in the collection of Mr. Arnold "Jake" Johnson, late of Bozeman, Montana. A large amount of money was spent at the auction. A copy of Random Sketches on a Hunting Trip Through Mexico, the Western States, and Alaska by Thomas Gilbert Bowick was estimated to be worth between $3,000 to $4,000, but sold for $4,750.  Those are U.S. dollars and this was a book about hunting. If you both a bibliophile and a hunter, you might want to show this to your spouse, whomever they may be.

Sources:

   At this time, the link to the Sotheby's website and the information about the collection of Mr. Arnold "Jake" Johnson still exists, but I will not insert it here. Just google his name for more information. If you do so you will find this article in Fine Books & Collections - "Americana From the Library of Arnold "Jake" Johnson to be Offered at Doyle," Jan. 14, 2019.

Although it is closed right now, we really should visit Shelburne Farms. 

The books pictured above and below are both by Edward Brooke-Hitching and someone said about The Madman's Library: 

'Anybody who loves the printed word will be bowled over by this amusing, erudite, beautiful book about books. It is in every way a triumph. One of the loveliest books to have been published for many, many years.'

Now you have two more books you have to buy.

The Bonus:

  You read correctly, I did indeed refer to a magazine called Garden & Gun. If you don't like guns, you can at least read about the gardens. If you don't like Southerners, you should know that this beautiful periodical is written by those who celebrate "National Seersucker Day" and they are more likely to be drinking mint juleps than moonshine. Have a look; you will be impressed: Garden & Gun.