Volume One Magazine Archives

V1 Dashboard: Sign Up | Sign In

Current Issue

cover

Read Issue #159

Opinions

Entertainment

Culture

Special Sections

Magazine Archives

 

All Issues » Issue #117 » Thinkpieces

January 8, 2009 Issue

Bibliophilia

my love for books rivals my love for, well, everything else

words by Amanda Schaefer

    Growing up, my house looked kind of like a bookstore. My parents are avid readers, and it showed.  A bookshelf was my most loved piece of “big girl” furniture – even if I did have to share it with my sister. I filled it with my first chapter books, Baby Sitters Club, and even books I borrowed from my parents’ “library” that I would insist on trying to read even though they were way above my limited comprehension. Perusing my parents’ shelves started my life-long addiction to bookstores and libraries.

    Thirteen years later. Anybody who looks in the bag I carry everyday, goes shopping with me, or walks into my apartment notices: I spend way too much money on books. My first bookshelf has been replaced by the biggest I can find for the least amount of money. I feel more comfortable in bookstores than I do in any other public place. There’s no social awkwardness, no special etiquette. Every bookstore or library has a different vibe, but they all are benevolent purveyors of my drug of choice.

    I need to confess something. I like Borders. There. I said it. I’m sure I’m not the only one (especially among English majors) who have been taught to disdain the corporate chain bookstore. But Borders is the place I go when I need something specific. Big, shiny, diverse, authoritative, it has that “new book smell” and all those cheerful baristas to make me coffee as I browse. The café provides me a place to read, and even better, a place to watch people read. Parents reading to their kids, teens reading Harry Potter, and my personal favorite, the weekly knitting groups paging through books of patterns. They bring to mind rival knitting gangs. At Borders I can read, drink cofeee, and if I’m careful not to flash the wrong yarn color, even knit.

    Now I’m not a book snob. In fact, I prefer used books. I like knowing that something I’m reading has been read by someone else, that it has a history. I still go back to the Old Bookseller in Rice Lake when I’m visiting my parents. It’s a typical small-town used bookstore – tiny, with one lady running the whole operation. They sell old Rice Lake postcards and bookmarks (the kind that are supposed to cure your dog-earing, but never worked for me).

Page 1   Page 2  

 

I Like This

Share/Save/Bookmark

Comments (2)

Rudy
08/21/09

Good article! I amassed a library of about 6000 books in my garage. I love books, I love to read them, I love to collect them. Unfortunately not all my family shares my enthusiasm. Recently I moved from Texas to Massachusetts and lost about a third of my books. It was heart wrenching, but I am busy building up again. Loved the article.

Ken
01/08/09

Very good article. Amanda writes with good humor and in a way that flows and invites one into the piece.

Post a Comment

 

Create an account or login to skip entering your name and email.

Allowed HTML tags: b,i,a[href],strong

Notify me of new comments via e-mail

 

Prove you are human. Type the numbers. Click the image for a new one if you cannot read it. Create an account or login and you will not have to do this.

 
Stories / Most Liked
Back Against the Mall

Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010

Back Against the Mall

Comments (1)

Not So Secret Society

Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2010

Not So Secret Society

Comments (1)

Writing On Your Own

Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010

Writing On Your Own

Comments (0)

Short and Sweet

Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010

Short and Sweet

Comments (0)

 
You / Reader Comments

I read this story while working at the kiosk I own and operate in the mall,...

Hilary
09/02/10

from article: Back Against the Mall

"Imma let you finish Justin..."

pookums
09/01/10

from article: Bon Iver and Kanye West Now Besties

Nice letter. I think we need to reconsider the lawn. At least at the scal...

coconut
08/27/10

from article: Reader Letters | Aug. 26, 2010

In a way I have heard his before. Freemasonry is not going anywhere an in s...

Bill A.
08/27/10

from article: Not So Secret Society

I love these!

dreenes
08/25/10

from article: Summer Snow

As a lifelong vikings fan, I can tell you that we have a leg up on our pack...

Jizoe
08/23/10

from article: Are Minnesota Teams Cursed?

Actually, Dave, in many Icelandic (ie., cold and dark) cities, they remove ...

juice
08/20/10

from article: Reinventing Barstow Street

Well, Patio Umbrella to you, too, Mr. Spams-a-lot!

MikePaulus
08/19/10

from article: Senior Art Students Fill Foster Gallery

 
 
V1 Insiders

Insider Giveaway:
Treasure hunting at Eclectica

Win a $50 Gift Certificate from Eclectica on Grand