"Until then I had thought each book spoke of the things, human or divine, that lie outside books. Now I realized that not infrequently books speak of books: it is as if they spoke among themselves. In the light of this reflection, the library seemed all the more disturbing to me. It was then the place of a long, centuries-old murmuring, an imperceptible dialogue between one parchment and another, a living thing.."
Umberto Eco
There won't be much thinking tonight on Thursday Thoughts, but I did want to connect a little bit to Jennifer's blog where she is searching for a rainbow on the third Thursday of every month, starting this month with red.
So with this quote in mind I photographed part of my rainbow book stack and it got me thinking that these titles would lead to some very funny and entertaining conversations between the books when I have gone to bed!
Umberto Eco
There won't be much thinking tonight on Thursday Thoughts, but I did want to connect a little bit to Jennifer's blog where she is searching for a rainbow on the third Thursday of every month, starting this month with red.
So with this quote in mind I photographed part of my rainbow book stack and it got me thinking that these titles would lead to some very funny and entertaining conversations between the books when I have gone to bed!
What an amusing - and slightly unsettling - idea that our books talk behind our backs! But the idea that our sometimes whimsical ways of placing certain books next to each other would guide the conversation has me looking at my shelves with curiosity and not a little guilt! I'm a strictly alphabetical-by-author bibliophile, which means some of my books are in effect talking to their siblings, and in some cases with multiple copies, themselves! But there are few cultural, historical or even geographic connections to be found among adjacent authors...except for the conference of poets segregated in their own bookcase. Well, only poets can or want to talk to other poets!
ReplyDeleteI always laugh at your rainbow book stacks - it's a running joke in the library world, weary of numerical systems and categories, to sneak into the stacks and rearrange collections by color only...
Thanks for this post - gave me pause and a laugh!
It's news to me that people arrange their books in any order at all. Mind you I tend to have them in a 'sort of' subject order, but otherwise quite willy nilly. Perhaps mine have congenial nightly conversations as they are somewhat on the same wavelength.
ReplyDeleteI know it sounds like an idea from a fairy story, but I'm sure books talk to each other and I reckon they don't always wait until we've gone to bed.
ReplyDeleteYou should read Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series. The first one is called "The Eyre Affair" as in Jane Eyre. It takes place in the Book World and sees characters in books as real people and one change in a life affects everything that comes after. Demonstrates lots of literary knowledge and lots of imagination and results in lots of humour.
ReplyDeleteHi Fiona-
ReplyDeleteThanks for playing along with Roy. I love the idea of the books having a conversation.
When I was applying to colleges (too many years ago) I had a particularly tough interview with a graduate student. At the time, I was writing a lot of poetry. He wanted to know my definition of a poem and then looking at the bookcase, asked..."If I wrote down all the titles of those books, would that be a poem?"
I can remember exactly what I answered at the time but now I'm thinking that there was probably poetry in those titles!
Ahh G/TT glad you had a little giggle; but also went looking to see who's talking to who and possibly about what! It's such an eerie concept - imagine the whole library nattering!?!?
ReplyDeleteI laughed Jo - what, arrange books in order?!?! How novel she says! Laugh. I imagine if you have similar sort of books, then they would be quite happy chatting.
Annie - I know you know! I still love Paper Hearts! I'll have to listen more carefully thru the day now...
Thanks Wendy - yes the Jasper Fforbes books are amazing aren't they? What a great concept and so well executed; totally believable in a way.
Hi Julie - it's a fun idea isn't it the books having a chat? the red book photo worked well with Roy and this TH Th too - so all good all round. I laughed at the poetry in the tiles question...I mean, really...Go well