Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Books, Books, and More Books!

After getting myself moved back into my room last Friday and getting the shelves on the bookcase fixed at the same time, I decided that it was time to fill that empty looking bookcase up with books. Since I have a closet full of books filling it up was not going to be a problem!

"All of Grandma's Books"
Now I know that these seven boxes of books do not look like very much, but when they are all in your closet with all the other things that you store (and other people store!) you sometimes get a panicked feeling upon opening the doors!
After pulling the boxes out I began to wonder how many books I had.... Well seven boxes looks like.....

....this.... and....

....this.
Along with some that are in my other book case! In all I "inherited" two-hundred-seventeen books from my Grandmother!
As I took the books from the box I alphabetized them by author and then documented what titles I had by each author. Grandma never kept a book that she thought was poorly written so I should have some fun reading ahead of me.


"The End Result"
I had quite a time deciding which books I was going to display and wound up picking the books that I knew were good, looked interesting, or were so old that I couldn't stand the thought of them living in a box.
Most all of the books have a copyright date of at least 1945 or earlier. I found two copies of Ishmael by E.D.E.N Southworth, one of The Wide, Wide World by Susan Warner, and one of That Printer of Udell's by Harold Bell Wright all of which have been republished by Lamplighter Publishing! All of these books have the latest copyright date being the early 1900's! I'm thrilled!
As I begin the task (or pleasure?!) of reading through all these books I'm reading them with several things in mind. First of all, is this a romance? If it is, it's going straight into the ebay or yard sale pile. I'm not going to keep that kind of reading for I know these books will someday be read by my children. Secondly, is this book one that I would reccommend to others for pleasure reading?
I hope to write a little "blurb" giving my thoughts on the book and maybe a short synopsis of the story. I'll then place it in the front of the book so I know where to find it!! Given my "age" some things are more easily forgetten than others....... :o)

Lets see, if I read one book a week means I read fifty-two books in a year, which means I have four years worth of reading in my closet!!! I'd better get started.

3 comments:

Sarah said...

Wow, Ashley, you must have been thrilled upon finding some of the original books that are now being republished by Lamplighter!

I, too, am a lover of old books, so can understand your excitement! Have fun reading! And I am very much looking forward to your reviews of the books that you read. :)

By the way . . . I love the wood floor! I also noticed that you have a singer, cast iron, sewing machine stand . . . does it still have the machine with it? I have an old singer treadle that is so fun to use!

Ashley said...

Sarah-Thrilled is exactly the way to put it!! Amazed also fits the description!
Yes, we do have wood floors throughout the house. The upstairs floors are teak-there is a teakwood mill down the road- and the downstairs is a mixture of pine and oak I belive. They are all beautiful!
No, my signer stand is just that... a stand! Momma has one with a machine that sits down in it somewhere. As far as I know it still works.
~Ashley

Paula said...

Dear Ashley,

I love, collect and read old books too! You have a wonderful collection and arranged them beautifully. I love your idea of writing a "blurb" giving your thoughts on the book. I, too, am very careful about our reading material. Your grandmother was a wise woman.

Enjoy your reading!

Blessings,
Paula