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104th out of 265 books
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1,356 voters
Forgotten Bookmarks: A Bookseller's Collection of Odd Things Lost Between the Pages
by
Michael Popek (Goodreads Author)
It's happened to all of us: we're reading a book, something interrupts us, and we grab the closest thing at hand to mark our spot. It could be a train ticket, a letter, an advertisement, a photograph, or a four-leaf clover. Eventually the book finds its way into the world-a library, a flea market, other people's bookshelves, or to a used bookstore. But what becomes of thos...more
Hardcover, 182 pages
Published
November 1st 2011
by Perigee Trade
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This is a pictorial collection of items found in used books. Michael Popek runs a used bookshop in New York and started keeping a blog about the odd items he found in books, such as personal letters, photographs, drawings, poems, receipts, dog tags (!) and even some money. I spent an enjoyable 20 minutes paging through this book.
We’ve all done it without a thought. Before pausing in a book, we grab what is nearest and put it between the pages. Maybe it serves as a bookmark for our reading’s duration, or maybe we never pick up the book again. Either way, the erstwhile bookmark stays with the book. Then the book leaves us with that serendipitous bit still resting inside, only to eventually find its way to another owner.
Michael Popek’s Forgotten Bookmarks is an illustrated collection of what Popek has found tucked within b...more
Michael Popek’s Forgotten Bookmarks is an illustrated collection of what Popek has found tucked within b...more
This is a book from the guy who blogs about the "weird" things he finds in books as a bookseller. And yet, the things he chooses to highlight in this book are a bit, well, boring. BORING. It is broken into sections and organized well, but lacks contemporary entries. Working in a library, we are often amazed at what we find in the books and none of it is boring. I think this is too serious of an effort.
Here are some of the items I have found in books returned to the library where I work:
-teenage...more
Here are some of the items I have found in books returned to the library where I work:
-teenage...more
12 likes · like · see review
I received this book as an early Christmas gift from my girlfriend the other day after hinting about it for awhile. After discovering Michael's "Forgotten Bookmarks" blog sometime over the summer, I wanted nothing more than to get this book. I always enjoyed logging into facebook or pulling up the blog and seeing another "bookmark" found that day. It is also great to see that I am not the only one interested in what is left in books from previous owners. Not too long before finding the blog, I c...more
This includes a cemetery girl photo, a photo of a woman reading, and a photo of a closed coffin, all found in old books, if you know me, you know I love this stuff! This is an amazing book that reminds me of all the interesting things I've found in old books! I could write a long review of this, but I'll just say, this book is fantastic and if you love old books, you have to read this! I hope there are more books like this! The past is fascinating and is more so when there's mystery and unanswer...more
Bookseller Michael Popek often finds odd items that were once used as bookmarks in the books he handles as a bookseller. After finding a marijuana leave used as a bookmark in a cookbook and sharing a photo of this with friends decided in 2007 to start a blog (http://www.forgottenbookmarks.com/). This book is a collection of some of the items listed in the blog. The book has images of the “bookmark” and the book along with transcriptions of the written material as it appears and occasionally a fe...more
I had hopes for this book but they were mostly dashed with the reality. I found most of the entries not very interesting. As a library worker, I've found much more interesting things in the books we get back, or find in books on the shelves. Also in books donated to the library. I once found a matching set of his and hers birth certificates, obviously for a couple going to get married. I gave them to a librarian to see if he could find the couple.
His chapters are: Photographs; Letters, cards &...more
His chapters are: Photographs; Letters, cards &...more
This was a good book to pick up and read a few pages and see what kinds of odd things the author (a second hand book dealer) had found between the pages of books that came into his shop.
It was geared towards older things - old letter, old postcards and other ephemera. It's kind of cool to see an old letter dated in the late 1800s and wonder how long it had been stashed in a book. I also found it interesting to compare the dates of the "bookmarks" with the publication date of the books they were...more
It was geared towards older things - old letter, old postcards and other ephemera. It's kind of cool to see an old letter dated in the late 1800s and wonder how long it had been stashed in a book. I also found it interesting to compare the dates of the "bookmarks" with the publication date of the books they were...more
What a wonderful little find! I've had this on a to-be-read list forever, and while at work yesterday at our main branch, decided it was about time I check it out. If you love history, you'll love this book. Yes, there are some "modern" finds here, too, but the majority of the items presented here are from the early 1900s, if not earlier (some date back to the 1800s!).
Popek has done a wonderful job of simply showing what he's found. There is a picture of the item, sometimes a translation/typed...more
Popek has done a wonderful job of simply showing what he's found. There is a picture of the item, sometimes a translation/typed...more
Michael Popek has been involved with his parents used book store for most of his life. Over the years, he's found a multitude of bookmarks left behind in the used books sold to his store, from old photographs to letters, receipts, gift cards, and advertisements to razor blades. He describes the experience of finding these things as leaving him with "a lingering wonder, a sense of misplaced nostalgia, a touch of the voyeuristic thrill that comes from peeping into someone else's life."
Popek has sh...more
Popek has sh...more
I want to find a supply of old books and go through them for the same kind of treasures that this book seller found in books he purchased. People use interesting things as bookmarks. He found letters dating back over 200 years, photos of all ages including daguerretypes (misspelled, but oh, well), contracts, birth certificates, recipes, advertisements and so much more. One I loved was a handwritten invitation that says
Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
At 7:30 prompt on Wednesday evening be prepared to...more
Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
At 7:30 prompt on Wednesday evening be prepared to...more
I picked this book up on a whim from the librarians' recommendation table at the library. I buy a lot of used books and occasionally I find some pretty interesting things as bookmarks, so I was interested to see what things an actual book dealer had found over the years.
There were a lot of really interesting bookmarkers that Popek has collected over the years in this book. There were also a lot of kind of boring ones. Most of the pictures and letters from the civil war and world war II were rea...more
There were a lot of really interesting bookmarkers that Popek has collected over the years in this book. There were also a lot of kind of boring ones. Most of the pictures and letters from the civil war and world war II were rea...more
Librarians can attest to the fact that people often use many unusual and intriguing objects to mark their place when reading. Michael Popek has devoted an entire blog, and now a book to the subject. Forgotten Bookmarks: A Bookseller’s Collection of Odd Things Lost Between the Pages is beautiful book complete with images of some very old books and the remarkable items found within them. Photos, lists, letters, and recipes are some of the items found in the books Popek has obtained for his used bo...more
Everyone's taken a book out of the library and found something interesting--a receipt, a bookmark, a dollar bill. It's interesting to find a piece of someone's life, especially someone who has something in common with you. This book is a collection of those pieces of people's lives, in the form of letters, receipts, photographs, and odd things like four leaf clovers and razor blades.
I was extremely fascinated with this book, as I keep things found in library books. Some were more interesting tha
...more
I am glad that I read the preface of this book first. The author (or maybe he should be called a curator) explained his background in books and his approach to this “story.” He was treating it more like a music exhibit and letting readers draw their own conclusions.
Not only was I fascinated by what people had used for bookmarks, but it was more interesting to see the book it matched up to. It made me think of all the bizarre and unusual things I have used for bookmarks over the years.
Most of th...more
Not only was I fascinated by what people had used for bookmarks, but it was more interesting to see the book it matched up to. It made me think of all the bizarre and unusual things I have used for bookmarks over the years.
Most of th...more
This book intrigued me, having worked in a used book store before, and having been in the antiques business. It is a fascinating look into the past, at what ephemera gets left behind in books. The fun part was matching the "bookmark" with the book. For instance, in Freud's book Totem and Taboo, a customer card with rules and regulations for a strip club was found. This one made me laugh out loud. But then there are the heartbreaking letters to loved ones that never got sent, or the retyped "A Pr...more
6 likes · like · see review
As an avid bookmark collector and a fan of Popek's website I was given this book for Christmas. Michael Popek is a used and rare bookseller and he posts photos and explanations of the emphemera he finds in the books he obtains. This book is a compilation of some of those finds. Fascinating and fun!
This is a fun, quick, leisurely read that's suitable for just about anyone. The bookmarks used are often in amusing contrast to the books in which they were found. Some of my favorites were an awful recipe for salad dressing and what appears to be a sorority initiation hazing ritual instruction. I particularly enjoyed looking at the old greeting cards. Sometimes it was a bit sad; I wondered if the intended recipient ever received the item, or if it was treasured and lost. I once nearly lost 3 ph...more
Prior to receiving this book I expected to dislike it because of some of the more negative reviews I read on Goodreads. I won the book in a Goodreads giveaway and have put off looking through it because other people's reviews made me think it wasn't worth my time. This misconception was unfortunate because I think this book is actually a really great idea. It isn't really the type of book that you just sit down and read - it's more of the perusing kind of book. I actually think it would have bee...more
This is a small look into other people's lives. The author has found many different things used as bookmarks in used books. I was surprised to see family photos as the ones shown would be heirlooms. He found many letters, including one written after a breakup where the writer was very angry. I wanted to know why the letter was kept as I would have thrown it in the trash. The books the bookmarks were found in were also listed and the Bible was the most popular book to find bookmarks. The two wors...more
As a bookworm, I found this book to be an enjoyable way to spend an evening. Although I have seen the author's blog before, I am not an avid reader of it and thus I did not have the same criticisms of the items included in the book that others seem to have. As a historian, I loved seeing how the random ephemera of our lives can be preserved accidentally, although my favorites are when the "bookmark" had an obvious connection to the material. While I like that Popek allows the reader to interpret...more
1 like · like · see review
I absolutely LOVE it. I was THRILLED to find on page 133 a top portion of a calendar from H.A. Plumb from UTICA, NY found in Analog: Science Fact and Science Fiction magazine, June 1964...my hometown and I was born July 1964!!! I found it very interesting that there was so many BookMark items found from upstate N.Y., then again the author is from Oneonta. There wonderful, interesting memorabilia inside every page. This is not a book to read through once. I've picked it up several times this past...more
I loved this book! I've always been intrigued by the things left in books. I once bought a used book from a bookstore and there was a bookmark from another bookstore in another state. I wondered how it had gotten from there to here. I've always wondered about people's stories from what they'd left in a book. I had read about this book in the paper and just knew I had to get it. I liked the way it was set up-the item is shown along with the book. The author has deciphered people's handwriting and...more
That pretty much sums up the book. It was quite an interesting idea for a book, too. I certainly sometimes pick up random cards and use them as bookmarks, so I could relate. Different unfinished stories unfold throughout the book, which is divided into five sections: Photographs; Letters, Cards, and Correspondence; Notes, Poems, Lists, and Other Written Ephemera; Receipts, Invoices, Advertising, and Other Official Documents; and The Old Curiosity Shop: From Four-Leaf Clovers to Razor Blades. Som...more
Fun!
"It's happened to all of us: we're reading a book, something interrupts us, and we grab the closest thing at hand to mark our spot. It could be a train ticket, a letter, an advertisement, a photograph, or a four-leaf clover. Eventually the book finds its way into the world-a library, a flea market, other people's bookshelves, or to a used bookstore. But what becomes of those forgotten bookmarks? What stories could they tell? By day, Michael Popek works in his family's used bookstore. By nigh...more
"It's happened to all of us: we're reading a book, something interrupts us, and we grab the closest thing at hand to mark our spot. It could be a train ticket, a letter, an advertisement, a photograph, or a four-leaf clover. Eventually the book finds its way into the world-a library, a flea market, other people's bookshelves, or to a used bookstore. But what becomes of those forgotten bookmarks? What stories could they tell? By day, Michael Popek works in his family's used bookstore. By nigh...more
I recieved a signed copy for free from Goodreads - I was so grateful! Such a great gift to get in the mail! My mother found the package first - apparently she has been wanting to read it for months. So that was a nice surprise for the both of us. We both read the book cover to cover - a nice part of this is that it's a book you can flip through again and again, or share with your guests. I disagree with the reviewer that stated the chosen objects were boring - it's a personal opinion but I found...more
I really liked this collection of lost things. I found myself laughing out loud and being nostalgic about the stories of some of the owners of these things. I would like to know what happened to them and it would be a very interesting source of stories. It is really inspiring to know that books, not only hold the past within their pages metaphorically but also literally.
The formatting of the book is well done. The design of it is excellent, it is interactive without being overwhelming. I loved...more
The formatting of the book is well done. The design of it is excellent, it is interactive without being overwhelming. I loved...more
I wasn't sure what to expect when I first received this book but it has made it's home on my coffee table so that everyone who comes over can take a look at it!! I really enjoyed the book ... the short telling of how the author started doing this and a bit of his background which was interesting but then the fun begins. A couple of my favorite finds are: the letter to Babe found in "Fun in the Bed, the convalescent's handbook" and how it was written on the hospital notepaper and the part where t...more
One nifty little tome of but 182 pages.
Librarians and Booksellers will especially like this one as we inevitably find weird stuff between the pages of books.
I myself have found, among other strange and disgusting things: an allegedly unused (please, God, let it be unused!!!) panty-liner,
bits of toilet paper/ Kleenex/ paper towel, and a metal measuring spoon which was surreptitiously shoved down the spine of a cookery book by what I hope was a child who knew no better.
Michael Popek has discovere...more
Librarians and Booksellers will especially like this one as we inevitably find weird stuff between the pages of books.
I myself have found, among other strange and disgusting things: an allegedly unused (please, God, let it be unused!!!) panty-liner,
bits of toilet paper/ Kleenex/ paper towel, and a metal measuring spoon which was surreptitiously shoved down the spine of a cookery book by what I hope was a child who knew no better.
Michael Popek has discovere...more
1. I would have liked to have seen more quirky things.
2. There were many letters that I started creating a backstory and future for. I got really invested from just one letter.
3. I am a librarian and I started making a bulletin board called "The Archaeology of Books." I keep all of the stuff left in returned books for a year and then display them on the board. I have people tell me how much they loved that board and how interesting it is.
4. It was neat to see what things were found in what book....more
2. There were many letters that I started creating a backstory and future for. I got really invested from just one letter.
3. I am a librarian and I started making a bulletin board called "The Archaeology of Books." I keep all of the stuff left in returned books for a year and then display them on the board. I have people tell me how much they loved that board and how interesting it is.
4. It was neat to see what things were found in what book....more
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Michael Popek is the 34 year-old manager of a family-run used and rare bookstore in Oneonta, N.Y. He has been in the book business since junior high school, when his father bought a vanload of used books at an auction and decided to see if there was any money to be made off them. Since then, his family has built a successful used-book business that combines a brick-and-mortar location with an onli...more
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Jan 21, 2013 08:30pm