The Unexpected Life of Books

A friend spots my book in a Napa bookstore

Once we expressed our ‘likes’ by carrying around a copy of the book we were reading, for our entire world to see. Long before eBooks, the internet, or even Starbucks, I used to lug around (so I could read at any opportunity and honestly to impress) some book or another that communicated my interests at the time.  Gravity’s Rainbow lasted for weeks due to its size and impressive value. 

Today eBooks allow for more privacy in what we’re reading (Can that explain the popularity of 50 Shades?).  It’s also harder or impossible to loan or give away a copy of an eBook you hope someone else will read.

Friends traveling in Napa Valley sent me the adjacent photos recently.  They’d come across an interesting used bookstore (serving to provide funds for a nearby public library).  They were surprised to find a copy of Right Now Is Perfect in the stacks. It was a pleasant reminder that physical books do live on in unexpected ways.