Daily Archives: September 20, 2010

The Beauty of Old Books – continued

 in Books / Interesting by

There are old books, and there are OLD BOOKS. Have you ever noticed how the old books look so interesting? and how they feel? The paper is different. The covers too. Have you noticed how new books feel? The covers have ink that leaves some sort of impression on your hands. And sometimes worse, you leave your fingerprints on the cover, and it doesn’t rub out. Scary. The pages are….well sort of cheap? The print (that is font) is sort of yucky? Rough paper, dodgy print, you need glasses. You haven’t noticed? Well then, go then to your local big Barnes and Noble and check out “Anna Karenina”, “War and Peace”, “The Grapes of Wrath” – all of the editions you can find. You (hopefully) will see a good selection. Take a look at a couple of them. Feel them. Really look at the print. Spend a moment gazing at the cover. We will be discussing this more……later.
However, here is something to consider about old(er) books.  We have a few in our house. They are wonderful. Worthy of the words.

By M.O.M.

The Beauty of Old Books

 in Books / Interesting by

The Beauty of Old Books

Books are a wonderful thing. They are fun to read, they are wonderful to hold, and they are interesting to look at. But unfortunately not that many people read books anymore. In 2007 (I know that is a long time a in the past but…) MSNBC did a poll to see how many adults did actually read and 1 in 4 adults did not read any books in 2007. Click here to see the full article. Barnes and Noble has put themselves up for sale, why? Maybe they aren’t selling enough books.
But I personally have a little thing about books. It is not just what is in the books but what the book is. I actually do not like the feel of new books. They are sleek, and shiny, and the pages sometimes drive me nuts. I like old books. Or older books. Books that have been through a lot. If a book came out and was brand new and everything, I would still read it but sometimes the pages just aren’t so interesting. They seem too sleek.

So, why do I like old books.

1. They look better.
Old books have a different look. The colors have faded and sometimes if they are really “old books” as in written a long time ago, the format is different.

2. They pages feel better.
The pages are not as smooth. They are rougher after going through lots of hands. They may not be so hygienic, but they are a lot of fun to read.

3. Sometimes they smell better.
If they are not from a library, but are a book passed down through generations of your family, the book sometimes smells nice. Not nice as in flowery but nice as in musty and that lets you know that this book is old and might not have been read it a while and is welcoming you to open its pages.

Those are the reasons why I like old books. What do you think? Do you like old books or new books? What is it that you like about old or new books?
Books are a wonderful thing and everyone has their own opinion of what they like. So what is yours?