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I have thousands of friends. In my basement.
They huddle and mingle within hundreds of books that line the shelves that I lovingly put together myself for their comfort – and my joy.
And those bookshelves are jammed because I keep buying books. Books that I might never read ... simply because I will run out of time.
The word “hoarder” has come up a few times. Jokingly. Sort of. Which is why I was pleased to see a Facebook post this week by my friend, Ricardo.
He shared a quote from author and philosopher Umberto Eco (“The Name of the Rose.”) And noted that Eco owned 50,000 books.
Eco had this to say about home libraries:
“It is foolish to think that you have to read all the books you buy, as it is foolish to criticize those who buy more books than they will ever be able to read. It would be like saying that you should use all the cutlery or glasses or screwdrivers or drill bits you bought before buying new ones.
“There are things in life that we need to always have plenty of supplies, even if we will only use a small portion.
“If, for example, we consider books as medicine, we understand that it is good to have many at home rather than a few: when you want to feel better, then you go to the ‘medicine closet’ and choose a book. Not a random one, but the right book for that moment. That’s why you should always have a nutrition choice!
“Those who buy only one book, read only that one and then get rid of it. They simply apply the consumer mentality to books, that is, they consider them a consumer product, a good. Those who love books know that a book is anything but a commodity.”
I doubt I will ever have as many books as Mr. Eco. I know I have at least 845. Actually there are hundreds more. I am still counting.
I make use of an online system available through librarything.com that allows me to file or index each book by title and author and any other detail I think is important including a book review. I add a photo of each book cover also.
Most of those 845 books I have listed are books I bought since I joined LibraryThing in July 2017. (I frequent a lot of used book outlets.) Much of my library has not been added yet.
I don’t buy books simply to read them. I give them a home. Books are my friends. Not sure there’s a better way to explain it. I bring them into my life and they stand ready for me when I need them. They give me support when I need it. Make me laugh. Make me cry. Make me angry. Mostly they remind me who I am or what I should be. Stuff like that. Friends.
Some would call that a library, and I find I am often buying a book because it deserves a place in my library. I am building something for the future. Not my future, which is a dilemma.
These books will need a home someday. Most of them have earned their place in literary history, not a landfill.
I’d love them to someday be part of a different kind of library – more of a literary museum. Where they can be borrowed and read and returned with a personal note. Notes that remind us how books become part of our personal lives.
This is a fantasy, of course. I imagine most of my books eventually will join those many piles of used books that I search through.
Maybe that’s OK, though. After all, every stack of books offers a treasure hunt and discovery is half the fun.
• Lonny Cain, retired managing editor of The Times in Ottawa, also was a reporter for The Herald-News in Joliet in the 1970s. His Paperwork email is lonnyjcain@gmail.com. Or mail The Times, 110 W. Jefferson St., Ottawa, IL 61350.