Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Random House~trade (2001), Paperback, 384 pages
Description
"When I have a little money, I buy books. And if any is left, I buy food and clothing." --Desiderius Erasmus Those who share Erasmus's love of those curious bundles of paper bound together between hard or soft covers know exactly how he felt. These are the people who can spend hours browsing through a bookstore, completely oblivious not only to the passage of time but to everything else around them, the people for whom buying books is a necessity, not a luxury. A Passion for Books is a celebration of that love, a collection of sixty classic and contemporary essays, stories, lists, poems, quotations, and cartoons on the joys of reading, appreciating, and collecting books. This enriching collection leads off with science-fiction great Ray Bradbury's Foreword, in which he remembers his penniless days pecking out Fahrenheit 451 on a rented typewriter, conjuring up a society so frightened of art that it burns its books. This struggle--financial and creative--led to his lifelong love of all books, which he hopes will cosset him in his grave, "Shakespeare as a pillow, Pope at one elbow, Yeats at the other, and Shaw to warm my toes. Good company for far-travelling." Booklovers will also find here a selection of writings by a myriad of fellow sufferers from bibliomania. Among these are such contemporary authors as Philip Roth, John Updike, Umberto Eco, Robertson Davies, Nicholas Basbanes, and Anna Quindlen; earlier twentieth-century authors Christopher Morley, A. Edward Newton, Holbrook Jackson, A.S.W. Rosenbach, William Dana Orcutt, Robert Benchley, and William Targ; and classic authors such as Michel de Montaigne, Gustave Flaubert, Petrarch, and Anatole France. Here also are entertaining and humorous lists such as the "Ten Best-Selling Books Rejected by Publishers Twenty Times or More," the great books included in Clifton Fadiman and John Major's New Lifetime Reading Plan, Jonathan Yardley's "Ten Books That Shaped the American Character," "Ten Memorable Books That Never Existed," "Norman Mailer's Ten Favorite American Novels," and Anna Quindlen's "Ten Big Thick Wonderful Books That Could Take You a Whole Summer to Read (but Aren't Beach Books)." Rounding out the anthology are selections on bookstores, book clubs, and book care, plus book cartoons, and a specially prepared "Bibliobibliography" of books about books. Whether you consider yourself a bibliomaniac or just someone who likes to read, A Passion for Books will provide you with a lifetime's worth of entertaining, informative, and pleasurable reading on your favorite subject--the love of books. A Sampling of the Literary Treasures in A Passion for Books Umberto Eco's "How to Justify a Private Library," dealing with the question everyone with a sizable library is inevitably asked: "Have you read all these books?" Anatole Broyard's "Lending Books," in which he notes, "I feel about lending a book the way most fathers feel about their daughters living with a man out of wedlock." Gustave Flaubert's Bibliomania, the classic tale of a book collector so obsessed with owning a book that he is willing to kill to possess it. A selection from Nicholas Basbanes's A Gentle Madness, on the innovative arrangements Samuel Pepys made to guarantee that his library would survive "intact" after his demise. Robert Benchley's "Why Does Nobody Collect Me"--in which he wonders why first editions of books by his friend Ernest Hemingway are valuable while his are not, deadpanning "I am older than Hemingway and have written more books than he has." George Hamlin Fitch's extraordinarily touching "Comfort Found in Good Old Books," on the solace he found in books after the death of his son. A selection from Anna Quindl… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member John
A Passion For Books was fun: a miscellany of essays (short and long), cartoons, and lists about biblophilia that has, in some instances, turned to biblomania with some truly weird and wonderful characters who have dedicated their whole lives, and sacrificed all other aspects of their lives, to
The question all people with large libraries get is, "Have you read all of these books?" That, of course, is not the question, but it is fun to see a number of suggested responses gathered in these pieces. Umberto Eco, for instance: "I haven't read any of them; otherwise, why would I keep them here?"; "And more, dear sir, many more"; or "No, these are the ones I have to read by the end of the month. I keep the others in my office"! Thomas Wentworth Higginson offers his own approach, in a piece entitled: Books Unread:
"...that inevitable inquiry of the puzzled carpenter as he looks about him. "Have you really read all these books?"...Yet if you asked him in turn, "Have you actually used every tool in your tool-chest?" you would very likely be told, "Not one half as yet, at least this season; I have the others by me, to use as I need them." Now if this reply can be fairly made in a simple, well-defined, distinctly limited occupation like that of a joiner, how much more inevitable it is in a pursuit which covers the whole range of thought and all the facts in the universe. The library is the author's tooc-chest. He must at least learn as he grows older, to take what he wants and leave the rest".
Dr.Johnson's stock reply was, "Yes, and some of them twice". The author Chaim Potok's view was that, "If anyone asks you if read all those books, it means you don't have enough books"!
And the final word to Henry Holt: "Any man with a moderate income can afford to buy more books that he can read in a lifetime". Words to live by!
(Feb/06)
Show More
collecting and hoarding books. One piece, by one of the editors, Rob Kaplan, called The Ritual, describes the procedure by which the author incorporates new books into his library and his life; it echoes my views almost perfectly, and I suspect many others who have gone to the trouble of cataloguing and arranging their libraries. The question all people with large libraries get is, "Have you read all of these books?" That, of course, is not the question, but it is fun to see a number of suggested responses gathered in these pieces. Umberto Eco, for instance: "I haven't read any of them; otherwise, why would I keep them here?"; "And more, dear sir, many more"; or "No, these are the ones I have to read by the end of the month. I keep the others in my office"! Thomas Wentworth Higginson offers his own approach, in a piece entitled: Books Unread:
"...that inevitable inquiry of the puzzled carpenter as he looks about him. "Have you really read all these books?"...Yet if you asked him in turn, "Have you actually used every tool in your tool-chest?" you would very likely be told, "Not one half as yet, at least this season; I have the others by me, to use as I need them." Now if this reply can be fairly made in a simple, well-defined, distinctly limited occupation like that of a joiner, how much more inevitable it is in a pursuit which covers the whole range of thought and all the facts in the universe. The library is the author's tooc-chest. He must at least learn as he grows older, to take what he wants and leave the rest".
Dr.Johnson's stock reply was, "Yes, and some of them twice". The author Chaim Potok's view was that, "If anyone asks you if read all those books, it means you don't have enough books"!
And the final word to Henry Holt: "Any man with a moderate income can afford to buy more books that he can read in a lifetime". Words to live by!
(Feb/06)
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookworm12
Every single book lover needs to read this. No, I’m serious, all of you! If you love collecting books, reading books, wandering through bookstores, making lists of books you still have to read, etc. this collection will be a delight. I can’t think of a bibliophile who wouldn’t enjoy this.
It
There are so many clever book lovers out there and this collection highlights some of their best pieces. It’s a great book to set on your nightstand or somewhere where it’s easy to grab. If you only have a few minutes to read, you’ll find pieces to fill those moments, but then you can set it down easily.
“Dull books soothe only dull brains – a moderately healthy mind will be irritated rather than rested by a dull book.”
“But the vital thing is that you have your own favorites – books that are read and genuine, each one brimful of the inspiration of a great soul. Keep these books on a shelf convenient for use, and read them again and again until you have saturated your mind with their wisdom and their beauty.”
“It could be said that they are still people who consider a bookshelf as a mere storage place for already read books and do not think of the library as a working tool.”
It
Show More
opens with an introduction from Ray Bradbury and just gets better from there. There are bits from Gustave Flaubert, Umberto Eco, Anna Quindlen, John Updike and dozens of others. Obviously every single essay or list isn’t perfect, but the majority of them are wonderful. The editors blended essays, lists of books, book themed cartoons and even a short story or two in the perfect order. There are a few slow pieces (I’m looking at you “Bible through the Ages”), but most are well-paced and quick to read. There are so many clever book lovers out there and this collection highlights some of their best pieces. It’s a great book to set on your nightstand or somewhere where it’s easy to grab. If you only have a few minutes to read, you’ll find pieces to fill those moments, but then you can set it down easily.
“Dull books soothe only dull brains – a moderately healthy mind will be irritated rather than rested by a dull book.”
“But the vital thing is that you have your own favorites – books that are read and genuine, each one brimful of the inspiration of a great soul. Keep these books on a shelf convenient for use, and read them again and again until you have saturated your mind with their wisdom and their beauty.”
“It could be said that they are still people who consider a bookshelf as a mere storage place for already read books and do not think of the library as a working tool.”
Show Less
LibraryThing member librarymeg
This collection of essays, cartoons, lists, and stories about books, reading, and bibliophiles is the kind of collection that makes one proud to be a fanatical reader. There were essays that made me laugh out loud (mostly at myself), and one in particular that made me cry. I realized that my
Show More
obsessive need to own, read, and share books is far from unusual; in fact I am merely one individual in a massive club of the most interesting people in history. Bibliophiles unite, and celebrate your fantastic insanity with the writers, readers, and collectors represented in this book. Show Less
LibraryThing member WholeHouseLibrary
My life, validated in a single book! This is a wonderful collection of essays, lists and cartoons all related to my absolute favorite genre of reading material – Books about Books. I will grant you that a few of these seem dated, especially the lists and the cartoons and at least one of the
Show More
essays, but the vast majority of the essays are timeless! The range of subject matter and variety of attitude from Umberto Eco’s sarcastic How to Organize a Public Library to Anna Quindlen’s thought provoking How Reading Changed My Life. In between, there are several examples of well-written stories, both short and long, every one of them worth reading at least twice. Show Less
LibraryThing member bragan
This volume bills itself as "A Book Lover's Treasury of Stories, Essays, Humor, Lore, and Lists on Collecting, Reading, Borrowing, Lending, Caring for, and Appreciating Books." Which I guess about covers it. The various essays and snippets here span a period from the 1990s all the way back to
Still, there's some enjoyable stuff here. Robert Benchley's plaintive lament about how people collect Hemingway's books but not his is wonderfully funny. Although I think my favorite piece may be A. Edward Netwon's "What is the Matter with the Bookshop?", partly because it's delightfully written, but partly because I find its subject matter amusing. It's singing a very familiar tune: bookstores are not doing well these days, partly because people are so distracted by other forms of entertainment that nobody reads much anymore, and partly because independent booksellers have trouble competing with large companies that sell books cheaply as a loss leader for their other merchandise. What's amusing about that? The fact that it was written in 1921. Oh, the more things change!
Show More
Petrarch, but it seems to be dominated mainly by pieces from the first half of the 20th century. Perhaps because of that, there was, to me, a sort of vaguely musty feeling about it all, a slight sense of stuffiness, despite the humorous bits. I also can't escape the feeling that the writers featured here are mostly men -- and virtually all of them are men -- to whom "book" primarily means "leather-bound work of Important Literature," something that mildly offends my more egalitarian book-loving soul. For my personal taste, there's not nearly enough about the joys of reading, and a little too much about the joys of collecting valuable first editions.Still, there's some enjoyable stuff here. Robert Benchley's plaintive lament about how people collect Hemingway's books but not his is wonderfully funny. Although I think my favorite piece may be A. Edward Netwon's "What is the Matter with the Bookshop?", partly because it's delightfully written, but partly because I find its subject matter amusing. It's singing a very familiar tune: bookstores are not doing well these days, partly because people are so distracted by other forms of entertainment that nobody reads much anymore, and partly because independent booksellers have trouble competing with large companies that sell books cheaply as a loss leader for their other merchandise. What's amusing about that? The fact that it was written in 1921. Oh, the more things change!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Marse
I like books about books because it's nice to read about one's obsession, and partly out of curiosity and satisfaction that there are people out there who have this obsession worse than I do. People who collect books can be very strange and interesting. It's nice to know that my hoarding tendencies
Show More
are rather mild compared to some people who are only remembered precisely for their book hoarding, um excuse me, book collecting. This book is much more than just a collection of anecdotes, however, about these strange, but interesting people. As the subtitle explains, it contains essays and lists, instructions and warnings, humor and intrigue. I thought I'd read this book and then donate it so that this lore could be passed on and enjoyed by someone else, but I can't part with this book. It contains, within the essays and other wonderful readings, some very useful information on how to take care of your books, how to start a collection, what to look for, what to beware of -- not that I am that sort of collector, I can't afford, nor do I have an interest (not that I would refuse if offered one) in finding 1st editions, or rare and valuable books, but it is useful information for a book lover nevertheless. Also it feeds another, slight, obsession of mine. Collecting lists of books I would like to read some day. Some of the books mentioned in the various writings are not ones I've ever heard of, but the writer spoke so lovingly of them that I too want to experience the joy they experienced in reading these books. Show Less
LibraryThing member Cheryl_in_CC_NV
One of the first 'essays' is by the 2nd-listed editor, Kaplan. It was extremely boring, because just about all he said about how he incorporates a new book into his personal library would be irrelevant if he only used goodreads and wasn't a hoarder.
Speaking of hoarders, this and the previous essay
ETA done. Read much, including at least the first paragraphs of every piece.
Ok, the whole thing is full of people who spend more time hunting down first editions than actually reading. Frustrating. I guess, if you're a 'collector' you might like this book a lot. But, then again, I'm not sure why - because it's never going to be worth anything the way a first Hemingway is or whatever.
Two bookdarts:
I love Robert Benchley's humor. He has an essay in here asking 'Why Does Nobody Collect Me?' Well, Bob, I bet you're at least a little collectible now. Some of us even appreciate you and your insights into human nature more than we appreciate your friend & rival Hemingway. Or maybe the whole essay was tongue-in-cheek. Either way, I loved reading it.
But I was frustrated by Anna Quindlen's piece. First she's bemoaning the loss of literacy due computers, admitting to be an early-adopter of a laptop but still wishing everyone still loved paper books - then she tells shares in the despair an elderly friend feels as she reveals I can't read any longer." Um, hello? Computers could enable her to be still reading, what with magnification and then text-to-speech!
Bottom-line, I need to stop looking at Books about Books, and getting frustrated. I need to focus on Books about Libraries and Books about Stories and Books about Reading. Recommendations welcome!"
Speaking of hoarders, this and the previous essay
Show More
are by people who admit they may never read the majority of the books they own. Damned shame.ETA done. Read much, including at least the first paragraphs of every piece.
Ok, the whole thing is full of people who spend more time hunting down first editions than actually reading. Frustrating. I guess, if you're a 'collector' you might like this book a lot. But, then again, I'm not sure why - because it's never going to be worth anything the way a first Hemingway is or whatever.
Two bookdarts:
I love Robert Benchley's humor. He has an essay in here asking 'Why Does Nobody Collect Me?' Well, Bob, I bet you're at least a little collectible now. Some of us even appreciate you and your insights into human nature more than we appreciate your friend & rival Hemingway. Or maybe the whole essay was tongue-in-cheek. Either way, I loved reading it.
But I was frustrated by Anna Quindlen's piece. First she's bemoaning the loss of literacy due computers, admitting to be an early-adopter of a laptop but still wishing everyone still loved paper books - then she tells shares in the despair an elderly friend feels as she reveals I can't read any longer." Um, hello? Computers could enable her to be still reading, what with magnification and then text-to-speech!
Bottom-line, I need to stop looking at Books about Books, and getting frustrated. I need to focus on Books about Libraries and Books about Stories and Books about Reading. Recommendations welcome!"
Show Less
LibraryThing member murderbydeath
The Subtitle for this book is:
A Book Lover's Treasury of Stories, Essays, Humor, Lore, and Lists on Collecting, Reading, Borrowing, Lending, Caring for, and Appreciating Books.
which is pretty much the most accurate synopsis of the book possible. It's an excellent collection of bits: cartoons,
Everything included revolves around the simple love (or obsession) for books, as objects more than the stories they contain. That's not to say the joy of reading isn't part of the whole, but this collection focuses on the joy, the need, of owning the books themselves. Readers who've gone wholly digital, or prefer a minimalist housekeeping approach won't find much to love here.
As with any collection of writings from various authors and times, some are better than others, but there were very few I just didn't care for and then only because I either found the writing too dense or dated or the subject matter not quite interesting enough to enthral me. There were maybe three all up that I wouldn't have missed if they were left out. Given the table of contents runs to two and a half pages, that's a pretty good ratio.
The authors also include a 6 page bibliography at the end of other books about books, with the ones they used to create A Passion for Books marked with an asterisk.
A Book Lover's Treasury of Stories, Essays, Humor, Lore, and Lists on Collecting, Reading, Borrowing, Lending, Caring for, and Appreciating Books.
which is pretty much the most accurate synopsis of the book possible. It's an excellent collection of bits: cartoons,
Show More
lists, quotes, poems and essays that range in length from one page to twenty. I think there's even a curse upon those who steal books in here somewhere.Everything included revolves around the simple love (or obsession) for books, as objects more than the stories they contain. That's not to say the joy of reading isn't part of the whole, but this collection focuses on the joy, the need, of owning the books themselves. Readers who've gone wholly digital, or prefer a minimalist housekeeping approach won't find much to love here.
As with any collection of writings from various authors and times, some are better than others, but there were very few I just didn't care for and then only because I either found the writing too dense or dated or the subject matter not quite interesting enough to enthral me. There were maybe three all up that I wouldn't have missed if they were left out. Given the table of contents runs to two and a half pages, that's a pretty good ratio.
The authors also include a 6 page bibliography at the end of other books about books, with the ones they used to create A Passion for Books marked with an asterisk.
Show Less
LibraryThing member MarianneHusbands
A bibliophile's dream and has to be right up there near the top of the list of books about books. I absolutely loved it. Some real treats in here including Flaubert's short story - Bibliomania, reading lists, some fantastic essays on collecting and also featuring pretty much every name you could
Show More
ever think of in the world of bibliophiles and bibliomaniacs. Superb. Show Less
LibraryThing member MissLizzy
I felt so nerdy, reading a book ABOUT books. But when I read that other people smell books, too, I became much happier. Glad I'm not the only "weirdo" out there! A couple of the longer articles were a bit dry, simply because I don't collect only first editions, or really even look for them, or care
Show More
remotely about the numerical value of my books. I collect them for me and my future children--which the editors say is the right way to go. I really enjoyed reading this book. Show Less
LibraryThing member spywall
Just a great book of essays for readers and book lovers... Viva Bibliophilia!
LibraryThing member jcwlib
I don't remember how this book ended up on my to-read list, but I found it a few weeks ago and decided to put in on my hold list at the DCPL.
Harold Rabinowitz and Rob Kaplan edited this collection of stories, essays, poetry, cartoons and lists regarding books, reading, and collecting.
Even though
It was amusing to see the inclusion of lists of books and the many variations of biblio words used as titles. Also my favorite cartoon was from The New Yorker depicting a real estate agent showing a wealthy couple an apartment where one room had floor to ceiling bookcases. The caption reads "What kind of crazy people used to live here anyway?"
At the end of the book in case you haven't had enough text about books and reading, the editors include a bibliography of books on books. This section reminds me of one section of the Library of Congress gift shop which is a collection of books on books.
Harold Rabinowitz and Rob Kaplan edited this collection of stories, essays, poetry, cartoons and lists regarding books, reading, and collecting.
Even though
Show More
there are many well-known authors and other book related folks represented in this book, I only ended up really reading thoroughly the essays written by the two editors and Anna Quindlen - "How Reading Changed My Life". It was amusing to see the inclusion of lists of books and the many variations of biblio words used as titles. Also my favorite cartoon was from The New Yorker depicting a real estate agent showing a wealthy couple an apartment where one room had floor to ceiling bookcases. The caption reads "What kind of crazy people used to live here anyway?"
At the end of the book in case you haven't had enough text about books and reading, the editors include a bibliography of books on books. This section reminds me of one section of the Library of Congress gift shop which is a collection of books on books.
Show Less
LibraryThing member soam
A fun book for book lovers. Has a lot of good reference material for referring back to later. Includes lists of books that I may want to return to in the future. Brings a lot of reference material together into one place. Bibliography is good.
LibraryThing member lycomayflower
An anthology of essays, quotes, and cartoons about reading, books, and book collecting. Like all anthologies, some selections were better than others. I particularly liked Anna Quindlan's "How Reading Changed My Life" and A. Edward Newton's "100 Greatest Novels in the English Language," in which he
Show More
not only gives his list but talks a bit about it. The essays on book collecting grew a little tiresome in the end (I would have preferred one or two fewer of those and a few more personal essays about reading itself), but a good collection with a few treasures. Show Less
Language
Original publication date
1999
Physical description
384 p.; 9 inches
ISBN
096504307X / 9780965043076
Similar in this library
A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books by Nicholas A. Basbanes
Patience and Fortitude: A Roving Chronicle of Book People, Book Places, and Book Culture by Nicholas A. Basbanes