A bookstore should have a wide selection of books... but this was overboard. Books were piled high to the ceiling. Books were heaped onto tables. Books were laden between the isles. I often had to squeeze through piles of books on the floor that were higher than me to get to the next shelf!
Two flights of stairs and we were in the basement. Lights flickered as we stood looking at, seriously, a mountain of books.
I totally regret forgetting to bring my camera on this outing. What I saw is hard to describe, and all I have to show for the experience are two slightly fuzzy Ipod pictures.
It was an overwhelming experience. I truly love books, but I think there is a certain way they should be presented and sold. The sheer volume of books in the store overtook the fun of examining books in a pleasant environment... and not to mention problems of book preservation (there were some pretty old works!). It felt too cluttered. I'm sure a few critters lived in the book piles. You would definitely not want a health emergency, a little spark of flame, or an earthquake in that building. Death by books, literally.
Yet, I am sure there are a few priceless gems hiding within their books stacks.
Will I go back? That is the question.
Yikes, that looks dangerous! It would take a dedicated team of bibliophiles or librarians to get that collection organized.
ReplyDeleteWoooooah. That's completely insane! As a business, they are expected to keep up a certain standard, especially books. All the titles should be displayed, not lumped together in a huge, probably rickity balanced, stack. Glad you survived!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog! Have a great week!
Nora, The Bookery
PS] The OCD in me wants to find this store and just clean/reorganize the entire thing. X.x
That's nutters! I've never seen a bookstore look like that before. The librarian in me really REALLY wants to organize and shelve those books properly, but I wouldn't know where to start. Thank you for visiting on Friday! Happy reading this weekend. :)
ReplyDeleteWow! Looks like someone's love of books has gotten out of control and is too far gone to change.
ReplyDeleteSuch a shame as I bet there are some gems in there.
Thanks for visiting me.
Your blog is lovely and I do like the Yummy Lit section.....something to compliment reading. :)
carol