A memoir for the bookish-inclined, using personal stories to demonstrate how books have a magical way to move a person from one stage of life to the next.
"This is a small gem of a book, tender, humble, loving." âMary Gordon
"Sweeney makes a charming companion, telling stories in joyful reflection." âJeff Deutsch, author of In Praise of Good Bookstores
Former bookseller, longtime publisher, and author Jon M. Sweeney showsâwith history and anecdotes centering around books such as Thoreau's Journal, Tagore's Gitanjali, Martin Buber's Hasidic Tales, and Tolstoy's Twenty-three Talesâwhat it means to be carried by a book. He explores the discovery that once accompanied finding books, and books finding us. He ponders the smell of an old volume, its heft, and why bibliophiles carry them around even without reading them. He demonstrates how and why there is magic and enchantment that takes place between people and books.