Books...

and the mild obsession I have with them since I first discovered I could read. ( very early on actually, while following the pictures of the 'four Marys' in Mandy comics)
Ever since I was a child I have been a complete hopeless bibliophile. I love books, I covet books, they are my friends. I reread constantly, I like collecting first editions, I like organising my books, I like the look of their spines on my shelves, the feel of them as I run my fingers along them. I like discovering books I had a a child and could not keep, it is like welcoming home a prodical child when I come across them mouldering away in some second hand books shop or market. I must have nearly 1000 books here now, most in shelves but some stacked thither and yon.
By my bed right this second there are,
The Zahir- Paulo Coelho- not yet read.
Theft-Peter Carey- not yet read.
The killing kind-John Connolly- finished.
For one More Day- Mitch Albom- not yet read.
Pegasus Descending- James Lee Burke- half way through.
Talk to the Hand- Lynne Truss- finished.
The LIttle Book of Scientific Principles, Theories and Things- Surendra Verma- finished, but deserves to be re-read on a regular basis.
The Book of General Ignorance-John Lloyd and John MItchinston- perused through.
Hannibal Rising- Thomas Harris-gasped at and sniggered over, but read.
And last but by very no means least-A book Addict's Treasury- by Julia Rugg and Lynda Murphy.

It is the last book that tickles me rosy pink. The paramour bought it for me for Christmas and I am absolutely head over heels with it.
It is a delightful timely book for people who love books. With snippets and paragraphs from other book lovers all collected between its covers- the sections on 'booknesting' had me wincing with laughter as I recognised my own foiblles.
"Some friend of theirs had rented the house for several months to an interior decorator. When they returned, they discovered that their entire library had been reorganised by colour and size. Shortly thereafter, the decorator met with a fatal automobile accidnet. I confess that when this story was told, everone around the table concurred that justice had been served.' (Anne Fadiman, ex libris: Confessions of a Common Reader, 1998)
Can you imagine!

'Bookish Behaviour' -Leigh Hunt (1832)-- 'When I speak of being in contact with my books, I mean it literally. I like to lean my head against them.'
Mee too, I like to spend most of my day surrounded by them. I can find a book with the greatest of ease, despite their number. I am happiest sprawled out on my bed, with Puddy or the bigger of the cats, with whatever tome I am reading inches from my nose.

Eeeee, there are descriptions of studies, best reading positions, best light, burning your hand as a child while reading under the covers after lights out, the best time of day to read, whether to curl up or lie flat...it's all there. It's a masterpiece. It's for book lovers. If you are one, run, go buy it, open it, breathe it in, recognise our species, be proud, we are not alone, we are legion!