Last week I was preoccupied with clearing space for humans to
sit and stand in my office by deciding which books would stay and which would
go.
Now, with a bit more space, my thoughts have lightly turned
towards…bookshelves. So when I saw this photo of the
Kansas City Library parking garage, all I could think was: Wow, imagine the
scale of a bookshelf that would hold those spines if they were real!
Since most of my thoughts are bookish ones, the idea of a
giant bookshelf led me to ponder trim size (just in case you’ve never heard that
phrase before, “trim size” refers to a print book’s final, published
dimensions). Today, most hardcover books meant for continuous reading are eight
by 10 inches; most hardcover books meant for visual enjoyment (I’m talking
coffee-table books; please pull minds out of gutter!) are over 12 inches either
way.
These standardized trims make sense; they really do. We could
debate their efficacy six ways ‘til Sunday – I know one friend who prefers to
read trade paperbacks rather than hardcovers, finding the soft bindings more
comfortable for her hands. I, on the other hand (pun not intended, but it
stays), have very short fingers, and find reading any paperback thicker than 125
pages a calisthenic challenge.
But I’m not here to talk about efficacy; I’m here to talk
about wonder, because that’s what the KC Library façade inspired in me. Seeing
the photo brought up feelings of sheer happiness and delight. BIG books, HUGE
books, books of different colors, with different typefaces – talk about a kid in
a candy shop!
Or – a kid in a library, of course. This whimsical
architecture reminded me of what it was like to roam the children’s room in my
local library lo these many years (who am I kidding? Decades…) ago. The books
were all so different, and sometimes you’d choose something on the basis of its
bigness and its redness – and then find out that the small blue volume was far
more intriguing.
I’m being selfish. What brings you straight back to your own
early love of reading?
Melissa_W
on
