Books

June 29

I am thankful for books. I love books of all kinds - non fiction and fiction. I remember well when I fell in love with books in my sixth grade at J.E. Prass Elementary School in Dayton, Ohio. Although I had read a little before that, it was that year that the teacher, Mr. Dilgard, required us to read on our own and write index cards about each book we completed. I began reading the Tom Corbett Space Cadet series. I remember I was so engrosed in the books that I sometimes would stay up all night reading. Sadly, I but don't read as much as I used to but I still love books and generally have a book going. Although I just bought an electronic reader for us this week, and they do have some advantages, I love the look, smell, and feel of real books. There is nothing like it.

These are some classics that I found stacked up in an antique store in Denham Springs the other day. I instantly shot the photo because I liked that the books were classic novels, short stories, or biographies of famous authors and people and the old hat on the top added exactly the right amount of elegant classic flair. All the work was done for me, I didn't have to pose the books or add the hat. All I had to do was aim, focus, and shoot. The books are from bottom to top: John Steinbeck's East of Eden, Moran's Churchill: Taken from the Diaries of Lord Moran, Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, The Stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Edgar Johnson's Charles Dickins: His Tragedy and Triumph.

the future of books

there’s one thing i can say

i surely do love my books

even if they’re quirky, big, and spacey

even if they get odd looks

i use mine almost daily

a book makes a handy paper weight

it can function as a door stop

or to hold open the gate

use them as step stools

build up a feaux wall

to elevate the couch

decorate the hall

books are simply wonderful

they’re things i really need

but you say there’s another use

they can be used to read?

© rt tulley