Why I Still Want a House Full of Books
In a world full of kindles and iPads, it’s easy to read wherever we happen to be at any given moment.
But nothing, and I mean nothing, beats reading an actual print to paper book. It also doesn’t replace the feeling of being literally surrounded by worlds your favorite authors poured months of their lives into. A home library is so much more than books on a shelf; it’s a tribute to the craft. A love of literature. A respect for the people who helped you fall in love with the way words can transport you to places you’ve never imagined.
It’s the same reason I love old bookstores. You know, the ones where the shelves go all the way to the ceiling and there are still stacks of books on the ground around them. The ones that smell slightly musty, but in a good way. The ones with the actual bell above the door that rings when you walk in. The ones that make me stop and stare in awe for a few minutes before I actually start searching for my next story to get lost in. Because every single one holds more than just the words on the page. Printed work is the only place we can physically see the amount of love a book has received. In the dog-eared corners, the accidental coffee stains, the worn through covers. it’s where we see an author’s photo circa 1987 (or whenever they submitted their first headshot). And it’s the kind we can share with the people we love.
There are three distinct bookshelves in our house: Stephen King, Harlan Coben, and all our favorite children’s books we’ve passed along to our daughter. We have others that hold miscellaneous personal development books, a handful of Colleen Hoover and Frieda McFadden, and of course series like The Hunger Games, Divergent, & Harry Potter. We also like to pick up any banned book we come across. These are more than just stories, they’re pieces of history. They’re places our children can find acceptance & love in a world that is often too harsh and cruel. And sometimes, they’re the friend you need to get you through the day.
Do I love my Kindle? Yes. I absolutely love the convenience of being able to get a book whenever I want, not to mention the ability to have an entire library with me all the time. But it will never replace my love for physical printed books. It’s why I encourage my kids to get the ones they pick up at whatever store we may be wandering through. It’s why the dream of having a used-book store of my own has always topped my dream job list. It’s why pieces of my home library are making their way into our pop-up shops: to pass that love along to you.
XO – Mother Duck
