Think of love and you think of books? You are at the right place and with the right kind of people here! Here you won’t be judged or criticized or called an alien for your love for books. So what are we all here for?
On the eve of Book Lover’s Day ie. 9 August let’s get started on sharing the weird love for books that we have. Kaffeinated Konversations community members pitch in their weirdness quotient for you to digest. You can take it or leave it – but we all are staying put with our books!
Mansi Agarwal shares her experience related to books with us. “I do have a funny or a weird experience. While I was in my 10th standard, in Emerald Heights School, Indore; at that time, our French lesson was going on. I had a habit of reading books during that session (for like more than half of the time during the lecture and used to keep my book under the table so that my sir doesn’t catch me). Our sir was pretty cool, he didn’t bother students much, especially girls. That day, i was reading “Subtle Art of not giving a f**k” and I don’t know how but sir grew curious about my activities! I read so many books during his lecture and just on that one fine day he wanted to know what I was reading! So I just tried to hide the book but he was adamant that I show it to him. He was actually interested in knowing the title and my genre interest rather than scolding me for not paying attention in the class. I tried my best to divert his question and attention towards other children but wasn’t successful. At last, when I gave the book to him, I was pretty much sure of getting suspended or at least getting a scolding by the principal for reading a book with abusive language. But to my surprise, he was laughing. He said, What are you reading ? ! You should read some good story books. I said, “sir, it’s a nonfiction book”, but he was not ready to listen. He was just smiling in front of the class.
[P.S. I got that book safely back in my hands and didn’t hide books from that day onward, I would even read while standing in punishment and sir would not complain or inquire anything related to my reading habit. He was concerned that I would complete my classwork and then do anything I wanted. On some other days he would even discuss with me about different books.]
Deepali Adhikary, an author; confesses, “I am still scolded by my mother who insists that I should not have a book on the dining table. Then I tell her, at least it is better than a mobile”
This goes on to say without adding much to the fact that age and book addiction has no correlation!
Many readers are possessive about their books and it is only natural to see them find ways to not to share with others.
Jahnavi Ghelani admits that she is possessive about her book collection. “In fact, I don’t like displaying my whole library to every house guest. A few books sitting on the living room shelf is fine. The rest are always tucked away in their own room – for myself or which I share sometimes with my reader friends.”
Garima Behal agrees with Jahnavi and adds further. “I never ever lend people my books. I used to do that earlier. But people treat them like inanimate objects. Folding pages, spilling coffee/tea on them, using them as paperweights and what not. They do not treat it like tiny babies who need to be cared for and loved and cherished. For me, my books take priority over the (hurt) feelings of my friends”
Muskan Rajani, a bookstagramar points out that there are a lot of tiny things that her non-reader friends find odd about my reading habit. In fact she lists them out:
“ I admit that
- I keep my books as clean and tidy as the day I got them. No marks on any pages, no folding, spine intact
- Smelling books!
- How I can get a book and never read it more than once but don’t want to let it go either
- I remember the page numbers of my favorite parts of a book I’ve read
- I still buy a lot of paperbacks even though I have a kindle
- I have a lot of fancy bookmarks (paper, magnetic, wooden, metal) and still use a flimsy old bookmark “
To sum it up, it isn’t weird as the non-readers put it as. But confessions of the bibliophiles just never fail to bring a knowing smile on the face or that internal agreement with what the world may label weirdness but we all can relate to.
“For some of us, books are as important as almost anything else on earth. What a miracle it is that out of these small, flat, rigid squares of paper unfolds world after world after world, worlds that sing to you, comfort and quiet or excite you. Books help us understand who we are and how we are to behave. They show us what community and friendship mean; they show us how to live and die.”
―Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life