Returning to the Library

A School Library

When I was 11, like many British children, I went from Primary School to the 1st year of Secondary School. And there I found one of the foundations of my life...All the Books!

For three years I spent almost every lunchtime and afternoon break in the school library. Reading fantasy, science-fiction and gamebooks, and choosing ones to take home. I wasn't avoiding other people, I just saw no reason to spend time with them in lieu of valuable time that could be with books.

I found a few authors I still rate today, such as David Gemmell, Anne McCaffrey, Terry Pratchett, Joe Dever, Ursula Le Guin and Isaac Asimov. And lots of trash fantasy too. So much generic stuff I happily consumed as a teenager, from Terry Brooks to David Eddings, Piers Anthony, RA Salvatore and many more!

But it strengthened my beginnings in books, which began with Mum who taught us to read and kept a strong sense of books me and my siblings grew up in (and ran the village library which also supplied me lots of books!). But then my Scottish grandma strengthened it, with afternoon teas in her sanctuary of books, plus a few gifts of particular books that affected me. One a book by G.A. Henty on William Wallace. She died when I was 14, and I inherited a lot of books no-one else wanted. I found Joseph Conrad and other authors through these.

Restoring the Library

Recently I restored my book library in a big way!

A few years before Covid I started downsizing my book collection. Hundreds went over the years, reducing from several bookcases worth to just two shelves in Mid-Covid. I was trying to reduce down to a few authors I loved, and ready to move to Europe or an alternative lifestyle.

Although I never stopped getting new books!

Then in Portugal I joined a book club where we suggest books based on a central theme. So I started buying a few new books, and have a backlog of many books to try. Then last year I returned to gamebooks in a big way, but my books were still split between Devon and Porto.

And then this summer happened, I went book-surfing when visiting Devon a few times, finding lots of old fantasy titles (for about £1 each!), a lot of new ones and many other non-fantasy classic and new titles. I added these to books brought back from Porto, new roleplaying games for work, two shelves of gamebooks and my Covid-collection. And my book library was restored.

Leaner, smarter, older. But it felt like a personal library once more.

And yesterday I visited Devon again, and sat among my books, and realised how good it felt. To look at parts of my life from early years to new discoveries of the last few days. A few books stay in Porto, but the majority await those Westcountry visits!

Books have always been a large part of my life, and probably always will be!

Finishing Up

I might have to write a few more articles on books!

What have you given up or put aside, and then come back to?