As I have mentioned previously, I read a lot and have all of my life. When I first went to school the teacher was astonished that I could read; not War & Peace, of course. When she asked my mother about this she discovered that nobody had actually taught me, but my grandparents and my father read to me and I sort of followed along. This doesn't make me a genius by a long shot, but it is just something I do, like breathing. Well, that may be carrying it a little too far. My mother was always after me to go outside and play and she would search my room for flashlights so I wouldn't read under the covers. I know that some of you have the same life long affliction and we have 'talked' about it in our blogs. At one time I thought it would be great to help non-readers learn to read, but I found I wasn't very good at it because I don't have a concept of not being able to read. I doubt I could teach anyone to breath either.
Many people go to the library to find books. I do that, but I hate to take library books when I travel. I buy a lot of second hand books from ABE.com or at one of the nearby used book shops or occasionally from Amazon. I also trade books with friends. I read about a book a week, Dick Bednar reads about a book a day - so he could keep me pretty well supplied if we always had the same taste! However, there is something about having a brand new book that belongs just to me that is a special treat. My little grandmother sent me books as gifts when I was a child and I was in heaven. I still have a few of them - memories with hard covers! Borders had a 40% off coupon that was just good for Jan 5/6, so I stopped today to look for a few books that are on my long term list, but the only one they had in stock was Barack Obama's "Dreams from my Father", a book I have had on my list for the last few years. Guess it is time to get a little better acquainted with our new President. Outside on the sidewalk Borders had about thirty-six feet of tables with books reduced to $3.99 - some really good books, but I need to restrain myself from filling up my bookcases again after I have just reduced their load. So, I only bought these four - all but one by authors I have read before. Don't know about "Gap Creek" by Robert Morgan, but, hey, at $3.99 for a trade paperback I can just pass it on to someone else if I don't like it. Or take it in a box of discards to The Bookman who gives half the value in credit to be applied to secondhand books in his store. What a deal!
With 40% off my Obama book was about $15.75. Unlike the custom boxed signed set of Obama's first two books listed on ABE for US$250K! And then there is the signed 1st edition of Gone With the Wind offered for US$14633.65. I don't suppose anyone will ever actually read those particular copies of the books, especially when they can buy a used copy for US$1.00!
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