Thread Name: References to MLs in reading and reading MLs From: brianlemasters at gmail.com (Brian LeMasters) Date: Tue Oct 7 16:20:54 2008 Greetings to all. Welcome, Rob. My interest in MLs runs close to yours. I am reading /A Passion for Books: /..Stories, Essays, Humor, etc. An excerpt from Robertson Davies on Book Collecting refers to the "snobbbery" of book collecting. He comments that upon seeing the pristine copy of an acquaintance's book of which this collector of minutia was so obsessed, he wanted to say how much he enjoyed reading his tattered Modern Library edition every year. I admit paying upwards of $35 apiece for some titles that I just could not live without (limiting the size of my collection, also). I still have not fully defined the desire within myself to buy MLs... I go for value in most of my other purchases. I think that I am just awed with the amount of minutia surrounding MLs, not to mention the touch and smell. I have seen copies of Book Row on ebay. It has been on my reading list for awhile. Brian ------------------------------------- From: rewatlingjr at comcast.net (robert e. watling jr.) Date: Tue Oct 7 16:31:25 2008 Well, Brian, i recommend it. It really evokes the old book store experience. And some of the characters depicted are much like those I've run into. My first old book store experience was when I was in the 4th or 5th grade in New Albany, Indiana. My mother sent me several blocks away to a dingy dusty old place to get a copy of Gregg's Typing. She knew exactly where it was in the store and based on her direction I went right to it. I still remember the appearance and smell of the place. I was hooked. I can even remember the size and feel of the book. It was a thin volume with a greenish cloth cover with black printing on it. I love those places. Any way, get the Book Row book. I'm really enjoying it...thanks...rob. ------------------------------------- From: jpshaw55 at gmail.com (James Shaw) Date: Tue Oct 7 17:57:12 2008 May I recommend a recent read of mine: The Book on the Bookshelf by Henry Petroski. I wasn't able to finish because of a recent move and some health issues, but for anyone like me who is certifiable about books, it's a pleasure to read. It's on the history of books and bookshelves. This is my first reply on this list. I recenlty aquired several ML books but they are stored for now. I have thousands of books in my basement with no place for them. Sigh. Oh, and besides a recent entry into collecting ML books, I have quite a few National Geographics, a run of World Almanacs, and my oddest collection, Encylopedia Britannicas. I'm mostly working on the yearbooks, but I often have to take an entire set to get them. I'm getting them free and have 8 full sets between 1943 and 1990. My wife thinks I'm insane but harmless. Jim Shaw Elmwood Park, NJ ------------------------------------- From: rewatlingjr at comcast.net (robert e. watling jr.) Date: Tue Oct 7 18:27:42 2008 Thanks Jim, Wow! Those Encyclopediae must take up a lot of space. Imagine the weight! Until my divorce I had the 1968 set my parents bought for us when I was in high school. Lost them in the divorce along with most of my other books and about thirty years worth of National Geographics. Love those maps! Thanks again, I like this group already...rob. -------------------------------------