INDULGENCE
There is something simply delicious
About a book shop
The smells, the sights, the sounds
Glossy print, a hint of ink
A feast of colour piled high -
All displayed to please the eye
Tempting crackle of new paper
Seasoned with crisp binding
And a reverend hush
As partakers of the banquet
Whisper and admire.
Each course is sampled, savoured
The best ones chosen
And the diners
Leave the building content
With a doggy-bag of delight.
© Sheena Conroy, (2000) "In Praise of Poets", p. 19, Anchor Books: Peterborough
There is something simply delicious
About a book shop
The smells, the sights, the sounds
Glossy print, a hint of ink
A feast of colour piled high -
All displayed to please the eye
Tempting crackle of new paper
Seasoned with crisp binding
And a reverend hush
As partakers of the banquet
Whisper and admire.
Each course is sampled, savoured
The best ones chosen
And the diners
Leave the building content
With a doggy-bag of delight.
© Sheena Conroy, (2000) "In Praise of Poets", p. 19, Anchor Books: Peterborough
4 comments:
I want to buy a book now! AND I'm hungry!!! (love the poem Mrs C- very evocative. Keep them coming!)
Glad you like the poem Sheena - and greatly appreciate your comments! I guess it appeals mostly to book-lovers - was written for an anthology.
There is equally something wonderful about the old second-hand bookshop, which doesn't tempt "with the crackle of new paper" but rather beguiles the senses with dank, dust and foostie smells. The second-hand book dealer rarely tweaks the aesthetics of his display, but rather seems to take a curious delight in creating an antiquarian shopping experience to match the aged products. While the new bookshop reliably retails the 'book-of-the-moment', the 2nd hand shop has a whimsy and charm that comes from a stock-list which reflects the owners loves, not the results of mass-market research. There still is a sense of pleasure in walking from an ordinary bookshop, with an ordinary book from the bestseller list; but it is a small delight compared to that which comes from striding home from the old second-hand-bookshop, clutching a 'real find'!
And yet sadly every year they close!
Hello THM!
Of course - you are absolutely right! I remember buying my first Adrian Plass - (from a second hand bookshop in York) - hardback, bound in black, and I felt I had found a wee treasure! Your words perfectly describe these shops - and your love of them!
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