A Note From The Book Review Editor (Nov/Dec 2016)

Photography by Savannah Jane - 

Recent months found me visiting new places, including Wyoming, Colorado, and Canada. My travel destinations often offer a great opportunity to explore bookstores, particularly those specializing in the “pre-loved” variety. Yes, I enjoy the large, bright, and airy “big box” bookstores with colorful displays of the very latest bestsellers but finding a small bookstore off the beaten path is a special treat and always an adventure. I never fail to find a treasure, or two, or three, to add to my reading stack that grows larger, rather than smaller.

My latest travels did not disappoint. I discovered three jewels in a tiny bookstore set back from the street in a small town about an hour from Halifax, Nova Scotia. I walked by it three times before even noticing the entrance door. Located in an old red-brick building with a somewhat gothic appearance, a sweet elderly Labrador retriever kept me company as I wandered the bookstacks. His owner (and the owner of the bookstore) told me the Lab was in charge. With the Lab by my side, I found three beautifully bound and well cared for hard cover editions with rather obscure titles; The Diary of Samuel Pepys edited by Richard Le Gallienne, Modern Library (1921), 1066 And All That by W.C. Sellar and R. J. Yeatman (1930), and The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop by Lewis Buzbee (2006). The two older titles, publishedmore than 85 years ago, sparked my curiosity.

Who owned them and where have they been all these years? Now added to my stack, I wonder what it is that draws us to one book over another? I wonder about reading habits. Will I find someone’s notes in the books? Will the notes and thoughts be similar to mine?

Perhaps that Lab in the bookstore felt my excitement and was reminded of his younger days whenever he saw a squirrel. “Look, there’s one!” “Wait, there’s another one!” “Oh, my! There’s another one over there!” Books, lots and lots of books; life is good.

And thanks for your emails. I love hearing how books make your life better! Keep those emails coming.

Submit your book review for consideration to:
Laura@panamacityliving.com