I'm loosing books. Good books. Maybe only good books; it's a little difficult to tell.
I started to notice this when we were leaving for vacation and Michelle needed a good book to read. "Oh, I'll find you something," I said.
"Hmmm.... that's odd... Salt: A World History doesn't seem to be on the shelves..."
"No matter, let me dig out Neuromancer..."
"..."
"..."
"I... must have lent it out?"
Then, just now, I was checking out 'In Very Deed, where cousin-in-law Katy makes an off the cuff Confederacy of Dunces comment. Now, there aren't that many of us running around the internet, so when a fellow CoD fan throws that out there, its the responsibility of the rest of us to respond. Only, suddenly I couldn't remember Ignatius' last name! So I went for my trusty copy, but couldn't find it! Now, I might lend you Salt or Neuromancer, but I'm unlikely to suggest Confederacy of Dunces unless I know you pretty well; its just not a 'hey-you-might-try-this-one' kinda book. So now I'm convinced the book gnomes are making off with the good books.
If I've lent you a good book, please give it back to me. The library is shrinking.
(Epilogue: I did eventually find Confederacy. It was hiding behind Snow Crash)
Snow Days!
2 weeks ago
6 comments:
I don't have any of them. Thanks for returning The Geographer's Library, though. I want to read the Salt book. Maybe I'll see if my library has it.
Me neither, although I think I'll check behind my Neal Stephenson books when I get home to find out if it's a trend.
I borrowed that other one by the author of Neuromancer, but I don't have the others. Neither does Ed, though you've learned the unfortunate lesson to never lend to him again anyway. It's possible you ate the salt book in your sleep.
Not to be a tattle tale, Aaron showed up with the Salt book and I'm not sure where exactly it came from. Have you read Cod: A History of the Fish that Changed the World? Surprisingly interesting and along the same lines. Might be the same author. I forget. I'm glad to know there's another Confederacy of Dunces fan among my relations.
Cod is by the same author (and there's a big section about cod in Salt, as that's how they were preserved). Kurlansky also has a history of Basques that I've been meaning to check out.
I don't think I loaned my book to Aaron, but i suppose it's possible. I just remember reading it and having massive cravings for pretzels or salt-topped foccacia.
I had nothing at all to do with your Salt book disappearing. I picked mine up at a used bookstore in San Francisco. Loved it. Almost as good as his book on Cod: the history of the fish that changed the world. Kurlansky even makes the fermented, salty fish sauce that the Romans used as a condiment sound good.
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