A Study On The Bookstore

In “How to Mark a Book”, Mortimer J. Adler delves into the importance of active reading. His purpose is to encourage an audience of readers to not be afraid to write in a book because “…the soul of a book can be separated from its body” (Adler 17). Meaning, a book is more than its physical being and deserves to be cherished for what is written inside of it.

There I was. An undersized 3rd grader, meeting with the school librarian, who was probing at my ability to read and comprehend the book I chose for that week. It was during this particular week in which I refused to join the class in their sticky hand raid, but rather, shift through my new library at home. It was the weekend prior in which my grandmother purchased a white box from a garage sale.

The speaker focuses on the fact that this book ordinary with all the writing covering the front and back of the book, taking away from its true value. The speakers says, “Your book surprised me on the bookstore shelf ”(1) showing that this book is unique, catching her eye. She continues in saying “no blurbs by the big boys on the back; no sassy, big-haired picture to complicate the achievement; no mentors musing over how they had discovered you had it in you before you knew you had it in you” (3-10). This provides further evidence that this book is special to the girl. Another important part of this poem is how the girl discovers a different part of herself. When she starts to read, she feels a new energy, “your poems were stirring my own poems” (23). This new feeling that she is feeling cause her to ponder stealing the book. The girl “wanted to own this moment, my breath came quickly, thinking it over” (38-39). Her quick breath shows that this would be the first time to steal anything from how worked up over it she was. As the rush started dissipate the girl held the book before her “as if it was something else, a mirror reflecting back, someone I was becoming” (46-49). Here as the girl is looking at the book her realizes who she was becoming, a thief, and decides not to take the

A book is like a door, without stepping through the door, you will never know what's on the other side. It is a mystery that can only be unveiled if you open it and look through it. Dana Gioia wants us to take that mystery and open it up, as many young adults have lost interest in the action of reading itself.

After the invention of the Gutenberg press, literature had its Cambrian Explosion. I was surprised to see how quickly the illiterate world ‘rushed to buy and read.’ (Pg. 70) Often people are most suspicious of what they are ignorant of, but the population appeared gripped in a literacy frenzy sparked by the sudden proliferation of books. Carr seems to suggest that reading will become an ‘arcane hobby’ (pg. 108) and having read through this historical gestalt, I am inclined to agree that physical books may become antiques.

Anytime she reads an innovative book, she wants everybody else to experience the same story she adored. As a result, she is always lending out her books to her friends. Anyone who needs a dystopian or romantic book could probably find it at her house; she is identical to a miniature library. Many people her age despise reading because they think it is just uninteresting, or extra work. Hannah’s acts of sharing her books have turned people from book haters to avid readers.

The thin rustic pages scrape past my loose fingers as I sit engaged. My heart pounds harder and faster with every word my eyes pass over. My ears hear nothing, even within booming noise. My complete focus is on the book that lays in my hand with a laminated cover, and I have no choice but to submit to the content. My breath tastes of spearmint and the aroma of fresh paper floats past my nose. I couldn’t resist but delve into the worlds and mysteries that books hold. Once opened, everything around me becomes a distant blur. I am hooked. Books have always created an escape for creativity and fancies to run free. Books are used as a medium for reason. Books are formative to the development of human beings. In my instance, books changed my life.

Damp orange leaves stuck to my shoes as I trudged my way toward the back entrance of the school. A chilly wind whooshed past me, spraying my face with vapor. It felt good, almost numbing. Shoving my hands into my jean pockets, I then began to think of the red book. A tingle of warmth spread throughout my body as I recalled the way my fingers had glided over the embossed gold design on the cover. The gold always seemed to glitter when it touched the light; it was worthy of admiration, praise. As if suddenly slapped across the face, I came to my senses. Daydreaming about a book, especially one that was that was supposedly inherently evil, was not normal behavior. That was such a random thought, think about something else Jared, I scolded myself.

The cover of a book is the first tangible reflection of what a reader may encounter when they pick the book up. Greg Camfield says, “the physical presentation of a piece of literature gives us essential clues about how we are intended to read it” and as I hold all three chapbooks the first thing that strikes me is that “The Branches, the Axe, the Missing” by Charlotte Pence does not have the same inviting tone that the other two books possess. Pence’s chapbook is presented in the shape of a novel and has a slick cover. The graphic on the front lacks the color that would invite a reader to investigate the contents. The other two chapbooks are awash in color and context that is alluring and inviting. When the chapbooks were first handed out my

In “The Author to Her Book,” Bradstreet is awash in indecision and internal conflicts over the merits and shortfalls of her creative abilities and the book that she produced. This elaborate internal struggle between pride and shame is manifested through a painstaking conceit in which she likens her book to her own child.

In the beginning, the librarians acted as the mentors to my hero. They scanned Easy Children’s Fiction, introducing me to new friends, new stories, new universes. I braved first grade with Junie B. Jones, memorized Silverstein poems, and climbed tree houses with Jack and Annie. The months went by, the years went by, and eventually,

About three years ago, I published a novel—my first. Okay, it was my only novel, a mystery/thriller, entitled The Dead of Winter, and you have no idea how proud I was! I thought it deserved national if not world-wide recognition, with a place on the shelves of every library in the United States. Of course, it got neither. None of that should be important to you. But besides my just wanting to say it, it does segue into the subject I want to broach—and somewhere toward the end of that subject, it offers the point I promised.

Instead of having pupils or saturated colors, the dog and child are creepy and beg many questions. The curious viewer may ask ‘who is the boy?’ and ‘how do all of these elements tie together?’—and that is exactly what the book cover’s purpose is. The cover is designed to capture the attention of potential readers, to make them ask questions about the book and make them curious

The author used many certain words in his imagery to make the book seem lighter and darker to create a story and theme in their mind. In the book, there was a lot of suspense

The speaker of this essay would be Mortimer J. Adler. He distinguishes the idea of an ordinary book owner to a real book owner and making the book a part of oneself. Adler uses a 2nd person narrative, addressing the reader as “You”, which creates a direct conversation between him and the reader.