SORTING BOOKS
Some jobs are thankless. During the coronavirus lockdown, I’ve been tackling several of those. What ultimately turned out to be rewarding, even fun, was cleaning out and rearranging our bookcases, of which we have more than a few. The first task entailed removing all the books and clearing the dust. Then, I suggested something to my husband that we have never tried before, sorting.
We maintain a bevy of books from all genres, spanning the years and covering numerous subjects. While our children have flown the coop, lots of textbooks remain from our college days and theirs, coupled with mounds of children's books. Plus, plenty of titles, which cover various topics we have read simply for pleasure, along with several written by family and friends, consist of enough pages to fill a room.
Biographies and memoirs crowd out any few novels in our voluminous collection. My husband’s volunteer position as a weekly radio show host interviewing people about their careers, coupled with his day job as a labor and employment lawyer representing working people, make for a bulging collection of books about work.
Countless shelves are brimming with volumes on sports, politics, theater, travel, Judaism, Hebrew, and the Holocaust. They’re punctuated by those about my prime interest, genealogy.
A handful or more, including books on grammar and public speaking, along with several written by and about Studs Terkel, known as the maestro of the tape-recorded interview, align a couple of shelves. Cookbooks…how could I almost forget about the relics bursting with tried and true recipes? The food-stained volumes prominently line two shelves in the pantry.
In various rooms throughout our house, reserved shelf space awaits the publication of my book/s. A prime spot is adjacent to the series of hardcover classics collected early in our marriage. Those pristine beauties, purchased in the late 1970s to early 80s, through a monthly subscription to the Franklin Mint, are prominently displayed in our family room.
The richly covered set of various earth-tone colored collectibles are standing at attention. They make a stately appearance behind the glass doors that protect the bookshelves of our Cherry Drop Front Secretary Writing Desk.
Many of our bookcases are used relics purchased over the years from antique shops or rescued from rummage. We even salvaged a handmade case that was sitting empty in our friends' garage. The burly shelves abut the wall next to my husband’s nightstand, housing books from radio guests.
A mix of hard- and soft-cover gems is from my husband’s nearly 25 years as a broadcaster, reading and collecting an assortment of books about working people and their jobs. There are dozens from what he refers to as the salt of the earth.
The challenge was getting him on board to pull the books off the shelves a second time. This time it was to sort, one row at a time. It took some convincing, but there could be no better opportunity than during an unplanned lockdown. Grouping the stacks according to those about work versus books authored by radio guests, such as cork boats, ashrams, and yoga, inspired us to talk about some of the stories and reminisce.
Dusting may have been thankless. Undoubtedly, by the time we finally emerge from lockdown, the shelves will need to be emptied and dusted again. Over the years, however, we have spent countless hours searching for a single missing book. The thorough sorting will make it easier to locate one of those hard-to-find reads. Another advantage is that our children can quickly choose indexed books to read, save, or donate.
Another thankless job checked off my bucket list during this idle time at home. Carpe Diem--ready, set, go…dust and sort, dust and sort, dust and sort…
Bookshelves of our Cherry Drop Front Secretary Writing Desk with stately collection of classics on top from the Franklin Mint.