Books, Books and more Books

First, I am stunned after a comment from Tatiana de Rosnay, all the way from Paris, after I blogged about her book, Sarah's Key. I knew authors Google, but her book is an international bestseller and has been translated into 18 languages. She was delighted with my comments, and we traded e-mails. Film rights are being pursued, and it is possible that Jodie Foster will play Julia when it's all sorted out.

Since I'd read the FCL's copy, and another Book Club member immediately checked it out as we selected it for one of our next books to read, I've ordered a copy for myself. It's a book I want to re-read, and also keep on my shelf.

When we moved down here from Maine, I gave a lot of my books away to my daughter, to friends, to the Salvation Army. We installed ceiling-high bookshelves and I soon asked Hubby to get me some more shelving...he said you need fewer books, not more shelves, but of course I won. There are books stacked neatly on endtables, even some holding reading lamps higher. What's that with low tables and low lamps? I'm from a family of readers, and raised my kids and grandkids to read, read, read. You need a good clear light over your shoulder to read by.

I remember a friend whose parents had bought a huge set of encyclopedias and had them lined up in a long, low bookshelf. I'd go over there and sit on the floor, and read one after another, wondering how in the world I was going to be able to learn all there was to learn when I got older. Now, today, I clicked into Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac to find my very favorite poet, Wesley McNair, featured with a poem about his stepfather who stayed up nights reading from a set of encyclopedias, trying to learn everything about everything, but never getting beyond the book of A.

Now, I know Wesley. He is a dear friend and has won national and international recognition for his poetry. So I clicked in to Amazon.com and bought his latest book, which has outstanding reviews. It's called Talking in the Dark: Poems. I'll get him to sign it when we next head up to Maine. He's retired from teaching college now, and he and his wife live at a small lake, swim every day, visit with their neighbors and sit on the porch and write...by hand...he's not a computer person although he does have a Web site that his son or daughter runs. So he won't be Googling this mention!

I miss Wesley; he would call me when times were crazy, and calm me down with just a few clear sentences. We all need friends like that in our lives. Maybe Wesley's book will add a calming influence to my life. He said that my book sounded just as if I were talking to him, and he loved that.