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Este libro te alegrará la vida: 50 placeres íntimos de la lectura
Un homenaje al ritual de la lectura a través de 50 pequeños placeres que todos compartimos
Empezar un nuevo libro, visitar otras casas y cotillear entre las estanterías, recordar una lectura de la infancia, el olor de los libros, dedicar una tarde a organizar la biblioteca, leer en la cama, esperar con impaciencia el siguiente de la trilogía... Existen innumerables pequeños —y grandes— placeres en el ritual de la lectura y todo lo que lo rodea. Pues aunque quizás cada vez nos parezca más difícil encontrar ese momento para nosotros —cada vez estamos más distraídos y «conectados», más saturados de información y acelerados—, sabemos lo mucho que obtenemos al parar y (re)encontrarnos con un buen libro, el pequeño paraíso que supone en nuestro día a día. Porque leer es mucho más que un pasatiempo. No hay nada mejor que descubrir en el tren a alguien leyendo tu libro preferido, o encontrar un objeto olvidado entre las páginas de esa vieja novela, o leer esa dedicatoria escrita soolo para ti. Esta obra es una carta de amor dirigida a los libros y a las librerías, a los amantes de los libros, a las muchas y a la vez universales formas de leer y a todas las delicias que sólo los buenos lectores conocen. 50 momentos de felicidad relacionados con la lectura para celebrar el placer que nos une, para perderse y encontrarse.
Empezar un nuevo libro, visitar otras casas y cotillear entre las estanterías, recordar una lectura de la infancia, el olor de los libros, dedicar una tarde a organizar la biblioteca, leer en la cama, esperar con impaciencia el siguiente de la trilogía... Existen innumerables pequeños —y grandes— placeres en el ritual de la lectura y todo lo que lo rodea. Pues aunque quizás cada vez nos parezca más difícil encontrar ese momento para nosotros —cada vez estamos más distraídos y «conectados», más saturados de información y acelerados—, sabemos lo mucho que obtenemos al parar y (re)encontrarnos con un buen libro, el pequeño paraíso que supone en nuestro día a día. Porque leer es mucho más que un pasatiempo. No hay nada mejor que descubrir en el tren a alguien leyendo tu libro preferido, o encontrar un objeto olvidado entre las páginas de esa vieja novela, o leer esa dedicatoria escrita soolo para ti. Esta obra es una carta de amor dirigida a los libros y a las librerías, a los amantes de los libros, a las muchas y a la vez universales formas de leer y a todas las delicias que sólo los buenos lectores conocen. 50 momentos de felicidad relacionados con la lectura para celebrar el placer que nos une, para perderse y encontrarse.
250 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2017
23 people are currently reading
927 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 90 reviews
June 18, 2018
Oh, this. was. delightful!
Every book lover should read this wonderful collection of 50 short essays on the pleasures of reading.
A few of my favorite quotes:
From "Hiding Yet More Purchases From Partners":
"I need books. I feel as if I have no choice in the matter. I need shelves and stacks of them in every room in the house. Some, inevitably will become what are termed in Japanese tsundoku - books bought and never read, sentenced to live forever on a shelf of a pile - but addiction is seldom logical."
From: "Reading in Bed"
"Lingering through daylight and evenings trials is the promise of nighttime's rosy heaven. You, your bed and a book: a heavenly retreat."
From: "Feeling Bereft Having Finished a Book"
"While the book is being read, it is alive. Then it is slapped shut with a yearning sigh, and ruefully shelved." The first page giveth life, the last taketh it away. Now starts the search for something good enough to help us wallow in our bereavement all over again."
From: "Losing an Afternoon Organising Bookshelves"
"It can start with a sudden need to find a particular title, or when edging into place the recently read. Among the shelves, concentration immediately departs for another room. Books are shuffled and stroked, pulled from their berths to leave gaps in the shelf's gums, and dangerous thoughts begin: shouldn't this be over there, with his others? Surely all poetry should be together? Why are the travelogues mixed in with the travel guides? What was I thinking?"
(The above is particularly pertinent to me, I'm constantly re organising my shelves!)
I felt I should have worn a smoking jacket, and been in some grand (and somewhat dusty) wood panelled room, with a large, drooling dog of impeccable breeding lounging by my feet when I read this. I also found my saying things like "I say, spot on old chap" and "indubitably". Its like this book enabled book addiction in the most dignified way possible. I absolutely loved it!
A must read for all book lovers! I especially recommend this for people in a reading slump. Its just a really charming way to reaffirm our love of books. Not just the stories, but the shape and smell and feel of the book itself, the places we enjoy reading, and the joy we feel on staring on a new reading adventure. It really was lovely.
Every book lover should read this wonderful collection of 50 short essays on the pleasures of reading.
A few of my favorite quotes:
From "Hiding Yet More Purchases From Partners":
"I need books. I feel as if I have no choice in the matter. I need shelves and stacks of them in every room in the house. Some, inevitably will become what are termed in Japanese tsundoku - books bought and never read, sentenced to live forever on a shelf of a pile - but addiction is seldom logical."
From: "Reading in Bed"
"Lingering through daylight and evenings trials is the promise of nighttime's rosy heaven. You, your bed and a book: a heavenly retreat."
From: "Feeling Bereft Having Finished a Book"
"While the book is being read, it is alive. Then it is slapped shut with a yearning sigh, and ruefully shelved." The first page giveth life, the last taketh it away. Now starts the search for something good enough to help us wallow in our bereavement all over again."
From: "Losing an Afternoon Organising Bookshelves"
"It can start with a sudden need to find a particular title, or when edging into place the recently read. Among the shelves, concentration immediately departs for another room. Books are shuffled and stroked, pulled from their berths to leave gaps in the shelf's gums, and dangerous thoughts begin: shouldn't this be over there, with his others? Surely all poetry should be together? Why are the travelogues mixed in with the travel guides? What was I thinking?"
(The above is particularly pertinent to me, I'm constantly re organising my shelves!)
I felt I should have worn a smoking jacket, and been in some grand (and somewhat dusty) wood panelled room, with a large, drooling dog of impeccable breeding lounging by my feet when I read this. I also found my saying things like "I say, spot on old chap" and "indubitably". Its like this book enabled book addiction in the most dignified way possible. I absolutely loved it!
A must read for all book lovers! I especially recommend this for people in a reading slump. Its just a really charming way to reaffirm our love of books. Not just the stories, but the shape and smell and feel of the book itself, the places we enjoy reading, and the joy we feel on staring on a new reading adventure. It really was lovely.
January 28, 2022
Book lovers will delight in these short pieces about the joys of reading. I enjoyed the essays, but his last sentences were a little abrupt and obvious, hence the 3 stars.
July 14, 2018
In these 50 short essays, Daniel Gray talks about the ways that book lovers are people of habit. We have preferred spots to read in comfortable chairs, favourite authors that you read regardless, cherished bookmarks and those little rituals that any bookworm goes through that to others seem pointless.
So if you want to know about why people smell books, the protocols behind inspecting other peoples bookshelves and if there is a right point to give up on a book then this is a good place to start. But there is more, the delights in finding a dedication from one unknown person from another, poses questions that hang in the air, the joys of starting a crisp new book, the dilemmas and joys of choosing books to take on holiday trying to see what the person on the tube opposite you, is reading. Something that happens a fair amount in my house is trying to hide purchases from my (thankfully tolerant) another half. It is more of an art form now.
I really enjoyed this delightful little book on the things that bookworms do. It has a certain charm and is really funny at times. If you are book obsessed then you'll smile and maybe even wince at some of the truths that he speaks. If you want to understand that person in your life who is obsessed by these rectangular pieces of sliced trees then this is a good place to start. 3.5 stars.
So if you want to know about why people smell books, the protocols behind inspecting other peoples bookshelves and if there is a right point to give up on a book then this is a good place to start. But there is more, the delights in finding a dedication from one unknown person from another, poses questions that hang in the air, the joys of starting a crisp new book, the dilemmas and joys of choosing books to take on holiday trying to see what the person on the tube opposite you, is reading. Something that happens a fair amount in my house is trying to hide purchases from my (thankfully tolerant) another half. It is more of an art form now.
I really enjoyed this delightful little book on the things that bookworms do. It has a certain charm and is really funny at times. If you are book obsessed then you'll smile and maybe even wince at some of the truths that he speaks. If you want to understand that person in your life who is obsessed by these rectangular pieces of sliced trees then this is a good place to start. 3.5 stars.
July 3, 2017
This is a lovely little book that every book lover should read.
Set over 50 short chapters covering everything to do with books. From what we use as book marks, smell, feel, re reading, not loving books other rave about. I could go on but I think you get the gist.
It really is a wonderful book that probably only book lovers will be able to relate to.
Highly recommended.
I won a copy of this book in a giveaway on Twitter by Hatchards book shop and Bloomsbury books.
Set over 50 short chapters covering everything to do with books. From what we use as book marks, smell, feel, re reading, not loving books other rave about. I could go on but I think you get the gist.
It really is a wonderful book that probably only book lovers will be able to relate to.
Highly recommended.
I won a copy of this book in a giveaway on Twitter by Hatchards book shop and Bloomsbury books.
December 25, 2019
LO DICHO EN LA SINOPSIS Y EN MI PRIMER COMENTARIO AL EMPEZAR ESTE libro. Ideal para los ávidos lectores amantes de este hobby. un gran recordatorio por ese camino que tenemos en esa trayectoria a veces poco entendida por muchos. ES genial que escriban un libro como éste, da la sensación de que somos comprendidos.
February 10, 2022
Books about books are my favorite genre, and I’m glad that I keep discovering more books in it every now and then. Just like my TBR, there are too many “books” in the last sentence 😊 Anyhow, Scribbles in the Margins consists of 50 short essays that highlight what it is like being a reader. I particularly love how the book captures the essence of reading by including every element of the act, from book smell and bookmarks to individual book choices, etc. The eternal joy that books give us is reflected in these pages that are a delight to read for everyone, bibliophile or not.
May 8, 2019
What a charming-charming little nugget of a book! An accidental discovery for me. Essentially, this is a collection of 50 vignettes that describe relationship between reader and a book. Very cleaver and insightful. Plus beautifully written. Loved every bit of it.
Booklovers would adore this. If you are shopping for a gift for your friends that read - this one would be perfect! 👌
Booklovers would adore this. If you are shopping for a gift for your friends that read - this one would be perfect! 👌
April 28, 2022
"𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀. 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝘁."
Sebuah lagi buku tentang buku yang 💯
Memang LOVE sangat ♥️
Buku cilik ini menghimpunkan 50 esei prosa yang lirikal: tentang bau buku, detik pertama membaca, buku kegemaran sewaktu kanak-kanak, merayau di perpustakaan, menangis kerana cerita dan BANYAK lagi tentang membaca 📚
Setiap esei mengingatkan kita, para pembaca (dan pencinta buku tentunya) betapa buku tidak sekadar dakwat & kertas. Dan membaca bukan sekadar hobi.
Ramai yang mencari ketenangan di dalam buku. Melarikan diri di sebalik mandala kata-kata & cerita.
Di mata orang, mungkin kita ini hanya orang yang sedang membaca. Tetapi mereka tidak tahu yang hakikatnya kita sedang mengembara!
Perasaan & keajaiban ini hanya dirasai oleh yang membaca. Hanya kita sahaja!
Setiap kali habis membaca sesebuah buku, mesti kita akan rasa "kosong" kan? Rasa "rindu" terhadap sesuatu, padahal buku itu ada di depan mata.
Untuk mengubati galau hati, maka kita pun mencapai buku senaskhah lagi.
Memang dunia pembaca ini huru hara (walhal sebenarnya kita tenang-tenang sahaja, tetapi orang tak tahu apa yang berada dalam kepala kita)
Gila, memang gila.
Walau gila, biar huru hara, kita tetap akan kembali kepada buku, hanya untuk membaca senaskhah lagi 📚
Sebuah lagi buku tentang buku yang 💯
Memang LOVE sangat ♥️
Buku cilik ini menghimpunkan 50 esei prosa yang lirikal: tentang bau buku, detik pertama membaca, buku kegemaran sewaktu kanak-kanak, merayau di perpustakaan, menangis kerana cerita dan BANYAK lagi tentang membaca 📚
Setiap esei mengingatkan kita, para pembaca (dan pencinta buku tentunya) betapa buku tidak sekadar dakwat & kertas. Dan membaca bukan sekadar hobi.
Ramai yang mencari ketenangan di dalam buku. Melarikan diri di sebalik mandala kata-kata & cerita.
Di mata orang, mungkin kita ini hanya orang yang sedang membaca. Tetapi mereka tidak tahu yang hakikatnya kita sedang mengembara!
Perasaan & keajaiban ini hanya dirasai oleh yang membaca. Hanya kita sahaja!
Setiap kali habis membaca sesebuah buku, mesti kita akan rasa "kosong" kan? Rasa "rindu" terhadap sesuatu, padahal buku itu ada di depan mata.
Untuk mengubati galau hati, maka kita pun mencapai buku senaskhah lagi.
Memang dunia pembaca ini huru hara (walhal sebenarnya kita tenang-tenang sahaja, tetapi orang tak tahu apa yang berada dalam kepala kita)
Gila, memang gila.
Walau gila, biar huru hara, kita tetap akan kembali kepada buku, hanya untuk membaca senaskhah lagi 📚
June 12, 2017
This is a charming book containing fifty short essays on the various delights of books - not just reading them but smelling them, holding them, shelving them, buying them as well as reading them. The author is primarily talking about physical books but many of the pleasures can also be experienced with ebooks - such as the anticipation of a new book in a favourite series or a new book by a favourite author.
I loved the essays on the delights of second hand books - the cryptic comments in the margins - the even more cryptic inscriptions at the front of the book and the way you can weave all sorts of stories around a few scribbled words.
Here is the pleasure of losing oneself in the world created in a book, re-reading old favourites, re-visiting childhood favourites neglected for many years. Most book lovers have experienced that occasion when you are searching for a book which you've suddenly thought of only to emerge hours later having been totally distracted by many other books along the way.
This book is worth reading - or just dipping into - to remind yourself of the pleasures of reading and owning books. A must for all book lovers.
I loved the essays on the delights of second hand books - the cryptic comments in the margins - the even more cryptic inscriptions at the front of the book and the way you can weave all sorts of stories around a few scribbled words.
Here is the pleasure of losing oneself in the world created in a book, re-reading old favourites, re-visiting childhood favourites neglected for many years. Most book lovers have experienced that occasion when you are searching for a book which you've suddenly thought of only to emerge hours later having been totally distracted by many other books along the way.
This book is worth reading - or just dipping into - to remind yourself of the pleasures of reading and owning books. A must for all book lovers.
March 21, 2018
A lovely, heart-warming set of very short essays on reading, readers, and the things they read, capturing all their inexplicable quirks. True to the title, the pieces felt like scribbles in the margins. And I liked the writing style.
This isn't a book you read in one sitting. Read this for fun. Read this when you just want to unwind and not commit to a full book, or even a short story. Read this with someone you gush about books with. Read this to remind yourself that reading is fun.
This isn't a book you read in one sitting. Read this for fun. Read this when you just want to unwind and not commit to a full book, or even a short story. Read this with someone you gush about books with. Read this to remind yourself that reading is fun.
January 31, 2025
Hab ich bei meiner Oma im Bücherregal gefunden und es hat mich direkt daran erinnert wie oft wir uns über gute Bücher ausgetauscht haben. Vermisse es doll 💔
August 28, 2017
Book lovers - you must go and buy this little gem of a book immediately! I need only mention some of the chapter headings in this book and I just know that you will be nodding and smiling in recognition:
'Visiting someone's home and inspecting the bookshelves', 'Impromptu bookmarks', 'Hiding yet more purchases from partners', 'Spying on what others are reading', 'Feeling bereft having finished a book', 'Choosing and anticipating holiday reading'.
You are already thinking this book is written about you aren't you? Well that would be the chapter 'Feeling a book is intimately for you'!
As well as the joy of recognising yourself and your reading habits in the pages of this book, you will undoubtedly appreciate the passion of the author for his subject. I went to see Daniel Gray at the Edinburgh Book Festival and he spoke about how reading is a real escape from our busy lives. Other escapes can be more of a distraction such as losing an hour on social media, but reading remains a dedicated escape. He has a real eye for detail, which is why any book lover will recognise themselves in this book.
If I could add to the delights listed, I would definitely include reading my own much loved copies of my childhood books to my own girls when they were young. A more recent delight is that now they are in their late teens, I can pass on many of the books I have read and we can talk about them together. It is a true delight to share the love of reading with my daughters. This is a little gem of a book which I recommend to anyone who loves reading. I can't wait to see what delights Daniel Gray will share with us next.
As well as the joy of recognising yourself and your reading habits in the pages of this book, you will undoubtedly appreciate the passion of the author for his subject. I went to see Daniel Gray at the Edinburgh Book Festival and he spoke about how reading is a real escape from our busy lives. Other escapes can be more of a distraction such as losing an hour on social media, but reading remains a dedicated escape. He has a real eye for detail, which is why any book lover will recognise themselves in this book.
If I could add to the delights listed, I would definitely include reading my own much loved copies of my childhood books to my own girls when they were young. A more recent delight is that now they are in their late teens, I can pass on many of the books I have read and we can talk about them together. It is a true delight to share the love of reading with my daughters. This is a little gem of a book which I recommend to anyone who loves reading. I can't wait to see what delights Daniel Gray will share with us next.
January 17, 2022
This is a lovely little collection of essays about reading, and the various aspects and joys of it, from discovering a new book series, to finishing a book that you loved, to the joy of buying books and finding new authors. Anyone who loves reading will identify with the themes and essays here! :) This a nice, short read and it would make a great stocking filler or little present. :)
February 1, 2020
Libro ilustrado que relata las manías, los hábitos, placeres y situaciones que identifican y comparten los lectores.
did-not-finish
October 23, 2024Honestly, if you read the 50 chapter titles, you’ve read the book. This would make a good Buzzfeed article. All you need is a paragraph for each number, not an entire chapter. It would make for a perfect bathroom book; something to peruse for 5 minutes while on the toilet. It’s not a book you sit down and read for an hour at a stretch. I was saving it and reading it on my subway journeys but even then, those rides were too long to maintain an interest. It’s a cute idea, listing things people love about books. I agree with almost all of them. However, agreeing with the sentiments described is not the same as enjoying reading it.
1.Handwritten dedications in old books
2. Visiting someone's home and inspecting the bookshelves
3. Impromptu bookmarks
4. Reading in bed
5. Beginning a new book
32. Spying on what others are reading
33. Chaotic book rooms and enthusiastic owners trying to find something for you
34. Enthusing to someone about a book
35. Pristine books
36. The back cover
1.Handwritten dedications in old books
2. Visiting someone's home and inspecting the bookshelves
3. Impromptu bookmarks
4. Reading in bed
5. Beginning a new book
32. Spying on what others are reading
33. Chaotic book rooms and enthusiastic owners trying to find something for you
34. Enthusing to someone about a book
35. Pristine books
36. The back cover
July 14, 2020
An extended paean to the many joys of books: finding them, hoarding them, sharing them, savoring every quality of them, be it content, style, texture, heft, smell, what have you. The anticipation of opening something new or re-visiting old favorites or almost-forgotten pieces of our childhood. This little set of fifty short essays is clearly aimed at the bibliophile; Gray is preaching to the choir, not proselytizing. Any reader who picks this one up needs no convincing. What Gray offers if the chance to muse, compare experiences, reinforce beliefs, accept our own foibles; even forgive our transgressions, be they scribbling, dog-earing or neglecting to return lent volumes.
So this is an inconsequential, one-ended conversation; no startling insights but many an “Oh, yes!” moment. It’s a comfortable, reassuring read, focusing on our habits and emotional responses to the books we encounter. But in the end the book is not as penetrating as it might have been had Gray ventured beyond simply identifying the ways we relate to various kinds of books in different situations and endeavored to explore the psychic, historical, societal or cultural impact of books. It seems to me that a book of this genre ought to have provoked me more than it did; I found myself wanting a more stimulating conversation. It was pleasant but a bit too cozy.
So this is an inconsequential, one-ended conversation; no startling insights but many an “Oh, yes!” moment. It’s a comfortable, reassuring read, focusing on our habits and emotional responses to the books we encounter. But in the end the book is not as penetrating as it might have been had Gray ventured beyond simply identifying the ways we relate to various kinds of books in different situations and endeavored to explore the psychic, historical, societal or cultural impact of books. It seems to me that a book of this genre ought to have provoked me more than it did; I found myself wanting a more stimulating conversation. It was pleasant but a bit too cozy.
October 22, 2021
Was für ein vergnügliches kleines Buch, dessen kurze Geschichten, Anekdoten und Lesewahrheiten man zum Glück immer mal wieder hervor holen und darin schmökern kann. Fast auf jeder Seite möchte man (wie einst Hildegunst von Mythenmetz bei der Lektüre des geheimnisvollen Manuskripts) ausrufen "Ja, ja", genau so oder ähnlich ist der eigene Lesealltag und Bücherwahn. Hinzufügen würde ich gerne, wie vergnüglich es auch sein kann, in Büchern über andere Bücher zu "stolpern" und Gemeinsamkeiten oder die nächste Lektüre zu finden... Absolute Leseempfehlung für alle Bücherwürmer!
July 11, 2021
Ein kurzweiliges kleines Büchlein mit allerlei kitschigen Erklärungen dafür, warum wir dem geschriebenen Wort so viel Aufmerksamkeit schenken - und schenken sollen.
Ich habe vieler solcher Bücher in der Hand gehabt. Das war vielleicht das Beste bisher. Ich hab' die Lektüre sehr genossen; obwohl ich eigentlich nicht so die Bücherkitsch-Person bin. 😉
Ich habe vieler solcher Bücher in der Hand gehabt. Das war vielleicht das Beste bisher. Ich hab' die Lektüre sehr genossen; obwohl ich eigentlich nicht so die Bücherkitsch-Person bin. 😉
December 31, 2024
Está entretenido. Con algunos placeres conectas más que con otros, pero en general todos resultan agradables de leer. Sí que es verdad que el estilo narrativo se me ha hecho poco fluido, me esperaba otra cosa para este tipo de libro y por eso le he bajado la puntuación; pero la verdad es que lo recomiendo.
July 12, 2017
A lovely little book which perfectly captures what it is to be a book lover and avid reader. All the quirky things I thought made me a bit weird, it turns out, aren't actually that weird and others experience them too. Hoorah! I'm off to sniff some pages...
December 30, 2017
Another glorious book of observations by Daniel Gray, this time focussing on books and covering everything from that heady bookish scent to author dedications. Each chapter consists of beautiful turns of phrase which will leave every bibliophile with a wry, knowing smile.
January 22, 2024
A collection of fun little essays for bibliophiles. An enjoyable palate cleanser between novels.
July 15, 2017
This is a lovely, sweet little book all about the joys of books and reading. Many of them I can relate to and some of them I hope to encounter at some point. An easy feel-good read.
October 3, 2020
A beautifully written little gem with 50 parcels of loveliness about the love of reading. Winding from the excitement of finding a new title, or author, to putting down a much loved story at it's final page. This little book takes you through the small pleasures, frustrations and foibles we all experience as bibliophiles. I particularly loved the description of the smells of the old bookstore, like breathing in history.
November 16, 2017
Just plain delightful. I concur with every joy the man describes about reading. If you ever loved a book, if you're a devotee of the written word, if you can't pass a bookstore without quickly 'popping in', then Scribbles in the Margins is another book to add to your long list. It's charming without being twee.
March 22, 2018
Una pequeña maravilla ligera y super fácil de leer. Capítulos muy cortitos con un interlineado generoso. La maquetación junto con las ilustraciones (¿exclusivas de la versión española?) le dan puntos de carisma al conjunto.
August 6, 2017
A charming read about the pleasures of books. I'm guilty of most of them!
September 3, 2018
This was a spontaneous borrow from the library. I've always loved marginalia and this cover definitely drew me in and I was curious to see what this book had to offer. I was not disappointed. Hidden away in this tiny book are detailed love letters to every side of experiencing books. From ending your day by getting into bed and reading, to finishing a book and letting the characters linger, Gray covered pretty much every delight there is to be found within a book. There were a few moments where his vocabulary felt a little contrived and he pushed the fine line between depth and pretentiousness a little too much, but it wasn't a major issue. I loved this book and I'm definitely going to get a copy for myself, mostly to lend it to others. An intimate glimpse into a bibliophiles heart. Beautiful.
How many times have these words been loved before?
- - -
These paper time-machines shroud us in the comforting thought that a book has a life, and we are now a part of it.
- - -
Here you are, the door is closed, the day is done, the pages are open and all the worlds you need have awoken.
- - -
Today is gone, tomorrow is on hold, and reading at bedtime has left you contentedly abandoned in a world all of your own.
- - -
Those hours were a quiet buzz, the library card a secret pass.
- - -
What a thought, that there is someone out there, waiting to be discovered, and perfect for us.
- - -
The front cover is eye-contact, the back a first conversation. While the latter offers lust and attraction, the former is an object of matter and substance. The two contrive to pull a reader towards a book, after which point love is entirely possible.
- - -
The book’s narrative overlaps with your own. There is a routine sense of emptiness and loss to flounder in during this brief gap between reads. Lurking is the danger that reality will poke through. It won’t. There is always another book to escape in.
How many times have these words been loved before?
- - -
These paper time-machines shroud us in the comforting thought that a book has a life, and we are now a part of it.
- - -
Here you are, the door is closed, the day is done, the pages are open and all the worlds you need have awoken.
- - -
Today is gone, tomorrow is on hold, and reading at bedtime has left you contentedly abandoned in a world all of your own.
- - -
Those hours were a quiet buzz, the library card a secret pass.
- - -
What a thought, that there is someone out there, waiting to be discovered, and perfect for us.
- - -
The front cover is eye-contact, the back a first conversation. While the latter offers lust and attraction, the former is an object of matter and substance. The two contrive to pull a reader towards a book, after which point love is entirely possible.
- - -
The book’s narrative overlaps with your own. There is a routine sense of emptiness and loss to flounder in during this brief gap between reads. Lurking is the danger that reality will poke through. It won’t. There is always another book to escape in.
June 20, 2018
I bought Scribbles on Mother's Day and a quick scan in the car on the way home (I wasn't driving). quickly established it was one I was going to love.
Each chapter is about a different element of reading, from over ones shoulder, to the bookmarks we use, to the way we enthuse about a certain book to anyone who will listen. It's easy to read and is slim despite being a hardback.
How different to the previous slim hard back - Women and Power I recently read. It just goes to show it doesn't matter how long a book (Vanity Fair v Bleak House) or how slim a book is, it's the content that counts and this was brimming with it.
I could sit here and re-type practically the whole book pointing out quotes that I loved or sections that resonated. Gray just knows what it is like to read and be obsessed by reading. I don't think at the start I could have set down on paper 50 different things about books and reading styles yet I found a little bit of myself in nearly every chapter. I have given up reading a book mid way through (a relative new thing for me granted), I've read in a tent and lost an afternoon to the re-organising of bookshelves. Gray made me smile, he made me laugh and at times his writing was exquisite:
"The back cover is consulted only after the front has been favourably judged. It hides, often with its face to the wall like a naughty schoolchild, until flipped over in someone's hands, their interest piqued. The front cover is eye-contact, the back a first conversation."
A true love letter to everything book. I highly recommend it.
If you like books about books then you may also like The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell, currently sitting at number 12 on my to read list.
Each chapter is about a different element of reading, from over ones shoulder, to the bookmarks we use, to the way we enthuse about a certain book to anyone who will listen. It's easy to read and is slim despite being a hardback.
How different to the previous slim hard back - Women and Power I recently read. It just goes to show it doesn't matter how long a book (Vanity Fair v Bleak House) or how slim a book is, it's the content that counts and this was brimming with it.
I could sit here and re-type practically the whole book pointing out quotes that I loved or sections that resonated. Gray just knows what it is like to read and be obsessed by reading. I don't think at the start I could have set down on paper 50 different things about books and reading styles yet I found a little bit of myself in nearly every chapter. I have given up reading a book mid way through (a relative new thing for me granted), I've read in a tent and lost an afternoon to the re-organising of bookshelves. Gray made me smile, he made me laugh and at times his writing was exquisite:
"The back cover is consulted only after the front has been favourably judged. It hides, often with its face to the wall like a naughty schoolchild, until flipped over in someone's hands, their interest piqued. The front cover is eye-contact, the back a first conversation."
A true love letter to everything book. I highly recommend it.
If you like books about books then you may also like The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell, currently sitting at number 12 on my to read list.
May 24, 2018
"I need books. I feel as though I have no choice in the matter. I need shelves and stacks of them in every room in the house. Some, inevitably, will become what are termed in Japanese tsundoku - books bought and never read, sentenced to live forever on shelf or pile - but addiction is seldom logical."
Scribbles in the Margins : 50 Eternal Delights of Books (Ahh! The name😍Yes I picked it up because of the name😬) is a heartfelt collection of short essays by Daniel Gray, which perfectly resonate with us booklovers.
From finding Dedications in Used Books to Inspecting Bookshelves in someone else' house or a library, Reading an old favourite or just not enjoying a book and feeling guilty about it, this book talks about it all! Each and every feeling you've had about books - the anticipation, giddiness of entering a bookshop and getting lost in the shelves, sniffing books, unwrapping an online ordered book, gifting a book, staying up late to finish one, feeling heartbroken after finishing a book, finding treasures in second hand book stores.. and I could go on!!
I thoroughly enjoyed this little book! I wanted to read them all in one go but I didn’t wanna run out of them either!
Absolutely delightful and full of witty moments you experience as a reader. I highly recommend this one just for the love of books❤️.
Perfect for book addicts, occasional readers and non-readers alike! Give it to a non-reader and I'm sure they'll know what they miss.
I give this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 (3.75-4)
Scribbles in the Margins : 50 Eternal Delights of Books (Ahh! The name😍Yes I picked it up because of the name😬) is a heartfelt collection of short essays by Daniel Gray, which perfectly resonate with us booklovers.
From finding Dedications in Used Books to Inspecting Bookshelves in someone else' house or a library, Reading an old favourite or just not enjoying a book and feeling guilty about it, this book talks about it all! Each and every feeling you've had about books - the anticipation, giddiness of entering a bookshop and getting lost in the shelves, sniffing books, unwrapping an online ordered book, gifting a book, staying up late to finish one, feeling heartbroken after finishing a book, finding treasures in second hand book stores.. and I could go on!!
I thoroughly enjoyed this little book! I wanted to read them all in one go but I didn’t wanna run out of them either!
Absolutely delightful and full of witty moments you experience as a reader. I highly recommend this one just for the love of books❤️.
Perfect for book addicts, occasional readers and non-readers alike! Give it to a non-reader and I'm sure they'll know what they miss.
I give this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 (3.75-4)
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