She Treads Softly: "un-alphabetized" and "un-arranged by subject"

Thursday, February 22, 2007

"un-alphabetized" and "un-arranged by subject"

The recent "un-alphabetized" and "un-arranged by subject" -ness of my book cases has me all in a tizzy.

We have 4 large double book cases in our bonus room (or library as we like to call it) and we all love our books. Combining that with a house that is for sale and it's easy to see how this wall of bookcases could look messy. Books were stacked up and spilling out of it. I packed some up, thinking that would help. My daughter had a better idea. She suggested that in order to make our wall of bookcases look less cluttered, it might help to arrange the books by size, rather than my preferred method of organization, alphabetized or by subject.

The book cases look GOOD, which was the point, but now, when I want to find a book quickly, I can't. I'll think "Oh, that's by _______ and it will be there." The problem now is that looking "there" where the book should be no longer helps. The book could be anywhere. Now I have to remember if the book I'm looking for is hardcover or paperback. Is it a large or small paperback/hardcover. Then I need to try to remember the color of the cover, if possible.

It will be wonderful when we finally sell this house, move, and I can put my bookcases back into the order I like. I miss the alphabetization.

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John Updike's six rules for reviewing:

1. Try to understand what the author wished to do, and do not blame him for not achieving what he did not attempt.

2. Give him enough direct quotation--at least one extended passage--of the book's prose so the review's reader can form his own impression, can get his own taste.

3. Confirm your description of the book with quotation from the book, if only phrase-long, rather than proceeding by fuzzy precis.

4. Go easy on plot summary, and do not give away the ending.

5. If the book is judged deficient, cite a successful example along the same lines, from the author's oeuvre or elsewhere. Try to understand the failure. Sure it's his and not yours?

To these concrete five might be added a vaguer sixth, having to do with maintaining a chemical purity in the reaction between product and appraiser.....Review the book, not the reputation.... Better to praise and share than blame and ban. The communion between reviewer and his public is based upon the presumption of certain possible joys in reading, and all our discriminations should curve toward that end.