"The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop"

That's the title of a wonderful little book I found during our trip to Maine. We were in a town called Searsport, and the name of the shop was Left Bank Books. The bookshop was originally the town's bank, and the original woodwork was all intact, as was the vault (which the shop owner used for storage).

I remember this bookshop more than any of the others that we stopped in, because it was just so charming.... not too small, not too large-- just the perfect size, with cushy chairs in the corners by the windows, so you could page through the books comfortably before you bought them.

This was also the bookshop where I heard the jingle of another woman's charm bracelet. She was on one side of a book-rack, I was on the other. We were both wearing silver bracelets filled with silver charms, and as we looked through the books and selected volumes from the rack, our charm bracelets jingled with happy sounds. We both looked up at the same time, our heads peeking over the top of the rack. I held up my left arm and moved it so the charms would sing, and she did the same. We both laughed, and she told me that she never travels without her charm bracelet because it "sounds like home."

But... back to "The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop," by Lewis Buzbee. If you love books, you have got to read this one. It isn't fiction... it's a memoir, the author giving you the history of his love of books and bookshops. There are lines in this book that I can identify with--- how he feels a "loss" when he has to return great books to his local library; searching for hours in a bookstore for a certain volume even though he has "a tower" of books in his bedroom, waiting to be read.

I'm not finished with this book yet..... in fact, I haven't even gotten to the third chapter yet. I bought it at that little bookshop in Searsport, Maine, and put it on my own tower of "books waiting to be read." I picked it up last night, after finishing two other books that were on that same tower. This author loves, loves, loves books. And if he isn't reading a book, then he's in a bookshop, searching for yet another book.

Wonderful story, for those of us who love books. This book has made me remember my very first trip to a library in New York, where I got my first library card. I was astounded, at the time, that the card allowed me to take out books, read them, bring them back, and get still more books. I spent more time reading that first summer... so much time that my mother told me to "Go outside and do something!" (So I took my books outside to read. Wasn't that doing something?)

I have always loved books, and I still spend much of my time reading. When we travel, I come home with books, rather than tourist-y souvenirs. And I love used-book shops more than the newer, fancier Barnes & Noble-type stores. I have copies of classic books that have pages so well-read that they feel as soft as silk. And I do re-read my favorites, and keep them on my bookshelves in the living room. The books that I know I won't be reading again are kept by my front door, ready to give away to guests as they leave. "Please take a book.... there might be something there that's calling your name."

"The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop....." I haven't gotten to the part yet which tells why the author chose that title. So pardon me while I get back to reading.....