The Art of Book Sharing
It is the 21st century: The Internet Age where
everything is accomplished by the swipe, tap, or slide of our hands and
fingers. It seems that advanced technology has changed our lives from the most
simplistic tasks (sending a SMS) to the most complicated endeavors (sending man
to space) and anything Isaac Asimov wrote in his books.
Speaking of books, when was the last time you got hold of
one? Yes, our benevolent readers, we are talking about the dusty ones sitting in
your bookshelves. Sometimes these are with safety jackets for hardcovers
or the delicate paperbacks. These are different from those illegally downloaded
PDFs from the Internet and saved to an iPad. Sounds old school to you? Well,
remember, the crudest and most novel ideas sprouted from these books.
Reading books, as we all know, provides us information and a
sense of enjoyment or entertainment. It doesn’t contain any pop-up ads that
will hinder you from reading. It is a source of continuous and unadulterated
fun. If you’re the generous kind, you can share it to your fellow book lovers.
Let’s emphasize the last part when it comes to sharing a book. Keep in your
mind that if you’re going to share your precious book, with the safety dust
jacket or wrapped in an immaculate plastic cover, make sure you’re handing it
down to a book lover. Or better yet set ground rules. You have the right
because it is your book. Most of us create a personal connection to the books
we bought. It is wise to set ground rules before lending it or expect to have
it back in a poor condition.
One of the rules we would suggest is that if you’re lending
a hardcover book, exclude the dust jacket for safety purposes. A hardcover book
is not called a book with a hard cover alone—the glossy dust jacket completes
it. This next rule is applied to any type of book: voluntarily place a bookmark
inside a book before lending it. A bookmark is like a friendly reminder for the
borrowers never to dogear your book.
These are just examples and you can still add your own threats,
er, rules if you like. Just in case you’re tired of swiping pages on your
tablet revert to the flipping thru pages thing. Indulge again in an experience
where you can feel and smell a real book.
By : Roel John M. Bobis
Tags :
