Open a Book

Years ago Cambridge sported a number of bookstores, but over the years the numbers dwindled. I remember used bookstores selling books and old postcards, foreign language bookstores, and one bookstore that sold beautiful art and photography books.

I recall an old house converted into a bookstore in Wellesley. In Sudbury a woman who grew up in China—the daughter of missionaries—converted the downstairs of her house into a bookstore. If you purchased a book she noted the date, book name, your name, and cost in a large ledger. Her cash register was a tin box and the license on her car said: BOOKS  I. I don’t recall her name, but I know she introduced me to  Peter Elbow’s writing theories.

Today we drove down to one of my favorite bookstores—Bluehills Bookstore. It , too, is located in a renovated house. The owner has one of the best non-fiction sections. Because the space is limited each book carries its own weight.

I always purchase a book and write down a list of must reads.

Here’s my list:

Feel Free  by Zadie Smith

Black ink  edited by Stephanie Stokes Oliver

What are You Doing Here by Marilynne Robinson

A History of  the World in 6 Glasses  by Tom Standage