I’m back from a morning jaunt over to Half-Price Books in San Antonio, Texas. My wife found a gift card from a colleague and friend (DB) in the kitchen maildrop, so I found myself wondering, “How many books could I get?” Of course, I didn’t stay in the $2.00 carousel, and floated around my favorite sections.

The books represent my journey from horror to bargain. I had to pick up Jason Pargin’s book, John Dies at the End, because the book jacket was so intriguing. Great jacket writing. The book must be as good, right? Bujold because I have never read her work. Marion Zimmer Bradley for the same reason, although I read three of her books last month and thought, why not light a candle for the Darkover series?

William Sarabande (not sure if I spelled his name right) had like 4 books in the clearance carousel. I was perturbed on his behalf. Did the publisher print too many copies or is he that forgettable an author? I will make that determination myself, without help from other readers. Jim Butcher’s The Codex Alera was a great departure from the fantastic Dresden Files, so I’m hoping The Cinder Spires series takes me on a similar adventure. Finally, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is a movie before my time, but I bet the book is even better!

Old and Interesting

One of the sections, where I picked up one of the books (can you guess which?), was labelled, “Old and Interesting.” I felt I had an affinity for that section. If you haven’t guessed, finding treasures in half-price books is part of the fun, a joy I had forgotten in my eager tapping and fumbling for ebooks served up fast.

So I broke down and bought the paperback version. And boy, do I regret it. 

I had forgotten just what a pain in the butt reading a fat, heavy, stiff, small print publication can be. I have to have my reading glasses. I have to have really good light. I have to remember to bring the damn thing with me when I leave the house if I want to read it somewhere other than in my recliner. I have to rest my wrists and fingers now and then. (Source: Doug Johnson, The curse of paper books and the danger of e-books)

I get the allure of old books, treasures lost in time until rediscovered. In the rush to learn new things, I find myself missing the days of hunkering down with a book, mano a mano (or page), making sense of the words in print. It’s an escape, you see, rather than an adventure into the unknown. Or maybe it’s both. Like Doug, I have to have the right set of spectacles on, and find a spot that’s comfy, which inevitably lulls me into sleepy, slobbery oblivion.

There are some old and interesting books that, when I lay hands on them, the story is there in my mind, vibrant and alive. I need not open the book, the story is ever with me. But then, my favorite books are those whom my brain has forgotten. Some day, I may discover the truth of why my brain remembers one thing, forgets another so utterly.

But there’s another problem.

Tracking Your Books

How do you track what you read? For a while, I relied on Goodreads to track all the books I was reading. Since so many were on Amazon, including Audible books, it made sense to rely on Goodreads. To be honest, I don’t care about tracking books all that much. The books I like, I keep.

“If you have no faith in yourself, then have faith in the things you call truth. You know what must be done. You may not have courage or trust or understanding or the will to do it, but you know what must be done. You can’t turn back. There is no answer behind you. You fear what you cannot name. So look at it and find a name for it. Turn your face forward and learn. Do what must be done.”
― Patricia A. McKillip, The Riddle-Master of Hed

My daughter steals them when she visits, but it isn’t theft. Sometimes, she’ll use my miniscule collection of print as a way to get more books at Half-Price Books. You walk in with a few bags and get $5 for your trouble. Maybe one or two books if you’re lucky. If I see them in the bookstore, I’ll rescue them from their captivity…if they were taken by accident without due process.

Other times, she steals them, then, when I visit her, I greet them like old, long-lost friends, and they find their way, in ones and twos into my bag. She won’t miss them. She is a book dragon, those tomes like pieces of gold in her hoard, too small to miss, not ensorcelled to draw attention when they leave her bookshelves.

While I don’t use Goodreads for tracking, I do run across people who share their thoughts on books to read. Here’s a short note I got from the Blue Skunk himself, Doug Johnson:

Miguel, if you don’t already use it, try Goodreads for book selections. 

Doug

But these days, if I bother, I find myself looking for other alternatives. I already deleted my Goodreads account as part of my Amazon purge. So disappointing.

“It’s inevitable that when there are hundreds of thousands of bureaucrats with endless budgets, who have no accountability and can’t be fired, that these things are bound to happen.”
― C.J. Box, Endangered

Never accept the proposition that just because a solution satisfies a problem, that it must be the only solution. Raymond E. Feist

StoryGraph

That’s why I found this article curious and worthy of passing on:

This article, 21 Best Goodreads Alternatives for Ethical Book Tracking, is a part of an ongoing series on how to minimize or eliminate Amazon use from our lives. We’re highlighting the best Amazon alternatives for those with ethical, moral, or environmental qualms with the trillion-dollar company...For those who fall into that camp, we’ve already written guides on alternatives to: Prime Video, Audible, Amazon books, Amazon Kindle, and Amazon shopping.

I tried to keep my list up at The StoryGraph, one of the alternatives my daughter recommended, but, in the end, “Who cares?” Time will tell if I use it or not.

The past can be a terrible weight bound to you by an unbreakable chain. You can drag it with you, forever looking over your shoulder at what holds you back. Or you can let it go and move forward. It’s your choice.

Raymond E. Feist

Print or Digital

I read both voraciously. My digital reading, using the Readest app on iOS, involves revisiting Midkemia and Tsurani stories from the start. But I’m also reading some oldies, like Patricia McPhillip’s The Riddle-Master of Hed. Trodding those old tales is like walking a path long forgotten but familiar in leaf and bush.

These days, I’m also digging into print copies of C.J. Box’ Joe Pickett series, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and so many others.

The truly original thinkers work out of personal need and interest, not for high test scores. In fact, worrying about grades and other extrinsic motivators will also make students risk averse and less likely to take creative chances.”
― Douglas A. Johnson, Teaching Outside the Lines: Developing Creativity in Every Learner

Alas, I bought a new small backpack since we’d arrived too early to enter Half-Price Books. It has room for my pens, notebooks, and books. I’m regressing, aren’t I, towards childhood?