Welcome to Litsy!

This was a fast, interesting read. I think my favorite part was getting to see handwritten card catalog cards for a bunch of books again. But I did actually learn a lot of new things along with all the nostalgia. My one complaint is that I found myself tempted to skim large stretches when the writing style was less dynamic, or info I already knew was being related.

My current impulse read is this fascinating nonfiction that in surprisingly simple language gives an overview of the history of cataloguing itself dating back to ancient Sumeria, and a history of the library of congress in particular, and includes a treasure trove of over 200 full color images from the library‘s collection. #Card #DivineDecember @Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

What a great day! Anticipating the Zoom event of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe Book Club with Patti Callahan, Douglas Gresham, David C Downing, & more of the National Book Festival!
#ChroniclesOfNarnia
#TheLionTheWitchAndTheWardrobe
#TheVoyageOfTheDawnTreader
#CSLewis
#OnceUponAWardrobe
#NationalBookFestival
#NationalBookFestival2021
#NatBookFest
#NatBookFest2021 #LibraryOfCongress
 @HarperCollins

Memories popped up on One Drive from my trip to Washington DC! I could live in Library of Congress!

“This single volume—its history so full of questions and gaps—stands alone on my shelf as a reminder of the social lives and secret lives of books. Not simply inanimate objects, books are highly mobile, taking up residence in our homes and memories.” —For me, this is the most beautiful and powerful passage in the whole book!

“I, personally, would feel somewhat like a goop walking into Brentano‘s, picking up one copy of everything in sight, and saying, ‘I want to buy these.‘ But this is what the Library of Congress wants you to do.” —Frederick Kilgour. Wow! I‘ve never seen the word ‘goop‘ used in this context before! 😂

Loved the photos and learning about not just card catalogs but also the library of congress.
@Cinfhen #booked2021 @4thhouseontheleft #containsphotos @BarbaraTheBibliophage

I can‘t help but feel like Ruth Rappaport would not have approved of this book. For example, the author notes that Ruth did not speak or write much in her diary about her parents deaths in a concentration camp. Well, maybe that was a very painful subject for her and she chose to keep it private. The author goes on long personal tangents regarding her own life and experience writing the book, none of which were particularly interesting or useful.

On a Rosenstock binge, but this is not a fav. Good for bibiliophiles and history fans. PRO: She found various ways to quantify large numbers (of books) to help readers comprehend TJ's staggering collections. CON: Tiny sidebars of quotes and historical context. Seriously too small; they feel like an afterthought. CON: No mention of enslaved people in main text / illustrations (this is personal to me but also super important to me). #dw2020reads