Packing My Library: An Elegy And Ten Digressions
by Alberto Manguel /
2018 / English / PDF
107.9 MB Download
In June 2015 Alberto Manguel prepared to leave his centuries-old
village home in France's Loire Valley and reestablish himself in a
one-bedroom apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Packing up
his enormous, 35,000-volume personal library, choosing which books
to keep, store, or cast out, Manguel found himself in deep reverie
on the nature of relationships between books and readers, books and
collectors, order and disorder, memory and reading. In this
poignant and personal reevaluation of his life as a reader, the
author illuminates the highly personal art of reading and affirms
the vital role of public libraries. Manguel's musings range widely,
from delightful reflections on the idiosyncrasies of book lovers to
deeper analyses of historic and catastrophic book events, including
the burning of ancient Alexandria's library and contemporary
library lootings at the hands of ISIS. With insight and passion,
the author underscores the universal centrality of books and their
unique importance to a democratic, civilized, and engaged society.
In June 2015 Alberto Manguel prepared to leave his centuries-old
village home in France's Loire Valley and reestablish himself in a
one-bedroom apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side. Packing up
his enormous, 35,000-volume personal library, choosing which books
to keep, store, or cast out, Manguel found himself in deep reverie
on the nature of relationships between books and readers, books and
collectors, order and disorder, memory and reading. In this
poignant and personal reevaluation of his life as a reader, the
author illuminates the highly personal art of reading and affirms
the vital role of public libraries. Manguel's musings range widely,
from delightful reflections on the idiosyncrasies of book lovers to
deeper analyses of historic and catastrophic book events, including
the burning of ancient Alexandria's library and contemporary
library lootings at the hands of ISIS. With insight and passion,
the author underscores the universal centrality of books and their
unique importance to a democratic, civilized, and engaged society.