Wednesday 13 June 2018

The Books That Survived by Sheena Wilkinson



Bedside friends 

This is a sort of sequel to last month’s post, 'Editing A House'. The Great Clear-Out is still a work a progress (as is the work in progress, but that’s a post for another day.)

well, of course I have kept my OWN books -- among others


I have been ruthless in my way. Seventeen bookcases are on their way to fifteen. I thought you’d like to see what was left – in the children’s books, which are all upstairs. There is a still half a bookcase of YA  to be sorted.

These represent the books I just can’t live without. The series I have collected over the years, the childhood friends that are were never things of great beauty to start with (1970s paperbacks) and have not been improved by the ravages of the years.



shabby old paperbacks mostly 
Some of these books I know so well that I know not only what's coming next in the story, but whole passages. Some day I will need to read them again -- and I will look up, and there they will be, waiting. For me, a house without the Marlows or the Blacketts or the Bettanys -- well, it's just not a home. 




Which books could you not live without?  





some more old pals 
classic school stories



3 comments:

Susan Price said...

Kipling's Jungle Books and Just-So Stories, which my father bought me for Christmas when I was seven; various mangled copies of Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales, Greek Myths, Norse Myths; Henry Treece's Viking trilogy. That's just for starters.

catdownunder said...

Oooh may I come and camp out for a while? I haven't read all of those! I promise to be a quiet cat and very careful with the pages.

Helen Larder said...

Thanks for this, Sheena. I struggle to edit down the number of books I keep too! xxxx