On the Bookshelf

Some long time ago in this column I posed the idea of typing a personality, or diagnosing the mental status of someone based on their library. I have since, while standing in line at the local big-box discount store, wondered what our purchases could tell about us, our state of mind, and what we think is important. I looked at the cart of the person ahead of me in line, and saw fruit, vegetables, 100 bottles of water and some meat. Mine boasted some tuna steaks, coffee, tomatoes and a very large bag of candy, among other things. I almost asked the person tending the checkout if she ever got a laugh at what combinations of things people buy.

But back to books. The idea of looking at what's on the bookshelves in someone's home as a clue to their ideas, socio-economic status, interests, and even evolution as a thinking being remains intriguing to me. 

To test my theory, here is a list of 10 books from 10 different bookshelves in my home. And that right there is a clue - there are far more than 10 shelves, 10 bookcases in my home. I'm not sure whether that attests to my wide and devoted reading, or my status as a hoarder. 

Charles Baudelaire: Les Fleurs du Mal. This is a poem, in a side-by-side French/English mode, bound into a book. While frequently banned and considered scandalous in its day (published in 1857) the book is a challenge for someone learning to read French, and is full of unusual and often, yes, scandalous imagery. Suffering and sin, drugs and death, the Vampire and the Swan. Young Charles' work - he was just 21 when he published this poem - has been referenced in modern rock music, film and even television series, often in ways that only someone deeply aware of his writing would catch.

Nigel Tranter: Children of the Mist. Tranter, who lived the greater part of the last century, was a Scot who, though in many ways an ordinary man who worked as an accountant, married and had kids, and fought in World War II. But at some point in his childhood he became interested in the history of his homeland, particularly in its castles, and his first book (non-fiction) was about the castles and mansions of Scotland. His first novel was rejected, but soon he was writing both non-fiction examinations of history through its buildings, and romantic historic novels centering on a character or incident from Scottish history, and also a handful of "westerns!" "Children of the Mist" centers on the reign of Mary and James VI (1513-1603), telling the story of the Campbells and MacGregors, quintessential Highland foes.

Robert Graves: The White Goddess. Sort of a primer on folklore, mythology, religion and magic for the interested beginner, though a step beyond his "The Golden Fleece." The son of an Irish poet and Celtic revivalist, Graves was interested in mythology of all kinds, with a particular bent for Irish myth and legend. 

Gray's Anatomy. First published in 1858, the book was a basic text book of all things to do with the human anatomy and basic function, with detailed illustrations, and has had many updated versions released since its inception, both British and American.

Charles Dickens: Best Stories. An essential Dickens reader. This author has always been one of my favorites.

Matheson: I Am Legend. Published in 1954, this was one of the grand-daddies of the modern zombie and vampire thrillers. There is a war, then a mysterious illness that kills of most of the population and renders the larger part of what is left blood-sucking creatures of the night. One intrepid man hunts by day, arming himself with the wooden stake of the vampire hunter. He eventually meets a dog, and then a woman. The rest is many, many movies, novels, and series. Richard Matheson was influenced by Mary Shelley's other book, "The Last Man," which also is on my book shelves.

Enid Bagnold: National Velvet. One of the first "young girl and her horse" novels. This one became a famous movie, later a TV series. Though Bagnold is probably best known for "National Velvet," in which a young girl competes in, and wins, the Grand National Steeplechase, Bagnold also wrote "The Chalk Garden," a much darker story that was also adapted into a film starring Deborah Kerr and Hayley Mills.

Samuel Butler: Erewhon. This satirical utopian novel was written as a send-up of Victorian society (published in 1872), making fun of religion, social niceties and classifications. The name, in case you haven't guessed, is "nowhere" spelled backwards.

George Orwell: Nineteen Eighty-Four. This is the classic dystopia, in which war is peace, bad is "ungood," and whether you like him or not, you love Big Brother - who is watching. Winston Smith, a mid-level worker in mini-tru (the Ministry of Truth), wants to rebel - but rebellion isn't easy. The book continues to be cited for its alarming, and insightful, depiction of what could be. And 2+2=5.

Herbs and Herbalism. A compendium of how to identify, grow, harvest, and use herbs for just about any and every purpose - medicinal, cooking, perfumes, salves, and simply enjoying. Herbalism refers more specifically to using herbs in traditional or "folk" medicine, and the book goes into some detail about how to brew teas, make decoctions and powders. Even if what you're looking for is as simple as a way to ease the itch of a mosquito bite, or add some flavor to a stew, knowing a little something about herbs is rewarding. I still find myself stopping on a hike to see if I can identify plants in the woods or fields, and I still grow and harvest oregano and basil.