Onward. . . with Books

Some recommendations for the world as it is now

The world this Monday looks and feels entirely different than the world did last Monday.

Whether you’re griefstricken and afraid or fearless and strong, you know there is a lot of work to be done. Work on behalf of others. Work to maintain our beloved culture and institutions. Work to care for ourselves so that we can keep going.

Here are my top five ideas for the bookish that I believe can be translated to other communities, as well:

1. Get to your nearest independent bookstore, to their website, or at the very least to the Bookshop dot org website (which supports indie booksellers) and buy some books. Buy a single book. Buy a book or three as holiday gifts, or as hostess gifts. If you don’t have much money, buy a notebook, or a mug, or just a sticker. Every little bit helps. Bookstores are linchpins of independent thought, community gathering, and publications that cater to difference.

2. Follow as many readers, writers, authors, booksellers, and publishers as you possibly can on your socials of choice. See “community gathering” above—when we are faced with tyranny, it’s important to keep our chosen families and groups vital and connected. “Soft” connections can be just as helpful as others, too.

3. Learn something new every day, and yes I stole that from the “Martha” documentary, although it’s long been one of my mantras, too. Maybe it’s a new craft, maybe it’s a new way to cook eggs, maybe it’s a new kind of music. Those of us who love books and reading have it easy in this respect, because nearly any work we dive into will teach us a new word or name or idea.

4. Speaking of learning new things, when was the last time you went to your local library? Most of them are quite close by, and even if you can’t get out, their websites are more powerful than ever. Downland the Libby app to check out audiobooks and great video content, too. But if you do get to the library, you might find some wonderful, inexpensive books to benefit their Friends group, or you might find out they hold free yoga or cooking or writing classes, too.

5. If you’re longing to try a craft (see “learn something new” above), might I suggest checking out the wonderful world of book arts? From the simplest ideas, like taking discarded book pages and folding them into origami tree decorations, to the elaborate, like carving an entire world into the center of a hardcover, book arts encompasses existing books—and making your own. I’ve seen scrapbooks, archival-grade folders, letterpress chapbooks, clamshell boxes, and more. Many cities have book-arts centers, or classes on how to create greeting cards etc.

Next week: More ideas for the bookish that tie directly in to #resistance work.