Books & Fields used bookstore

07/08/2025

𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐀𝐫𝐭 𝐅𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥, 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟏𝟐, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓
𝐑𝐨𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐚𝐢𝐫, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟔, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓

Dear friends. We are very happy to help publicize two wonderful events in the near future. First is the Perry Chalk Art Festival, being held this coming weekend on July 12, 2025. Later, in early September, the Rochester Book and Paper Fair will be held on September 6, 2025.

Books and Fields will be present at both events. Our delightful store is on Main Street in Perry, across the street from the competitively judged chalk art drawings. We also have a large booth at the Rochester Book & Paper Fair.

If you want to learn a bit more about the two events, please check the links and information shared below. We can tell you that there will be hundreds of people at each. The atmosphere is friendly and fun. All ages will enjoy the chalk art and the associated food and music events. All booklovers will dote on the offerings from dealers that beat feet to Rochester to meet our highly literate and enjoyably free spending citizens!

The Perry festival website is this: 𝐡𝐭𝐭𝐩𝐬://𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲𝐧𝐲.𝐜𝐨𝐦/𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥. In their own words: "Come to Perry, NY July 12th for a Saturday of fine art, fantastic food and fabulous summer fun at the eighteenth annual Perry Chalk Art Festival! Stroll downtown Perry and see professional artists shape gigantic pastel artworks on the theme “Look Forward/Look Back”. Cheer on youth artists competing for prizes and encourage artists of all ages to try their hand at the chalking wall. And see artist Erika Lalita creating a super-sized chalk work under the Festival Plaza pavilion."

The Book & Paper Fair website is 𝐡𝐭𝐭𝐩𝐬://𝐰𝐰𝐰.𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐬.𝐜𝐨𝐦/𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞.

If you wonder why the word ‘paper’ is there, it is because many book collectors have associated interests in photographs, maps, postcards, posters, and ephemera. IF it has been printed then booklovers have an interest. Last year there were almost 800 guests at the Fair. With the paper addition, let us hope to reach 1000!

The fair wouldn’t be complete without Books and Fields. Our humble self-description can be seen in the photos.

We hope to see you at both events!

06/19/2025

𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝟒𝐭𝐡 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 & 𝐅𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐝𝐬!!!!

Dear friends—

Come celebrate 4 years with us! Today, June 19th, is the 4th birthday of Books & Fields, the best used bookstore between Boston and Chicago, and probably beyond!

On June 19th, 2021, we opened our doors to a book-starved world. We had worked like crazy from early January 2021 to be ready. We found a wonderful host town in Perry NY, and we realized the dream to open the store in our Western NY home. The thousands of friends made and customers served since then have validated this location and the dream!

June19th, 2021 was also the first time that Juneteenth was celebrated as a national holiday. That timing was coincidental for the store, but nonetheless welcome synergy. Mr. Books & Fields [Sam] is a passionate reader of history, with full understanding of the relevance of the date. Mrs. Books & Fields [Rose] is an Americo-Liberian and an African-American for whom Juneteenth has deep personal meaning. We are proud to co-celebrate the day.

As for the store and its future, we had about 6,000 books when we opened. We have over 16,000 now. For every book we sell, we buy 2, one to replace it and one to expand the inventory. We had 4 rooms full when we started. We are at 7 now and trying to figure out how to add an 8th. We’ve also signed a lease extension through the end of 2027. Expect great things of us [including a resumption of our weekly Facebook posts!].

And now, to end with a bit of fun. In June 2020 we started listing possible store names. Look at the options we came up with. Many great names, yes? Sometime in July, however, we hit on Books & Fields and that was that. It rang true.

 Jus’ Chillin’ Books
 Moonshot Books
 Sneaky Pete’s
 Sambam Books
 Beguiling Books
 Babbling Book
 Hey, Book Me Over
 Good Bad Books
 Bookalicious
 Booky McBookshop
 The Tattler Books
 Tattle Tales
 Serendipity Books
 Gottahavit Books
 Yakety Books
 Reader’s Home
 Book Panner
 Book Gold
 Wide Awake Books
 Dr. Bookenstein
 Bookbelly
 Book Feast

02/06/2025

𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐡𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐥 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐞

February is Black History month. As Mrs. Books and Fields is African-American, not to mention our children and many relatives, it is a memorial period we treat with deep respect.

Much of Black History month’s commemorations focus on the centuries-long horror of slavery and on the civil right struggle. There is so much more to recall, but for this post we will speak about the civil rights struggle.

An epicenter of that struggle was Birmingham, Alabama. The beating heart of that struggle in the mid to late 20th century was the Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth. His courage and endurance and spiritual gifts knew no limits. A wonderful history of that struggle and Shuttlesworth’s role is contained in the Pulitzer Prize-winning history, 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝑴𝒆 𝑯𝒐𝒎𝒆, by Diane McWhorter.

Not long ago we were poking through library-sale books. Lo and behold there was a nice oversize book on the Birmingham civil rights era, titled 𝑨 𝑾𝒂𝒍𝒌 𝑻𝒐 𝑭𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒐𝒎. Better yet was the sub-title, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘚𝘩𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘮𝘢 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘔𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘙𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴, 1956-1964.

Best of all was the magnificent inscription on the title page:
𝑻𝒐 𝑯𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒓, 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒈𝒖𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝑩𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔, 𝑹𝒆𝒗. 𝑭. 𝑳. 𝑺𝒉𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒉, 12/16/98.

If you doubt Shuttlesworth’s toughness, look at the photo of him in middle age. Imagine what it took to publicly defy the racists in the Alabama of that era. Tough doesn’t begin to capture it!

Of all the books we have with authors’ signatures and inscriptions, this is the most meaningful. He meant it, and the affection comes through. Who was Horace Parker? A Google search does not offer unambiguous clarity, so we’ll leave that as a mystery. But he was a somebody, a lesser known but tough man, a hero in his realm.

We salute Reverend Shuttlesworth, his family and followers, the churches and persons of faith that gave moral and physical muscle to the cause, and those who quietly and loudly in the calamitous present bear witness and exercise their power for racial harmony and equality for all!

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01/18/2025

𝐅𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥!

Dear friends. We resume our 2-3X monthly posts on the world of books. Thank you for your patience as we took an unscheduled but mentally necessary break across these past few weeks. What, then, for the new year 2025? Well, given the roasting underway in California and the imminent polar vortex here in the east, the subject has to be Fire!

To our knowledge, Fire is treated less in literature than other catastrophes like earthquakes, hurricanes, alien invasion, and zombies. Maybe we hesitate to invoke it for fear that demon Blaze will visit our home and community. The Bible and many myths include horrible devastation by fire, so it is not to be trifled with, much less summoned!

Yet, there are some counterexamples, starting with the immediately applicable 𝑰 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒂 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟖. This is one of author Lauren Tarshis’s commendable series under the 𝙄 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 rubric. These are fictional but historically accurate narratives about young teens who are enmeshed in terrible dangers. Of course they survive, always reassuring for a young readership! The historical context is faithfully given, and the characters undergo realistic trials that are overcome with period-correct behavior and technology. Ms. Tarshis embraces fire for its dramatic effect. Other fire-inspired volumes cover the eruption of Vesuvius at Pompeii, the immolation of the Hindenburg airship, and the great Chicago fire.

Otherwise, fictional treatment of fire is rare. The most powerful one is 𝘽𝙖𝙢𝙗𝙞, especially in the terrifying blaze in the movie. 𝙎𝙡𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚-𝙁𝙞𝙫𝙚, by Kurt Vonnegut, foregrounds the firestorm he survived as a prisoner in Germany in 1945. Dragons abound in fantasy literature, with fire a weapon they would hardly seem to need given their other awful features!

Non-fiction books are more frequent. They always convey the terror felt and the way fire can literally consume everything, creating voids where nature and civilization existed mere hours before. The human-interest stories make us quail. The journalistic epic of the fight to survive inside the twin towers on 9/11, 102 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙨, is largely about the approach of the fire toward those trapped, the miraculous escape by some from incineration, and the impossibility of firefighters defeating it.

It is hard to find anything good in unchecked fire, even when we understand how it regenerates the vegetative ecosystems, and to be fair, fire is well treated in the Natural History genre. 𝘽𝙞𝙜 𝘽𝙪𝙧𝙣, Timothy Egan’s book on America’s worst fire does say it catalyzed the conservation movement. Viktor Klemperer’s WW2 diaries show how the Dresden firebombing kept him from being deported to the death camps.

The sturdy American Canadian author John Vaillant—having addressed tigers, immigrants, and a giant tree—turned to man’s self-generated fire crisis in his award-winning book 𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙒𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧: 𝘼 𝙏𝙧𝙪𝙚 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝘼 𝙃𝙤𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙. He links it to global climate change and says we are presently in the Petrocene Age, where fire and other consequences of our petrochemical dependence are driving long term global effects as profound as those of the Ice Ages or potentially that of geologic eras. In this frigid start to 2025, we conclude with this poetic warning from Vaillant:

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘺, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴…. 𝘉𝘶𝘵....𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘳𝘶𝘥𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘵. 𝘚𝘦𝘭𝘧𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘧𝘶𝘭, 𝘪𝘵 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘰𝘮, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝒂𝒕 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘴𝘵” [𝘱𝘱. 60-61].

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12/08/2024

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐲!

Book lovers don’t really think books are inanimate. Books inspire deep emotion in us because somehow there must be life animating the paper and ink. Hence the pain when a book is defaced, dismembered, and disfigured. Luckily, there is a caste of true magicians that can reverse the death sentence of a mutilated book. These sorcerers have rescued untold numbers of great books, helping maintain mankind’s written patrimony. God bless them all!

We recently had three books that could not continue without serious repair. Luckily, we made contact with Marcia Marsille of 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭, in Palmyra NY. Under her expert care, the books underwent a series of restorative steps, as seen in the list.
1. Disassemble
2. Clean textblock spine
3. Page repair
4. Possible sewing
5. Headbands, Glue, Crash, Paper Textblock Spine
6. New paper hinges
7. Re-use end pages
8. Re-Case
9. Leather spine label

The results are spectacular, as you can see in the photos associated with this post. Look how beautiful and even invisible is her work!

If you wonder what kinds of books merit this treatment, the three we sent are A) A compilation of WW1 servicemen’s front line newspapers [𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙑𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙩], B) A joint printing of the great monster fable and a female passing for decades as a soldier [𝙁𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝 𝙉𝙪𝙣], and c) One of the great slave/freedom narratives, printed in Rochester in 1856 [𝙏𝙬𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙮-𝙏𝙬𝙤 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝘼 𝙎𝙡𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙮 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨 𝙖 𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙣].

We will try to sell these books for a price reflective of their rarity, intrinsic value [the excellence addressing the subject and the emotion they inspire in the reader] and their condition/beauty. The erasure of the mutilation and the infusion of new limbs and looks can increase a book’s value by 100% or much more. And why not? The life force now pulses strongly in each of these works, and we are sure someone will respond to that vitality!

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11/30/2024

𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐲!!

Even as we digest the Thanksgiving abundance, we look forward to the joys of the Christmas and Hanukkah tables. We are happy to offer some visual suggestions for those tables. There is a most delicious super food available to every child and adult: books! Yes, books, that feed us the inexhaustible buffet of human creative genius and knowledge. Books, without which our physical form, however strong and nourished, has voids when confronting demons or conversing with angels. Yes, have your bread, but add books and you will have two staffs of life that will never let you fall!

Here’s a fun fact. The original name for our store was going to be 𝘽𝙊𝙊𝙆𝙁𝙀𝘼𝙎𝙏. But we found that that the associated web site name had already been registered, so we happily changed it to our first alternate, 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠𝙨 & 𝙁𝙞𝙚𝙡𝙙𝙨. We had already designed a poster for the Bookfeast name. We hope you enjoy it and in your own way create wonderful dishes from all you read. Imbibe new ways to surmount your difficulties. Digest a story and spin the words that win the heart of the one you love. Take a comic aperitif and help your friends ring in the new year with laughter. Feast on books and always stay hungry!

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The original poster for the store when we thought to name it BookFeast!

11/20/2024

𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝟏𝟎𝟐𝐝 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐌𝐫. 𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐕𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐭!!

Customers of Books & Fields have a clear top three favorite authors. They are: 1. Stephen King; 2. JK Rowling [Harry Potter]; and 3. Jane Austen.

The contenders for #4 have included H.P. Lovecraft, Leo Tolstoy, George Martin, and Philip Dick. Now, however, we have a winner after a year of intense customer demand. It is Kurt Vonnegut, born November 11, 1922, in Indianapolis Indiana. We cannot keep his works in stock, from reading copies to expensive first. The customer that scored our 𝐋𝐢𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚 set of Vonnegut kept laughing with happiness as he paid and exited.

What are his fans finding in him? The images and associated data give a few insights, though we freely admit that admired authors inspire devotion beyond the boundaries of mere facts:
 He speaks from everywhere and nowhere. He is not identifiably of any group, perhaps because his German-American family stressed 100% assimilation rather than any parochialism.

 His prismatic vision leads to multi-story line novels. This mimics the way we try to cohere an understanding of the universe from the bombardment of news and sensation we float in.

 He never loses control of the narrative despite the multiplicity of elements. He was a theorist of writing, and his graphs of archetypal story lines [see image] are pretty advanced for a mid-century author. We admire a writer on a high wire that safely lands.

 We see the seriousness of his novelistic intent underneath the wordplay and jokiness. War, faith, our place in the cosmos, self-understanding, and political arrangements are all present, and his humane voice fosters trust in the journey and the end messages.

 We sense the shock and pain befitting a man captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge, who survived 6 months of captivity that included the hellish firebombing of Dresden [the propulsive event in 𝙎𝙡𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚-𝙁𝙞𝙫𝙚]. It also generated a contempt for authority, and it is this as much as the grimness and ribaldry that makes his works perennial targets of the emotionally stunted book banners in the USA.

Vonnegut’s hometown of Indianapolis has helped create a very nice museum in his honor, with the added bonus of a 3-story wall mural. But the best memorial will be to keep talking about him and to read his books you purchase from your favorite used bookstore.

Will this present wave of interest and respect endure? Many writers once considered major stars in the American literary firmament have faded and sunk below the horizon. Our prediction is that Vonnegut—a man lit by inner fire like Whitman and Thoreau—will last.
#𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐝𝐬; #𝐔𝐬𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬; #𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬; #𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐯𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐭; #𝐒𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞; #𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲; #𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐧𝐲

11/08/2024

𝟑 𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐩𝐚𝐣𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐭!

The second most famous address in detective fiction is 454 West 35th Street, New York City. Here we find the private investigator genius Nero Wolfe and his retinue—Fritz Brenner, Archie Goodwin, Theodore Horstmann, Marko Vukic, Saul Panzer, Inspector Cramer, and the rest of the wonderful characters. We know about the orchids, the giant yellow pajamas, the inviolable dining routine, and the swirl of New York that blows across the threshold as improbable and ingenious whodunnits are solved.

We read the Wolfe books for, inter alia, the deductive challenge and the circus of characters. We re-read them for the same reason that Wodehouse lives eternally, namely the outstanding wit. May these morsels from one of author Rex Stout’s early Wolfe works, 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙪𝙗𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝘽𝙖𝙣𝙙, restore some joy to your day.

• 𝑴𝒓. 𝑮𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒘𝒊𝒏’𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚. 𝑨𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒇.

• 𝑫𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒔? 𝑫𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒆𝒆𝒈𝒆𝒆𝒔?

• [𝑨𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒆] 𝑯𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒊𝒕’𝒔 𝒖𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝑰’𝒎 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒐𝒖𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆’𝒔 𝒂𝒏 𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕.
[𝑾𝒐𝒍𝒇𝒆] 𝑯𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒃𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅. 𝑰 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒆.

• 𝑷𝒇𝒖𝒊. 𝑯𝒚𝒆𝒏𝒂𝒔.

• 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒖𝒔. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 …𝒘𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒈𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒊𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒗𝒂𝒊𝒏.

• [𝑶𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔]. 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕, 𝒏𝒐! 𝑰𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑𝒔, 𝑰 𝒎𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎!

• [𝑬𝒏𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒔 𝒊𝒇 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒆𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒂 𝒔𝒖𝒈𝒂𝒓 𝒅𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒚] 𝑴𝒓. 𝑴𝒖𝒊𝒓 𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑴𝒓. 𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒋𝒐𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒔𝒖𝒇𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒈𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒚. 𝑰𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒆?

• [𝑪𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒂 𝑭𝒐𝒙] ‘𝑾𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒂𝒕. 𝑶𝒓 𝒘𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒈𝒐 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒆’.
[𝑾𝒐𝒍𝒇𝒆] 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑪𝒆𝒓𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒖𝒔! 𝑫𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒂𝒕! 𝑰𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆, 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒍𝒔, 𝒐𝒓 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓?

A hundred years from now, when the current crop of thriller writers is so deeply buried even their descendants aren’t aware of their oeuvres, the world will still be enjoying Nero Wolfe and team. Thank you, Rex Stout.

PS. The most famous address is surely 221B Baker Street. Even Nero and Archie would agree that Holmes and Watson are worthy peers and just a tad more famous.

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10/28/2024

𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐮𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝟏𝟗𝟐𝟎𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐍𝐘 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥

For most of American history, the rural school connected the books of the village and the fields of the farm. These one-room or few room schoolhouses were a shining emblem of American democracy, the focus of parental hopes and childhood fun and agony. Communities expected the schools to instill local values in the children. Halloween, with its roots in ancient paganism, yet with a fascinating allure to children, presented a conundrum. What should the school do?

The F. A. Owen printing company of Dansville NY was a major force in educational publishing from the 1890s to the 1950s. It specialized in school instruction books for rural schools. We have many of them in the store since they were widely used in western NY schools. We recently looked at the one written for elementary school teachers use in October, titled 𝑷𝒊𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑶𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒂𝒚𝒔 [1917]. What did it convey about Halloween to its early 20th Century audience?

We were agreeably surprised. The 97 pages of Halloween activities contains instructions for elaborate pageants, complete scripts for plays/poems/recitations, word games, and didactic teacher’s note on the purpose and oversight of activities. Most of the activities occur in the class day but some are designed as evening plays for parents and the community. The pictures show the way these were written up and some of the verses and instructions. One fascinating fact is that most were submitted from practicing teachers, and their enthusiasm for teaching and for their young students shines through.

There are things that can be critiqued. The list of fortunes that the fortune teller could offer is terribly sexist with adventurous ones for boys and nurturing ones for girls. But the overall tone is basically a healthy balance that parents today could endorse. There was no dark warnings against satanic forces. No denial of a child’s interest in pranks or costumes or make believe. No lack of faith in the integrity of teachers or the value of public education. Kindness toward others is emphasized. It was a simpler time, perhaps, but a good time to be a teacher and a child. Even the recent photos showing today’s gentle witch costumes and games like eating donuts on a string offer cheerful evidence that ancient amusements still appeal to the American child.

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10/15/2024

𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝟏𝟖𝐭𝐡 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐲 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐚 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲: 𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐜𝐲𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚

The images of the Persian king Shah Fat’h Ali are fanciful reconstructions* but the reverence he showed the Encyclopedia Britanica was real. Having read the entire 18 volumes of the third edition, and wishing to signal his fealty to learning as a foundation of enlightened rule, he gave himself this wonderful moniker:
𝙈𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙞𝙙𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙇𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙈𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙀𝙣𝙘𝙮𝙘𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙖𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙖 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙖

The Encyclopedia Britanica [EB for this post] merited that acclaim, then and henceforth. Even good old Wikipedia—whose mission in life is to slit EB’s throat--has a fair and admiring article on it. The EB is facing challenges today but is hastening to reinvent itself in the digital world while remaining an authoritative voice of expert-written and verified information [you hear that, Wikipedia!?]. Why not visit 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙖.𝙘𝙤𝙢 and see how they leverage their centuries of scholarship into interesting packages and info on the issues of today?
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The most famous and revered edition of the EB is the 11th edition, which appeared in 1910. The writing is exceptionally eloquent, and one feels ennobled just holding the books. Mr. and Mrs. Books & Fields have a set of the original USA version. Issued in 29 1-inch-thick volumes, it came with an upright bookcase of singular beauty. A tower of knowledge!

The 12th edition has the same content as the 11th, plus three added volumes issued in 1922 to reflect especially the impact of World War 1. We have a copy of that version as well, now in double thick volumes but with the same wispy pages.

We won’t comment here on the contents except for two brief notes. The 11th is a prisoner of its historical moment. So do not expect enlightened commentary on racial issues or colonialism or many other subjects of controversy. At the same time, it is fun to see mighty figures in the amber of their 1910 reputation. We have included two images of the entire sub-entry on Winston Churchill. There is nothing there to predict his future huge impact on world affairs. Both of these issues—the encrustation of current prejudice and the inability to foresee historical change—should keep us modest in our declamations and certainties.

While the EB tries to secure its place in the present world, its massive mountains of paper live on. We recently purchased a complete set of the most recent and last print edition. The cost? $8. Yes, eight dollars! It will become part of a school library in Liberia, where it will inspire young scholars. One day, one of them may attain such eminence that she or he may rightfully claim the title of 𝑴𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝑿𝑿𝑿𝑿, whatever it is that in the 21st century is bringing enlightenment to the globe.

* The images are visible on the 𝐑𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 page and elsewhere, with at least one original image from contributor 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧’𝐬 𝐃𝐞𝐧.

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10/07/2024

𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧’𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫-𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫
The number of wonderful authors of children and teen’s books born in September and October is so great that we are forced to join them in one economy-sized birthday celebration. Here is a baker’s dozen +1, with our trademarked affectionate ditty/doggerel couplets for each.

𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬

𝐒𝐲𝐝 𝐇𝐨𝐟𝐟, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟒, 𝟏𝟗𝟏𝟐
1960’s number one deal--
Fifty-nine cents for 𝙎𝙖𝙢𝙢𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙚𝙖𝙡.

𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐢 𝐝𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐨𝐥𝐚, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟓, 𝟏𝟗𝟑𝟒
Curing warts and blowing kisses
𝙎𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙜𝙖 𝙉𝙤𝙣𝙖 never misses.

𝐇. 𝐀. 𝐑𝐞𝐲, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟕, 𝟏𝟖𝟗𝟖
The man in the hat gets furious.
Why? 𝙂𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚 is simply 𝘾𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨.

𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐥 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐢𝐧, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟓, 𝟏𝟗𝟑𝟐
On the precipice stand two friends,
Adventure starts 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠 𝙀𝙣𝙙𝙨

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟗, 𝟏𝟗𝟐𝟑
Coping with life and all its cares
Stan and Jan’s 𝘽𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝘽𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨

𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥, 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟎, 𝟏𝟗𝟒𝟐
The students smacked each other, whomp!
‘Til 𝙈𝙞𝙨𝙨 𝙉𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙤𝙣 morphed to Viola Swamp!

𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐭 𝐉𝐨𝐡𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐧, 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎, 𝟏𝟗𝟎𝟔
The world unwinds by the plan
Of master 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙋𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝘾𝙧𝙖𝙮𝙤𝙣

𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬

𝐄𝐝𝐠𝐚𝐫 𝐑𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐬, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏, 𝟏𝟖𝟕𝟓
Can you do what only an ape can?
Swing through the jungle just like 𝙏𝙖𝙧𝙯𝙖𝙣?

𝐑𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐝 𝐃𝐚𝐡𝐥, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟑, 𝟏𝟗𝟏𝟔
Rotten Roald sat on a beach
Writing 𝙅𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙋𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝

𝐆𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎, 𝟏𝟗𝟒𝟖
Murder, treachery, lust and bones
Welcome to the 𝙂𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨

𝐊𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐃𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐥𝐚𝐬 𝐖𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐧, 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟖, 𝟏𝟖𝟓𝟔
Far from trouble, safe from harm
𝙍𝙚𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙘𝙖'𝙨 life at 𝙎𝙪𝙣𝙣𝙮𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙁𝙖𝙧𝙢

𝐑. 𝐋. 𝐒𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞, 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟖, 𝟏𝟗𝟒𝟑
Terror in the shadows; awful screams and thumps
Your fiery skin a-crackling: Oh My God, 𝙂𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙗𝙪𝙢𝙥𝙨!!

𝐋𝐨𝐢𝐬 𝐋𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐤𝐢, 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟒, 𝟏𝟖𝟗𝟑
How did the Senecas cook venison?
Ask 𝙄𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝘾𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚, 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙅𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙤𝙣.

𝐏𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐩 𝐏𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐦𝐚𝐧, 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟗, 𝟏𝟗𝟒𝟔
Teens that normally cause a rumpus
Quietly read 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙨

How many soldiers, Peace Corps, missionaries etc. had their wanderlust fueled by Tarzan and similar adventurers?

09/26/2024

𝐀 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐲𝐚𝐧 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐢 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 & 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐚𝐫𝐢 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠

It might be sacrilege to say it, but there is more to life than book-dealing!

In mid-September, Rose and Sam [Mrs. & Mr. Books & Fields] joined a party of 28 for a week-long adventure across Kenya. The absolute highlight was a 2-day safari in the 𝐓𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐨 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 and associated private game reserve. The lodge, the landscape, the jolting rides, and above all the animals exceeded every expectation. We invite you to look at the photos accompanying this post, including the captions where we’ve added a bit more description of the image.

Of course, we couldn’t completely neglect our love of books during the trip. We hung head with the other booklovers and compared interests. We found one co-traveler is ready to offload some great books and will travel to Washington DC to get them soon. If you ever wonder where our books come from, a nice percentage emerge through friendly encounters like this.

Going on a week’s trip abroad poses challenges to the reader. What books should be taken along? A huge question, especially for those of us that bring physical books and not e-versions. We settled on two related groups: a) Classics we had never read or needed to read again, and b) Intriguing books that we never seem to get to but know they should be read.

The former group included 𝘾𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙮𝙚, by J.D. Salinger; 𝙇𝙖𝙙𝙮 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙮’𝙨 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧, by D. H. Lawrence, and 𝙏𝙤 𝙆𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙖 𝙈𝙤𝙘𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙗𝙞𝙧𝙙, by Harper Lee. The latter included these precious and semi-precious jewels: 𝘽𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙙’𝙨 𝙎𝙖𝙛𝙖𝙧𝙞, by Rachel Ingalls; 𝙈𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙜𝙧𝙤, by Starling Lawrence; 𝙎𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚, 𝙎𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨, by Tim Gautreaux; and 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙖𝙯𝙤𝙧’𝙨 𝙀𝙙𝙜𝙚, by W. Somerset Maugham. A thumbnail description of the lesser-known ones can be found in the phot captions.

Seeing the great animals in their home environment should be on everyone’s bucket list. We hope each of you has that chance at least once in your life. We also hope that from time to time you salute Mother Africa, from whence all of us emerged, for her breathtaking natural, human, and cultural diversity. And, of course, we trust you will build your life experience into your reading and use that reading to be the kind of person others are glad they meet on this mortal voyage.

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