Readers Rejoice
Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany by Jane Mount
Thanks to our parents, my sisters and I are all voracious readers. When the three of us get together, we always talk about books, and there's never a time when we're not recommending a novel or biography to each other.
Needless to say, my little sister knows me well and gifted me this Christmas with this delightful book, Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany by Jane Mount. I'm NOT kidding!
I LOVE this book and have spent many hours pouring over the literary trivia, quirky quizzes, and fun illustrations.
If you love books, you, too, must have Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany!
One book leads to another
I own other volumes that laud the value of books, but none can hold a candle to Jane Mount's Bibliophile. In the Introduction, Mount declares the goal of her book is to "triple the size of your To Be Read pile." (Believe me when I say that I don't need more books to read, but let me admit that I never turn recommendations down either!) Bibliophile includes multiple sections titled "Bookish People Recommend" where avid readers and writers share their "must reads" with others. No matter how well-read you are, you can't have read everything. Like me, you'll find many books recommended by other "Bookish People" that you'll want to read, too.
Mount calls Bibliophile
a literary "Wunderkammer," connecting you with books you might love for all kinds of reasons - because the subject speaks to you, because you found it through a great local library, or because there is a cute cat on the cover. Like a portable, beloved bookstore with aisles full of passionate shelftalkers, this volume contains something for everyone who enters. Each time you open it, you'll find another jewel you didn't know you needed to find until that moment.
Not only will you increase your To-Be-Read list, but you will also find new bookstores to visit and famed libraries to tour vicariously. You'll get glimpses into the writing rooms of famous writers and test your literary acumen with clever quizzes.
What makes Bibliophile different
If a picture is worth a thousand words, this book holds MILLIONS!
Not only is the content fantastic, but it's illustrated with wonderful drawings and full-color illustrations that are a delight to look at.
The artwork makes Bibliophile a true stand-out and a pleasure to peruse.
After a degree in anthropology and varied job experiences, Jane Mount decided to focus on her love of drawing. She started by creating pictures of book stacks pulled from her own shelves and then landed on the idea of customizing her creations by asking people what books would live on their "ideal bookshelves."
Mount uses the bookstack paintings to visually reinforce the topic of each section in her book. From kids books to cooking books. From books of certain eras to genre classics. From novels of dysfunctional families, fantasies, and all-time bestsellers, Bibliophile presents pictures of hundreds of book spines.
There are also dozens of drawings of authors, animals, and book covers inserted into the text.
My absolute favorite are these tiny quirky illustrations of the reading chairs that you'd be sitting in if you were reading works during a certain era!
A Thank-You to Bibliophiles Everywhere
Years ago, I heard an interview by the American author, Gore Vidal where he stated that there are lots of good writers and not enough good readers.
I often think he was right, particularly now when scrolling and texting are the extent of many people's literary interests.
But Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany by Jane Mount, gives me hope that I am not alone. There are other people out there like me. People who love books, derive pleasure from them, and who believe that books have life-altering power.
It's particularly nice to be thanked by the author for sharing a passion. Jane Mount thanks her agent, her researcher, and all the people who helped her finish this book. She also thanks all the "bookish people" out there like me:
"To all the writers, editors, and designers of books, to bookstores around the globe, and to all you beautiful bibliophiles for making the world a better place.
All I can say is "Thank YOU, Jane Mount!" for crafting this book!
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