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Monday, October 13, 2014

The Books on Your Shelf

"Few pleasures, for the true reader, rival the pleasure of browsing unhurriedly among books: old books, new books, library books, other people's books, one's own books - it does not matter whose or where." ~ Aidan Chambers

I came across this quote a few days ago and it started me thinking. What if someone I didn't know well, and if they didn't know I'm a writer, came to my home and perused my bookshelves? I have a wide variety of books, fiction and non-fiction. It's those non-fiction tomes that make me wonder what that stranger would think. 

Some of the more interesting titles in the non-fiction bookshelf are: The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers, Crime and Detection, The Poisons and Antidotes Sourcebook, A Prisoner's Duty, Deadly Fighting Skills of the World, the US Army Survival Manual, Unarmed Combat Guide: Hand to Hand Fighting Skills, Extreme Survival Guide, The Regency Underworld, The Man Who Broke Napoleon's Codes, various books about life in the Regency period, various books about WWII and Vietnam, and one lonely book about Egypt -The Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egypt.

Would the person think I just had an interest in a wide variety of subjects, or because of those first few books I listed think I'm looking into ways to exact revenge on someone and not get caught? Given those first few books I listed, would they think I'm sympathetic to military type survivalist groups? 

Then I started thinking if my bookshelf might cause someone to wonder about what type of person I am, what would they think if they could see what I've looked up on my internet search history?

Do you have any books on your shelf that might make a stranger think twice about you?

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