The automatic doors swung open, and I couldn’t help the smile on my face as we walked in. Kelly looked around, “So what makes this place so special?” I pointed up and down to the 7 floors that we could see via the open atrium in the middle, then swung my arm around to all the books that lined every open wall space and pillar. “Look! It’s heaven on earth!” And I took a hard right into the newest release section.
The colors were vibrant here, modern images leaping off hardback covers. Titles ranged from absurdly long (The Hundred-Year-Old Man who Climbed out of a Window and Disappeared) to a single word (Swashbuckler and Faces). Most names belonged to authors I’ve never heard of and will never master, but every now and then I recognized someone. “Ooh, the cute historian from Netflix has written a novel,” I elbowed Karen and grabbed a copy off the shelf.
Once I had a stack of books up to my chin, I made my way up to the 5th floor Cafe where I found a single table in the corner that was still free and dumped off my books. After a quick trip to the counter for a pot of tea and a cream scone, I settled into my customary routine at Foyle’s Bookstore: read the first chapter of each book and make a “never” pile, a “maybe” pile, and a “definitely” pile. This is my favorite part. I completely submerge into all kinds of stories and writing styles and allow myself to just react. Do I like it? If not, no need to analyze; just move on to the next one. No agenda or pressure, merely reading interrupted by sips of tea and a bite of scone. It’s my ideal Saturday.
Sadly, time passed. The tea got cold and eventually the stack of books was down to one. Karen and Kelly returned from their adventures outside the shop, and I moved toward the check-out counter. Of course that meant being forced to peruse my way through the gift section through the Lord of the Rings bookbags, Sherlock Holmes pencil cases, and a Jane Austen puzzle that somehow found its way into my arms. We exited through the automatic doors, my backpack distinctly fuller than when I had come in, and began to make our way home where I promptly plopped into my overstuffed chair and continued reading Cloud Cuckoo Land.
No comments:
Post a Comment