Smell of books

Today I was able to go to the 4th floor of the library at our school. Trey and I were able to poke our heads around, and scan the shelves for books of our interests. I found an antique book about the history of Physics, published in 1927. The attendant for the area came up to me and asked me if I needed any help and I told him that I wanted to know where literature books were. There were several shelves of books, and it just made me smile to see copies of Leaves of Grass, A Tale of Two Cities, and such. I thumbed through a book of western literary theory, and realized that I am somewhat situated between structuralism and poststructuralism when it comes to what I think about language and the power of words. I found another book of interest to tuck under my wing for a later reading. I got excited when I saw Adam Smith, but realized that no one had ever even opened the book. Classic.
I was willing to the leave the books on the table because I did not have a library card, but this didn't stop the man from scribbling some notes on a well-used sheet of paper that I guess was a list of books people have checked out. I guess if you are only one of two white guys on campus, you get to check out whatever book you want for 6 months at a time. The alarm even went off as I left, and he didn't even flinch.
It was so exciting to be back in an English library. I had tried my hand at online sources of literature, the Gutenberg Project, but realized that it just isn't the same if it is on a computer screen, or a one-sided printed copy. They don't smell like books. They don't feel like books. Amazon.com, I am sorry but there is just no substitute for a library.

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