For the Love of Books

I love books - I always have. I love to read. I work at Chapters part-time which not only cultivates my love to read, but has also really expanded my horizons.

Sometimes working there stresses me out. I look at all the books and think of all the paper that goes into making those books, and how many trees have to be cut down to cultivate my love of reading. Then I go to the magazine section. People don't buy the magazines. They come to Chapters after they have purchased their Starbuck's creation and sit and read them. Then, they put them back on the shelf (or throw them on the bench, as the case is more often than not) and leave. The magazines that don't get sold (which is most of them), get sent back to the publisher. I have no idea what the publisher does with them, but I'm guessing they go in the garbage. Once a new edition comes out, the old ones are history. Such a waste.

I am often amazed as I shelve books to the diversity of subject. Chapters is over 20,000 square feet in size and has more than 400,000 books. That's a lot of books. The area that always makes me stop and think is the religion section. On one side of the shelf is the Christianity section. Here you can find Bibles, devotionals, spiritual living, and all other manner of Christian books...right next to it, is the Eastern religion section and right next to that is the New Age. On the same table, there is a book by TD Jakes and right next to it is a book called "God is Not Great". Talk about two opposing views sitting side-by-side.

Then you go up to the business section, where for some reason, the humour section also lives. Seems strange. The humour section has everything from Uncle John's Bathroom Readers (probably about 50 different titles) to Calvin and Hobbes in the comic section.

Then there are the books that just make you laugh. There is a book called "What's Your Poo Telling You?" - and this isn't found in the humour section. It's found in the gastrointestinal section in lifestyles and well-being. AND if you are REALLY serious about finding out what your poo is telling you, you can buy the companion poo log. Yes, you can journal about your poo. OR what about the book on farts, with sound effects and everything. Talk about in depth.

My favourite section is the cooking section. I don't cook, but I like putting the books away. You can find All-Time favourites to Japanese cooking to creating cocktails to writers on food. And then of course there are the many famous TV chefs, all of whom have a million books.

I haven't even touched on Fiction, romance, horror, mystery, true crime, the sex section, the work-out section, the kids section, the history section, the music and arts section, the biography section, the self-help section (which I think is a bit ridiculous), the gift section, the bargain section, the best-sellers, Heather's picks and the list goes on. There isn't enough time for me to got through it all. Sometimes it is overwhelming - yet great!

Ah, I love books!