I thought I’d populate this blog with posts about books on my shelf to create some basic starter content. It would be a chance to bring up works by friends, interesting bits of knowledge, cool discussion points. I could schedule it in advance. I could keep my family’s life private by keeping the camera restricted to just that one wall of books.
I might still come back to the concept, but the further along I got the shelves, the less secure I felt in pursuing it as a blog series.
For starters, a bookshelf is not without controversy. Some folks take great exception to a title or an author’s presence on a shelf, and with the world the way it is in 2020, it’s easy to take offense. I mean, I have a copy of Heart of Darkness on my e-reader. I am aware of many reasons why that book’s offensive to many, many people. I’ve read essays on why it’s problematic. It is and ought to be an uncomfortable read. Why do I not delete it? Because I believe that engaging with a problematic work can still have value.
That’s not a debate that I wish to have, nor is it one for which I’m the best person to represent one side or another. In the end, it’s one title on my e-reader. But, if I discuss such a book on the internet, or put up a picture of my personal library with other debatable books in it, it becomes fodder for just such a public debate.
Also, there are some books that were gifts from a family member who is no longer living, or that I inherited from that person. Especially as I moved into my nonfiction shelves, I began to feel a soreness that’s very precious and personal to me as I considered what book I might write about. A public blog that (let’s be honest) I maintain in support of my writing career is not a place where I’m willing to write about my memories of those beloved human beings. Someday, perhaps – with an editor and an infrastructure around me. But not in a blog, on my own, without a full editorial process to cushion it.
Perhaps that means slowing down a bit, letting more time slip past between contributions. Given that everybody’s sending out newsletters these days anyway instead of blogs, I think that’s fine.
I’ll find a better way to discuss and share titles that have meant a lot to me. Thanks for reading!
