BookOwl Picks: Books About Books

 

It's books about books time! These volumes come in a variety of forms and genres, and you never know when you're going to find a hidden gem. Also, for someone as book-obsessed as I, books about books are a way to pay tribute to the major part literature of all kinds has played in my life. 

Without further ado, here are some of my picks for books about books!

Book Love by Debbie Tung

First of all, Debbie Tung is one of my favorite graphic novel writers (and illustrators)! When she came out with Book Love, it became an instant classic for me. I feel seen, as a bibliophile, as someone whose favorite places outside of my own home are the library and bookstore. Tung humorously illuminates how bookworms move in the world and how they think about books. While Book Love hits all the cliches, it is done in a way as not to be condescending to readers. After all, it's a celebration of everything literary!

The Library Book by Susan Orlean

The Library Book is an engaging nonfictional title that explores the mystery surrounding a fire that broke out in the Los Angeles Public Library on April 29, 1986. This catastrophic fire, which burned for more than seven hours, destroyed 400,000 books and damaged 700,000 more. (I'll admit, this saddened my poor bibliophile heart. In the way only a bibliophile can, I mourned the destruction of the books and the impact this disaster had on the library staff and Los Angeles as a whole.) As the author tells the story of the arson investigation, she weaves in her own library experiences in a way that shows how important libraries remain to their communities. 

The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams

The Reading List takes place in London, in particular, at a local library branch. It's a story of unlikely connections and how books can forge bonds between the unlikeliest of people. Aleisha is a teenager with a terrible home situation, who finds her job at the library an unexpected haven. One day, Aleisha finds a list in the back of a book. She ends up reading the list herself and passing it along to widower Mukesh, who recently lost his beloved wife and is trying to connect with his bookish granddaughter. I really enjoyed this homage to libraries and reading, and it's a read that's useful when you want to get lost in a cozy story. 

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

Cloud Cuckoo Land is a tale that interweaves past, present, and future narratives in a very creative way. While this can produce some disorientation in readers, it is still very much worth the read, as it's an interesting and compelling story, one that revolves around the power of books and storytelling. The common thread with all these interweaving narratives is survival against all odds and the impact of a story passed down through the generations, known as Cloud Cuckoo Land. As I said, well worth the read, but it is one that clocks in at 626 pages, so you'll need to set aside some time to properly enjoy it!

Banned Books by D.K. Publishing

This is a handy guide to books banned or challenged in pre-modern to modern times (and why they were challenged). I've been tracking recent trends in book challenges and bans, particularly concerning LGBTQ+ materials. Banned Books has shown me, no matter how much sociocultural norms evolve, how deeply rooted censorship issues truly are in our history, and provides a helpful context for the current moment. It's a quick read and an invaluable reference to keep on hand, and it may even give you some titles to add to your "to-read" list. 

Happy reading!

--BookOwl