A Quiet Corner ~ Cayuga-On-The-Grand

Have you ever thought about the fact that books are sold in shops devoted almost entirely to one commodity ~ books? There are bed and bath shops, bake shops, electronic shops, shoe shops...and on and on. The difference is that all of these items are also easily picked up in department stores. Other than the odd cardboard bin of clearance books, department stores generally don't feature a bookshop.

The customer looking for a book to read, is already thinking of leisure time. The purchasing process has to be pleasurable. In the warmth and comfort of the bookshop atmosphere, the world is left behind. Thoughts are gentler and the pace is slower.

~ Giving Thanks

With our Canadian Thanksgiving behind us and the U.S. coming up, it seems appropriate to honor family-time.

Many questions about the future of reading have been raised with the arrival of computers.

To imagine a world without books is to deny that people are attached to the old familiar form that generations have read to their children. Imagine passing down a copy of Nancy Drew that belonged to you, to your daughter ~ on a Kindle! Imagine the loss of a story before bedtime. Could anyone look back on their childhood and fondly recall gathering around a computer?

In a used bookshop, it remains dear to our hearts that customers constantly ask for nostalgic volumes that have little value other than that it is a book their Mother used to read to them.

Back to Business...

The Cayuga & District Chamber of Commerce is holding their 4th Annual Trade Show on Saturday, November 7th., 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Cayuga Kinsmen Hall.
http://www.cayugachamber.ca/ The easiest way to access the Kin Hall is Regional Road 17 (the road leading to Dunnville winding along the Grand River).
This event will feature booths of the various area businesses. Activities include food samplings and new-product demonstrations ~ and books! Meet friends and neighbours and discover surprising services available locally. Free admission. Door prizes and silent auction.

Ride a Cock-horse to Banbury Cross

To all of our friends, Happy Thanksgiving Holidays.

(Don't forget Story Hour on Wednesday after school 'til 5:00. Under three, must be accompanied by an adult.)

Fall Hours

The Village Green, Cayuga Street, Cayuga-On-The-Grand.
Bookshop Hours: Continue to Open each day, Wed. to Sat. at 11:00 a.m.
Closing Wed. at 5:00; Thurs. & Fri. at 8:00;
Sat. at 3:00.
Photo: by Lorna

~ Best Wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving ~

Best wishes to everyone for a Happy Thanksgiving from beautiful Cayuga-On-The-Grand.

Photo: Ouse Street behind the bookshop

by Lorna (Click on photo for larger image.)

Bibliomaniacs

The word, "Biblio-maniac" came up during a conversation with an avid scrabble buff. A bibliomaniac is defined in the Canadian Oxford Dictionary as a person having "an extreme enthusiasm for collecting and possessing books."
I have read about eccentrics having to move out of their houses because there was no room left after collecting thousands of books. Frequently, we are assured by customers that they have more books than a bookstore. Often we are cautioned that floors have collapsed under the weight of books. At auction sales, book nuts tell us how many thousands of books they own -- as they bid on more. (Bibliomaniacs are generally not satisfied with one copy of a book.)
A customer who is not a bibliomaniac, expressed to us her puzzlement over a note attached to a trunkful of books found in her father's house, "Do not discard. Valuable."
We could try to explain this lack of self-control when it comes to collecting books, but that would take several books.