Some Not So Light Reading
I was in the library the other night picking up a book that was being held for me. The clerk set it down with a noticeable thud. It was practically a textbook. One of the largest editions I’ve ever seen outside of a college classroom.
Me: What the…
Clerk (noticing my bulging eyes): Would you like to check this out for the extended 6-week period?
Me: umm, I don’t think this is the item I requested…
Clerk: That’ll be due back in mid-March. Enjoy!
(or something like that)
I was picking up The Diary of Anne Frank. No, I’m not in fifth grade. My sisters and mom and I started a book club a few years ago (“book club” being a very loose term). We’ve focused on the “classics” in the last few months, with varying results; a few of us actually read The Scarlet Letter, and a few of us kept renewing it from the library with no intention of ever opening it.
I suggested The Diary of Anne Frank for our next book. I never read it in school, and it seemed like a nice, easy read. So what was this monstrosity waiting for me at the library? I lugged it home and Googled the specific edition I had mistakenly put on hold: The diary of Anne Frank : the critical edition / prepared by the Netherlands State Institute for War Documentation ; introduced by Harry Paape, Gerrold van der Stroom, and David Barnouw ; with a summary of the report by the Netherlands Forensic Institute ; compiled by H.J.J. Hardy ; edited by David Barnouw and Gerrold van der Stroom ; translated by Arnold J. Pomerans, B.M. Mooyaart-Doubleday and Susan Massotty. Yes, that’s the formal title. No, I didn’t realize a children’s book would include a forensic report and require a U-Haul to get home (slight exaggeration). If I had clicked on the “description” when putting it on hold, I would have seen the page count. Are you ready for this? 851 pages (see, I wasn’t exaggerating that much).
I just put The Diary of Anne Frank on hold, without all the bells and whistles of the other one, and it’s 182 pages - that even includes an introduction (oddly enough, not written by one of the20 9 people who helped out with the textbook edition). My next trip to the library should be a little less frightening (and much less stressful on my back).
I don't shy away from lengthy books. I just like to know what I'm getting myself into. Getting my sisters and mom to agree on a book is hard enough; I'm not adding any heavy lifting.
Me: What the…
Clerk (noticing my bulging eyes): Would you like to check this out for the extended 6-week period?
Me: umm, I don’t think this is the item I requested…
Clerk: That’ll be due back in mid-March. Enjoy!
(or something like that)
I was picking up The Diary of Anne Frank. No, I’m not in fifth grade. My sisters and mom and I started a book club a few years ago (“book club” being a very loose term). We’ve focused on the “classics” in the last few months, with varying results; a few of us actually read The Scarlet Letter, and a few of us kept renewing it from the library with no intention of ever opening it.
I suggested The Diary of Anne Frank for our next book. I never read it in school, and it seemed like a nice, easy read. So what was this monstrosity waiting for me at the library? I lugged it home and Googled the specific edition I had mistakenly put on hold: The diary of Anne Frank : the critical edition / prepared by the Netherlands State Institute for War Documentation ; introduced by Harry Paape, Gerrold van der Stroom, and David Barnouw ; with a summary of the report by the Netherlands Forensic Institute ; compiled by H.J.J. Hardy ; edited by David Barnouw and Gerrold van der Stroom ; translated by Arnold J. Pomerans, B.M. Mooyaart-Doubleday and Susan Massotty. Yes, that’s the formal title. No, I didn’t realize a children’s book would include a forensic report and require a U-Haul to get home (slight exaggeration). If I had clicked on the “description” when putting it on hold, I would have seen the page count. Are you ready for this? 851 pages (see, I wasn’t exaggerating that much).
I just put The Diary of Anne Frank on hold, without all the bells and whistles of the other one, and it’s 182 pages - that even includes an introduction (oddly enough, not written by one of the
I don't shy away from lengthy books. I just like to know what I'm getting myself into. Getting my sisters and mom to agree on a book is hard enough; I'm not adding any heavy lifting.
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