Library as a Cask of Amontillado
June 3, 2008
Nice profile of Jim Huang at the Indianapolis Star. He is not only the owner of the legendary Mystery Company in Carmel, he is a publisher and a wonderfully thoughtful philosopher on the importance of books and reading and the independent local bookstore as a catalyst for literacy. Though I have to give some thought to this comment . . .
Books are like breathing; it’s part of your life. There are many customers, folks who’ve walked in the door, who love books and feel about them as I do, and yet I still feel that books are under-represented in this community. We build these absolutely beautiful libraries, but I sometimes think we wall up books in institutions like that. I love the library here; I’ve done a lot to support them and they’ve done a lot for me, but you sometimes want to just get books out there.
On my route to a signing at the Mystery Company, I visited two stunning libraries, the main library in Indianapolis and the lovely, spacious, elegant library in Carmel. (I’ll try to post some photos here soon.) They’re vibrant, gorgeous places, but do they wall their books up? Do glorious settings stifle the urge to leave the place with your arms full of books?
Hmmm…..
