Sep 20

Sep 20 On Loving Old Books (Especially the Two Old Books I Just Got!)

[image description: rows of bookshelves with old leather-bound books.]

For my entire life up to this point, when I’ve said I liked old books I meant books from the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. I gravitated toward reprints of classics with covers in the aesthetic of the time. Is there anything more beautiful than a book with a midcentury modern flair?

But recently, Mr. Off the Beaten Shelf and I were celebrating our three-year wedding anniversary and my love of old books came out in a new way that surprised me. We decided to celebrate by getting a cabin in our favorite state park in Appalachian Ohio and spending a few days in an adorable river town on the Ohio River. With the recent surge in coronavirus cases, we were aiming for less crowded spots.

On the way there, we passed a tourist trap: a strip mall with a boot store, Appalachian craft store, and several antique malls. I’m a sucker for antiques, so we stopped. Plus, the three-year wedding anniversary is the leather anniversary, so we hoped to find gifts for each other.

One of the booths had a tall shelf full of books from the 1800s, so I took a look. Amid thick leather-bound volumes was this slim blue book. I was like, “Does that say land shells?!”

Reader, it does! I found a delightful little book called Rambles After Land Shells. Is that not the cutest thing you’ve ever heard?!

Upon closer inspection, it was published in 1863. Definitely the oldest book I’ve ever held in my hands! And to be 158 years old, it was in remarkably good condition.

What I find most interesting is that this book was published in the middle of the Civil War. So while the north and south are going at it, some fella was like, “Actually, I’m just gonna go over here and study land shells.”

And there are illustrations!!

I couldn’t get over how fun the land shells book was. But me liking an old book from the 1800s was a rare occurrence, so I didn’t expect to find another.

Then Prisoners of Poverty caught my eye.

The tagline for the book is Women Wage-Workers, Their Trades and Their Lives. As I read that, I thought, “bet not much has changed.” Studies show that even today women make far less than their male counterparts, particularly if they’re the primary caregivers of children or aging family members.

I had to know what year it was published, so I checked: 1887. I’m curious about what’s changed (if anything) in the past 134 years, so I bought it.

I guess it’s ironic that I’ve been selling old books in my vintage shop since I opened in 2019 but I’m only just now truly appreciating them. On the one hand, that’s good because I’m not tempted to keep the books I acquire for the shop, but on the other hand, my customers won’t likely see books from the 1800s in the shop now that I’ve realized that’s what I like.

And it turns out Mr. Off the Beaten Shelf and I did find each other leather anniversary gifts too. I got Mr. OTBS a pair of vintage cowboy boots and he got me a vintage Stetson cowboy hat. I rather like it!