 Reading Home In preparation for my reading and upcoming review of Bill Bryson’s newest book, At Home: A Short History of Private Life, I spent the last couple of weeks reading Home: A Short History of an Idea by Witold Rybczynski. This is a book I’ve owned for years and never got around to reading until now, a bit of an odd situation because I recall being in my favorite used bookstore about five years ago when I asked the owner what he was reading, and he enthused about this book—but not before mentioning that I had likely never heard of it. He was wrong. But his recommendation stayed with me even as the book stayed on the shelf. Then I about a month ago I received notification of Bryson’s newest and when I received it I immediately skimmed the chapter on the bedroom to get a feel for it. That’s when I realized that now was the time to read the Rybczynski book. Before I read the Bryson one. It’s been slower going than I thought it would be because Home is filled with the rich history of centuries of the life of homes up beginning with the Middle Ages and going up through the early 1980s (the book was published in 1986). But reading Home isn’t just giving me background for reviewing At Home. It also brought full circle a conversation I had with my mother when I visited my parents last week. Mom likes gardening. She especially likes roses. And she loves to read about interior decorating. She doesn’t do much of it now, feeling comfortable in the long-time environment she and Dad created over many years. They are surrounded by things they love and the personal history they represent. Much of what they have is not Architectural Digest quality, but it offers a warm, cozy, inviting atmosphere—a dining table that could easily seat sixteen (even though all their children are long grown), five bedrooms that are filled with a mix of antique furniture inherited from her mother and inexpensive pieces that have served them well for decades, exquisite handmade artwork they bought because it spoke to them, and more. It’s the sort of place you walk into and feel right at home. During the visit, Mom and I got to talking about the magazines she loves to browse through and how much she misses them. Before my father had his hospitalizations, they used to eat breakfast and lunch out a lot. Afterwards they’d stop at the stores and she’d pick up Architectural Digest and Better Homes & Gardens or any of the other magazines she enjoyed. A couple of months later, she’d pass them on. But now my parents tend to stay closer to home. Though it’s less often they will still go out for lunch at their favorite Mexican, Italian, or Thai restaurant, but they no longer attempt to negotiate stores. I asked her why she didn’t just subscribe to the magazines she missed, and she said she wasn’t really sure. She thought she ought to. I agreed. We talked about the different magazines and how much fun it is to read the stories, look at the pictures and get ideas, and I watched her face light up. She really does miss them. So I am going to make it easy for her to enjoy them again. Her birthday is in early November and with Thanksgiving and Christmas not far behind I have the perfect excuses to get her a plethora of home and garden magazines that will keep her busy and happy: Natural Home, House Beautiful, Architectural Digest, Elle Décor, Veranda, Traditional Home, and California Homes. Between my reading of Home and the mother-daughter conversation I too have renewed my enthusiasm for these publications. In fact, while out and about this past Friday I made a point of stopping into a local outdoor shopping center that contains both a high-end grocery store and an independent bookstore, both of which have magazine racks. Between them, I found the aforementioned magazines, bought them, and am now engrossed in them. As I turn the pages slowly, savoring the luxurious photography and looking for ideas—I found something that with a little creative alteration on my part will provide something I don’t have now and want: a fantastic headboard—I realize that part of my enjoyment is knowing the pleasure my mother will derive from my idea. In fact, I am not going to wait for her birthday. She will get a subscription to AD when I send the card in next week. I am excited just thinking about it. But my reading of these magazines is more than just enjoyment. It is also going to be reflected in my review. Exactly how I cannot say until I write it (after having read the book), but I know what I am seeing now in these glossy pages is the result of the interaction of humans and homes from the days of cave-dwelling habitation. It’s a long journey, and a fascinating one. Plus, I get to call these magazines “research.” Upcoming Book Festivals: From Friday, September 3 through Sunday, September 5, Decatur, Georgia will be hosting the Decatur Book Festival. This is one amazing festival that includes a book market and street fair with more than 150 exhibitors, 300+ authors, a writers conference, the inaugural Experimental Writers Asylum, SCVNGR (scavenger hunt), various teen and children’s activities, a number of poetry events, cooking authors and demonstrations, plays and staged readings, a commemoration by authors on the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, a keynote event with Jonathan Franzen where he will launch his much talked about new book, food, beer and wine vendors and places to sit and rest, and a Closing Picnic. The Pub House: Imaging Books & Reading: Of Interest: Until next week, read well, read often and read on!
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