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Books about Books are Fun!

I like books about books. There is something deliciously meta about reading a story with characters, who are reading stories or a book referencing itself or its author. This month’s starting book, The Book of Form and Emptiness, is a prime example and it inspired me to write a little story.

If books about books are fun, what do you think about a story with books, which include books? Overdoing it, perhaps? Anyway, let’s give it a go.

Books about books

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek was in trouble. One of the regular library patrons, Ms. T. Ricky, had criticised the library’s book selection. “A library should have books, which speak to all readers”, she had complained. “Like a good, entertaining Beach Read“. The book woman was miffed. Surely, there is no book in the world, which would speak to all readers. She asked her fellow librarian, Queenie, for advice. “Why don’t you consult Frank Doel from Marks & Co”, Queenie suggested, “he really knows about books”. “Isn’t he based in London?”, the book woman asked doubtfully. “Write a letter”, Queenie said, “the address is 84, Charing Cross Road“. The book woman did just that. The reply from Mr. Doel came promptly (or as promptly as any letter can come to the remote hills of Troublesome Creek).

Dear Madam,

we are pleased to inform you, we know a book, which may clear up your problem. We will send a nice copy by Book Post, but unfortunately some delay may be expected. Marks & Co has been the target for a break-in. The Book Thief left the bookshop a mess. Luckily, the thief has been identified by the police and will no doubt get The Sentence he deserves. We do feel sorry for him, though. It’s The Neverending Story of a reader who got addicted to locked-room mysteries and has desperately been breaking into London bookshops to search for additional supply. Still, we expect to ship your book as soon as we have tidied up the mess.

Yours faithfully,
FPD
For MARKS & CO

Two weeks later, the book woman and Queenie were excitedly unwrapping the package from Marks & Co, dying to see the book, which would be able to speak to all readers. Did you guess it? It was of course The Book of Form and Emptiness.

So there you have it. A story referencing books about books. For those not familiar with The Book of Form and Emptiness I should perhaps add, that it’s mostly narrated by the book itself, i.e. the book is speaking directly to the reader. Let’s finish with a quote:

“Is it odd to see a book within a book? It shouldn’t be. Books like each other. We understand each other. You could even say we are all related, enjoying a kinship that stretches like a rhizomatic network beneath human consciousness and knits the world of thought together.“

Ruth Ozeki, The Book of Form and Emptiness 

Six Degrees of Separation is hosted by Kate, who each month decides on a starting book, from which everyone builds a chain of six books.

42 comments

    • Thanks Margaret, I had fun writing it! That is what I loved about Six Degrees – there are so many different ways of linking the books.

    • Thanks Davida, it was the starting book which inspired me to do it this way and I had great fun writing it!

    • Thanks Sandra, one of the rare occasions, when inspiration hit me! πŸ˜€

  7. AAAAAH this is brilliant! Loved your little story and the way all your books are working so well together.

    I have read 84 Charing Cross Road and The Book Thief – both are favorites.

    Have a wonderful August!

    Elza Reads

    • Thanks, I am glad you enjoyed it! 84, Charing Cross Road and The Book Thief are favourites of mine as well. A wonderful August to you too!

    • Glad you enjoyed it! I had a lot of fun writing it, but sometimes with these kind of things, they are considerably more fun for the writer than for other readers…

        • πŸ‘ You got a new avatar? Very nice, although I liked the old one as well – as I remember it, it was a specific Australian flower?. πŸ™‚

  12. Very impressive and creative. The story is charming, and the subject of books about books is lovely. And now I really want to read The Book of Form and Emptiness.

    • Thanks so much Tracy, it was the starting book, which inspired it all, so I have Kate to thank for choosing this book.

  13. OMG, you are the best! How fun is that? So well done, congratulations!
    84, Charing Cross Road is really good, and its sequel as well

    • Awww, thank you. I am so glad you liked it. Still haven’t read the sequel to 84, Charing Cross Road. One day…

    • Thanks Mary, it was quite fun to do, the story more or less wrote itself (speaking of meta…).

    • Thanks so much Lashaan, it was fun to write it, but I wasn’t sure it would make sense to anyone else than me. πŸ˜€

  17. It’s clever how you tied these novels together. Troublesome Creek and Neverending Story are sort of new to me but I’m aware of the others. I’d like to get to The Sentence. I like books about books …

    • The Neverending Story is actually a German children’s book, so no wonder you are not familiar with it. I loved it so much as a child and surprisingly, it was the metaphysical aspects rather than the dragon, the princess etc which caught my imagination already back then.

      I had mixed feelings about The Sentence (my review will be going up soon) but the bookshop and literary references were some of my favourite parts of the book.

  18. This is my favorite of yours yet! All the Book Woman references (Queenie!) made me happy. Did you see there’s a follow-up book? I loved it just as much as the first.

    • Haha, it was because of you, I picked up The Book Woman in the first place. Before then, I’d never heard of the blue people either. No, I wasn’t aware of the sequel, I will check it out!

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