Books are not dead

Walking across Brasserie Lipp on St Germaine on a cold and freezing Sunday when most of the stores are closed, I got really pumped to see a bookstore open at 7.30 pm. A time when only cafes are open and the open stores are winding down and locking the door, this bookshop or libraire is bustling with French people browsing through categories such as French literature, history and travel.

I walk in the store and browse lovingly at French categories I don’t understand and stare at the shoppers who are huddled on floors looking for a book andat bookstore assistants huddled around computers staring at their screen intently until someone asks them for their help in sourcing a specific title. The English section is small and limited but I’m just so in love with the fact that people are still shopping for books.

I have a very romantic relationship with books and reading. Bullied for as long as a I remember in school reading was my savior. It’s where I chose to hide out in the mornings before assembly and recess to avoid sitting with classmates. It was a solace and an escape. Both figuratively and literally. I gobbled up everything I could get my hands on and have pretty much written all my life. I got my first piece of poetry published while still in the 3rd grade, I wrote for the local paper and I also attempted to write my first novel when just a teenager. It sadly got wiped out along with the memory of my ancient IBM but nevertheless I wrote an excellent essay for my graduate year. I wrote a personal blog for many years and even contributed to fashion magazines. I would go through phases of obsessive reading, and then stop when I felt like life was passing me by, in which case I would take a break and live a little. I would see friends and top up my social life. And just like that when I’ve done the rounds and realized nothing has changed since I last went around I would hole up sideways in bed and go hard on a new read.

The act of reading is a muscle one most exercise ritually or else you lose the power to focus for such a lengthy period. Today with mobile phones and the internet everyone’s span is shorter, we opt for articles that we can consume in minutes and YouTube videos that last 60 seconds before we get bored.

Reading on holiday has also been an experience I’ve owned. Without work and routine distractions such as running errands and answering calls I am free to binge read without any interruptions. I usually try to disconnect off social media and email as much as possible in this space and give myself a detox.

I also get the luxury of being exposed to bookshops libraries and departments stores filled with industry based books. Travelling and book finding go hand in hand for me. That’s why it’s been a recent struggle to clock in my reading allowance every week when in Bahrain.

It started off with the diminishing books and bookstores in malls. No longer do we have a bookshop that offers options and varied resources of books. You have only three locations in Bahrain that offer books today, all three have commercial books or books focused on cooking. It’s been tough sourcing interesting reads. The demand is simply not there.

So I opted to use the iPad and then the kindle to continue my reading passions. Both times I failed to embrace these digital devices as an equivalent of the book. I was way too distracted with the device but also I was not able to see and feel how far along I was in the completion process. Part of the rush for me in Reading is the achievement of finishing a book. With long term goals looming in both personal and career it’s always great to have these quick wins.

I also tried using audible and for a while it worked wonders as I spent hours in the car listening to Audio books. But just like that, being In the car became less enjoyable and more like work. So I didn’t renew my membership.

At a Time where people consume their time online and on social media networks I’m just so happy to see a city like Paris still offering readers options to browse, read and buy books in stunning quirky bookstores around town. It gives me hope. That books are not dead and perhaps they might even make a comeback in my city as well.