The Nosy Bookworm

Most blogs have a gimmick, a theme, something to keep you tuning in every day (or few days!) for new posts. My general theme is books, but I had a gimmick originally in mind for the blog. I was going to be the Nosy Bookworm.

It all began one day at the library when I was picking up some books I had on hold. I often put books on hold, as the library does not always have the books that I am looking for. With the hold service, I just order them in. And I used to work very close to a library and could run over on my lunch break. Anyway, I was there in the library on my lunch break, loathe to leave the comforting surroundings, but hungry and ready to eat lunch at my desk. I noticed that one of the other hold books near my own selections looked interesting. I believe it was a Jane Austen sequel. I noted the author and title, returned to my desk, and put the same book on hold that evening. The book came in, and, it wasn't bad. I read a whole series by the author - whom I believe is Elizabeth Aston, and quite enjoyed the series.

I should probably explain that at my library, the holds are filed on shelves to the side of the circulation desk, all organized by name and the last few digits of your library card. Essentially, it is self-serve. So anyone can look at the books that are on hold, but only you can take your book out. I found a few more books on hold by the patrons to either side of my selections, and was able to read some new and different books.

Thus, the gimmick for my blog was born. I would be the Nosy Bookworm, putting books on hold and reading whatever book was next to my selection on the hold shelf, no matter what it was (barring, perhaps, books in a foreign language.) However, I hit a minor snag prior to posting. Every now and again I go through phases where my books at home interest me to the exclusion of all others. I became obsessed by my massive collection of Agatha Christies and reread them all. I didn't put any books on hold for weeks!

So, when I came to starting my blog, I decided to broaden the category and discuss books in general, and nosiness in specific when a good opportunity popped up. Such an opportunity presented itself when I picked up the Ngaio Marsh book (that finally came in!) at the library this week. The book on the right, sadly, was a DVD. The book on the left I pulled slightly off the shelf to check the title...it was The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, which I am already committed to read for my bookclub (and will begin soon, I promise!). Some times you win and discover a new book, sometimes you don't! I have another hold to pick up next week, so hopefully I'll get some more inspirations for future reads soon.