cicero 19 February 2010
My friend Heidi Murphy, who works in the book trade, is a great woman for the quotes and here’s one I must thank her for today..
‘A home without books is a body without a soul.’ Cicero.
When I was growing up our house was full of books because my mother was, and still is, a great reader. And there was nothing we weren’t allowed to read from the shelves. To be honest, I wasn’t interested in any of her stuff until I reached adolescence anyhow so it was safe to have everything lying around. Besides I probably wouldn’t have understood anything ‘beyond’ my years while it was still, erm, ‘beyond’ my years. What I did get, on top of all else, was the pleasure of handling books, even if some on her side of the room eluded me mentally for a while and that’s good enough too in its way.
I’ve done a lot of research for the latest novel because of the many time periods involved and a lot of it was from bought books but there are times when I wonder what I’d have done without the internet. Even the most random query typed in will throw up something odd and/or useful. Also, as I wind to the end (hopefully) it’s invaluable for getting quick stabs of information I may have forgotten or need to verify. So, Gawd Bless everyone who has ever thrown up a snippet on that great information super highway – it shall prove the saving of me yet!
