I love my local library. A few weeks ago I went there to return a big pile of DVDs and children’s books. As I was leaving, I noticed these large, brown bags lined on the main counter. They looked like big, wonderful presents waiting to be picked. They all looked the same, except for a sticker on the top with the description of what may be inside: Novels, Non-Fiction, Gardening, Cooking & Crafts, Science Fiction. It’s Grab & Go!, titles picked by the library staff and put together in mystery bags for lazy readers like me. What a wonderful idea! And I’m their perfect audience: I’ve been relying in the last several months on the library recommendations, the new arrivals section and the odd recommendation by a friend or family member. I just don’t have much time to read anything at all, and that includes book releases and reviews.
Having books picked for me is great, but it’s the mystery of the bag that is the most appealing to me. Will I discover any new authors? Will I be inclined to read any of the suggestions? Would I had picked any of these books on my own? Now that I have gone through the contents, I have to say, yes, yes, and probably. In fact, I just finished reading the most astonishing novel, one by an author I have never heard before and probably one that I would have picked on my own (based on the cover, of course!).
So what was inside? Here is the list of titles:
The Bathing Women, by Tie Ning.
Apocalypse for Beginners, by Nicolas Dickner.
God on the Rocks, by Jane Gardam.
Big Girl Small, by Rachel DeWoskin.
The Better Mother, by Jen Sookfong Lee.
The Virgin Cure, by Ami McKay.
I have to admit I did not know half the authors on this list but I’m thankful I will get to know them now. My first pick on the list was The Bathing Women by Tie Ning. It took me a while to finish it but I’m glad I did. She is a respected and very well known author in China but this novel it’s her first to be translated into English. I think that novel deserves its own post, so I’ll just conclude by saying, great job Terry Fox Library, for really trying innovative ways of getting people into the library and excited about what they might find there. The next mystery is, will I be dedicated enough to read all six titles? I hope I am; I will try anyway.
Have you read any of these books? Do you know any of these authors? Leave a comment if you have!
The Things We Love 
The idea is awesome! I know it from other things: little “surprise bags” with children toys or fabrics…
But with the books is really new to me.
I’ve gotten books as gifts that I hadn’t heard of before, and most of them were great. I have to admit that I just love surprises 🙂
I know none of the authors, but that doesn’t mean anything. They might just not be translated into German yet… I’m curious to see what you discover…
I love the idea of the fabrics bag! Sometimes the hardest part is deciding so that’s what I like about this. Thanks for reading!
That is exactly why this “grab&go”-bags and all other suprise bags are so attractive: somebody has already decided for you.
It’s a very relaxing thought: if you think that we make hundreds of decisions a day, it’s always comforting when somebody does the job for you.
I think there’s a certain pressure in everything we decide: is it the right or the wrong decision? And we pour so much energy in trying to ALWAYS make the right choice. And that can be so exhausting.
So even with the books-bag, somebody has already decided for you what you should read. You didn’t have to make the choice yourself: “should I read the current best-seller, or the newest of the world known author XXX, or the nobel prize winning novel of the year, even though they actually don’t attract me? or actually just that book with the nice cover?” The library says: “relax! We made the choice for you!”
So, yes, like the title of your blog: if everything could be this easy…
OMG I wish my library had this! I’m too lazy to even go to the recommendations! this is awesome, one more reason to move to port coquitlam 😉 great blog post!!!!
Hey Adriana, thanks for reading and you for your comment! This library is small but so far it has been really great: they also have story time for kids, foreign movie night, and the BEST selection of DVDs of any library I’ve seen. I love it.
Hello Adriana:
Did you know that you can very likely still become a member of FVRL (and Port Coquitlam library) and get these great Grab and Go bags? Just call or visit our nearest library for details (Port Coquitlan Library 604-927-7999).
Me encantaría siquiera ir a la librería 🙂 pero ahora tengo la oportunidad de buscar estos libros que tan bien describes ,nene te felicito por este blog te puedo recomendar? Quisiera que muchas personas leyeran algo tan bien escrito y tan sutilmente hermoso!! Te felicito
Hola Nini! Gracias por leer el blog y por tu apoyo! Recomiendaselo a quien quieras, solo dales el link! Espero que te de algunas ideas de que leer…ese es el objetivo.