Thank you for this post - so interesting! Books and hands are a great combination. Hands are so personal, so much of the character of a person is in there.
“and loved by individuals we will never know the names of, but whose energy is contained within this miraculous object that outlives us all” , I so enjoyed your description of the book fair and activities there and this quote regarding books. So special. You make a great ambassador. Congratulations.
oops! What I thought of was the De Atramentis Bookworm Fragrance Ink in a beautiful dark green colour! It’s like bottling all that love of books. 📚 I shall return to this post time and time again. Deep gratitude Jesse
" I noticed the unique way each seller would hold their books, how they delicately turned the pages like handling an insect’s wings, " I love this line and what a beautiful piece. The hand print is iconic. I love how you have written about it. Your hand is much like your mother's. Slender, graceful, strong, a hand that a dancer would have. NYC has so much to offer. The antiquarian book faire for one. Living here at the end of an island in the pacific northwest, we have so much nature but can not walk to a cafe - we can walk to the beach though. Now, when I look out at our forest, I think of the bark of all these trees and how their pulp is make into paper for books. They way, we from the jewish heritage are people of the book. Books have been so much a part of my life, having a mother who was a literature teacher and a poet, who never was without a great book up to the day she died. Now, all her books sit in boxes in my garage, not knowing what to do with them all. They need to be in the world and in the hands of others. Love Linda
So wonderful to see the hands holding those books with such care, delight, and reverence. And thank you for listing the sellers you included--do you know of any antiquarian book sellers that specialize in women's writing? I'm familiar with Withmore Rare Books (fantastic!) and Honey and Wax who have a special eye for the rare and interesting....but would love to find people interested in preserving marginalized voices, particularly. Just curious having been to the fair if you knew!
Thank you so much for your words!! In addition to Withmore and Honey+Wax, there is the amazing Nina Musinsky who is pictured in this post, along with Kate Mitas, and Ashley Wildes from Between the Covers <3 <3 <3 <#
What a lovely post, as a former museum worker, my hands touched many very precious things, such as a Sumerian fertility figurine, a painting of Judith with the Head of Holofernes by Cranach, a wood engraving by Durer, a Rembrandt etching, a Tiffany glass vase, and a book by Kara Walker, I always felt in awe of these objects. I loved showing them off, and would stand back and let the objects speak for themselves, and because I had been there for so long, I had stories about them. Old books are such beautiful objects themselves, they're amazing, and precious. Thank you for sharing the hands of booksellers, it just reminded me of how much I loved what I used to do.
and their use since obtaining my own. I’m wondering how the dealers think about jottings in the edges of books. I sometimes can’t resist making notes but remember a story my father told me about a friend who bought two copies of everything…one to use and one to keep pristine. I sort of cringe every time the urge comes to joy notes in books I want to keep.
Thank you for this post - so interesting! Books and hands are a great combination. Hands are so personal, so much of the character of a person is in there.
The heart moving through the hands.
Such a beautiful enriching experience.
I applaud your dedication to such precious handy-work. Thank you so much for sharing.
“and loved by individuals we will never know the names of, but whose energy is contained within this miraculous object that outlives us all” , I so enjoyed your description of the book fair and activities there and this quote regarding books. So special. You make a great ambassador. Congratulations.
Thank you for sharing this experience. Please hug Patti for me.
What a beautiful post Jesse! There is so much to take in here - one snippet is your mention of the five senses and I immediately thought of
Ahhh ! A cliff ending :)
oops! What I thought of was the De Atramentis Bookworm Fragrance Ink in a beautiful dark green colour! It’s like bottling all that love of books. 📚 I shall return to this post time and time again. Deep gratitude Jesse
Thanks for sharing your wonderful experiences at this fantastical event...definiitely NOT just a typical event.
Blessings always your comrade.
Dave Pi
" I noticed the unique way each seller would hold their books, how they delicately turned the pages like handling an insect’s wings, " I love this line and what a beautiful piece. The hand print is iconic. I love how you have written about it. Your hand is much like your mother's. Slender, graceful, strong, a hand that a dancer would have. NYC has so much to offer. The antiquarian book faire for one. Living here at the end of an island in the pacific northwest, we have so much nature but can not walk to a cafe - we can walk to the beach though. Now, when I look out at our forest, I think of the bark of all these trees and how their pulp is make into paper for books. They way, we from the jewish heritage are people of the book. Books have been so much a part of my life, having a mother who was a literature teacher and a poet, who never was without a great book up to the day she died. Now, all her books sit in boxes in my garage, not knowing what to do with them all. They need to be in the world and in the hands of others. Love Linda
What a feast! Thank you for this lovely post.
Thank you for taking us on this guided tour of the Book Fair. It means a lot to see the hands of the booksellers. Mudras indeed!
The pictures are amazing! 😍 Thank you for showing these treasures 📚💖 I'm so happy for you, dear Jesse 🙌
😍
So wonderful to see the hands holding those books with such care, delight, and reverence. And thank you for listing the sellers you included--do you know of any antiquarian book sellers that specialize in women's writing? I'm familiar with Withmore Rare Books (fantastic!) and Honey and Wax who have a special eye for the rare and interesting....but would love to find people interested in preserving marginalized voices, particularly. Just curious having been to the fair if you knew!
Thank you so much for your words!! In addition to Withmore and Honey+Wax, there is the amazing Nina Musinsky who is pictured in this post, along with Kate Mitas, and Ashley Wildes from Between the Covers <3 <3 <3 <#
Fabulous--thank you so much! 💜
Great to see the hands that hold the books that hold so beautifully our ideas, thoughts and discoveries. Long live The Book!
What a joyous weekend it looked, thank you Jesse for sharing the joy…did you feel the earthquake at all🤔🕊️
Yes!! Absolutely - was in a cafe and the table and floor and items were all shaking and quaking, how about you ?
I’m in the UK🤗🩷🌸
What a lovely post, as a former museum worker, my hands touched many very precious things, such as a Sumerian fertility figurine, a painting of Judith with the Head of Holofernes by Cranach, a wood engraving by Durer, a Rembrandt etching, a Tiffany glass vase, and a book by Kara Walker, I always felt in awe of these objects. I loved showing them off, and would stand back and let the objects speak for themselves, and because I had been there for so long, I had stories about them. Old books are such beautiful objects themselves, they're amazing, and precious. Thank you for sharing the hands of booksellers, it just reminded me of how much I loved what I used to do.
I’ve been enchanted with Books of Hours
and their use since obtaining my own. I’m wondering how the dealers think about jottings in the edges of books. I sometimes can’t resist making notes but remember a story my father told me about a friend who bought two copies of everything…one to use and one to keep pristine. I sort of cringe every time the urge comes to joy notes in books I want to keep.