Shelter Between Covers

colored spines line crowded shelves --

index finger absently tracing titles, I choose

where to escape, as afternoon light paints

shadow shapes across saffron walls

 

well-worn pages (comfortable), tranquilize me

like midnight confessions to straying saints --

I settle, as Boston appears upon the horizon

            of my entranced eyes

 

these thin sheets -- some yellowed with age --

are my refuge, elucidating the solace I find in words:

love in lines sewn together by extinct pens,

companionship in characters with convoluted antiquities

 

today the last shreds of August cover me,

like a layer of Egyptian cotton     I stand beside

Esther as she feels the rush of her bell jar lifting, and

            together we breathe

 

before I come back     sipping spiced tea

as the full-faced moon appears in low-sky luster --

a tattered ribbon protects my place in another world,

I smile, knowing my return is only a bookmark away    

Reviews

[Rita L. Sev]

You certainly do not get this experience from an e-reader... Reading this makes me want to go back to the days when my main hang-out was the library (directly across the street from our house) :) Though I have to say that The Bell Jar would not be where I would go for comfort. ;) Wonderful, warming poem, Sarah.

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

Haha Yeah, I find comfort in strange places... I think that this particular book has a special meaning in that it reminds me of college and the other fifteen times I've read it. :) Thank you so much, Rita.

[TL Boehm]

The homage to Plath is subtle and brilliantly woven into this piece. Escaping into words. I suppose writers never escape into their own words, they escape from them.

[Traci]

I enjoyed this write because it brought back wonderful memories of days spent in the library. How I search for hours for that "perfect book". As convenient as e-readers are, they will never replace real books for me. There is just something about holding a book in your hands...like yours for instance, it will always be on the shelf to see :)

Will definitely have to read The Bell Jar.


=

[SteveB]

A lovely write. The tactile sensation of a real book, the heft, the color, the size none of these things are possible with an e-reader. As has been said truthfully books are the best way to decorate a room.

[Joyce S. Greene]

Only a true book lover could have written this exquisite poem about books and the comfort they provide. I, too, am in love with books and am never far away from one or the other of them. This poem is a treasure.

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

I'm so glad that you could relate to this one, Joyce!

[Douglas White]

Boy, doesn't this bring back some fond old memories. I've had my nose in books since I was about 6, so I am completely familiar with the feel and smell of books. (I own hundreds of actual books, have read into the 10's of thousands of them). This poem easily brought back many, many hours of being curled up in a chair, completely lost in whatever world I was reading about. And even though I mostly read on electronic devices nowadays, I still love my books, and always will. Thank you for touching on those old memories.

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

Thank you, Douglas...I'm so glad you can relate! I love my books...I read and re-read them and I just love touching them and looking at them. Something is lost in the electronic transfer.

[Douglas White]

Entirely too true, unfortunately.

[Me]

Wonderful imagery...I love the way you write, there is something quite dreamy about it...really enjoyed :) x

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

Thank you so very much, Raven!

[Frieda P]

Nothing quite like a book, the feel, the magic of getting lost with something tangible in your hands that seems to actually breathe life...

today the last shreds of August cover me,
like a layer of Egyptian cotton I stand beside
Esther as she feels the rush of her bell jar lifting, and
together we breathe

I can see this scene unfolding, it's such a comfort...and this is a smile on the page :-)

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

Thank you so much, Frieda! I always love your reviews :)

[Dye]

In a world filled with technology and e-readers I think some forget the comfort of a good book. Now I have never read Sylvia Plaths, The Bell Jar, but your poem makes me want too. Although I will admit it's not really my genre', it sounds inviting none the less. You painted a beautiful picture of an old tattered book. While reading this I felt like I could smell those worn pages; I hope that makes sense. I love the smell of old books. My house is filled with old books and leather bound books, some I've never read, but love to look and occasionally smell :)

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

I'm glad you can relate to the idea of actually "holding" a good book...I have an e-reader, but there is something about an actual book that provides comfort. Thank you so much.

[I Shred This Cabbage]

You beautifully capture the magic of finding unexpected pleasure in the transport g of world's that is the reading of great literature. Even if I am secretly wary of poetry that tries to capture the spirit of poetry ;)

[I Shred This Cabbage]

Sorry about the incorrect grammatical nonsense!

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

You make me smile, John...thank you so much; I'm humbled :)