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There would never be enough time in my life to read everything, and yet I keep buying books which I add to my antilibrary. What is an antilibrary, I hear you ask? To put it simply, an antilibrary is a private collection of unread books.
The concept was first mentioned by Nassim Nicholas Taleb in his book "The Black Swan" - a mindblowing masterpiece, by the way -, where he describes the unique relationship Italian writer Umberto Eco had with books: "The writer Umberto Eco belongs to that small class of scholars who are encyclopedic, insightful, and nondull. He is the owner of a large personal library (containing thirty thousand books), and separates visitors into two categories: those who react with 'Wow! Signore professore dottore Eco, what a library you have! How many of these books have you read?' and the others — a very small minority — who get the point that a private library is not an ego-boosting appendage but a research tool. Read books are far less valuable than unread ones. The library should contain as much of what you do not know as your financial means, mortgage rates, and the currently tight real-estate market allows you to put there. You will accumulate more knowledge and more books as you grow older, and the growing number of unread books on the shelves will look at you menacingly. Indeed, the more you know, the larger the rows of unread books. Let us call this collection of unread books an antilibrary."
The Japanese even have a beautiful word for it: Tsundoku (積ん読), which describes the habit of acquiring books but letting them pile up without reading them. I used to feel guilty about this habit of mine, and would strive to only buy new books once I had finished the ones I already owned. However, the concept of the antilibrary has completely changed my mindset when it comes to unread books. Unread books can be as powerful as the ones we have read, and I constantly add to them.
The Bay no longer has any bookshops (but it has half a dozen liquor outlets) but the two op-shops there and three more in Ulladulla usually satisfy all my book needs. However, every so often I hear of a book I absolutely have to own and so I order it online, which is what I did yesterday when I ordered "Island - How Islands Transform the World". Here's the emailed response I received from betterworldbooks.com:
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Hello Peter, (Your book asked to write you a personal note - it seemed unusual, but who are we to say no?) Holy canasta! It's me... it's me! I can't believe it is actually me! You could have picked any of over 2 million books but you picked me! I've got to get packed! How is the weather where you live? Will I need a dust jacket? I can't believe I'm leaving Mishawaka, Indiana already - the friendly people, the Hummer plant, the Linebacker Lounge - so many memories. I don't have much time to say goodbye to everyone, but it's time to see the world! I can't wait to meet you! You sound like such a well read person. Although, I have to say, it sure has taken you a while! I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but how would you like to spend five months sandwiched between Jane Eyre (drama queen) and Fundamentals of Thermodynamics (pyromaniac)? At least Jane was an upgrade from that stupid book on brewing beer. How many times did the ol' brewmaster have one too many and topple off our shelf at 2am? I know the trip to meet you will be long and fraught with peril, but after the close calls I've had, I'm ready for anything (besides, some of my best friends are suspense novels). Just five months ago, I thought I was a goner. My owner was moving and couldn't take me with her. I was sure I was landfill bait until I ended up in a Better World Books book drive bin. Thanks to your socially conscious book shopping, I've found a new home. Even better, your book buying dollars are helping kids read from Brazil to Botswana. But hey, enough about me, I've been asked to brief you on a few things: We have dispatched your order. We wanted to let you know that we have seen quite a few shipping delays to Australia of late. Our shipping partner has informed us this is a result of a rather large backlog in customs due to a higher than normal shipping volume. We have been assured that they are making every effort to process shipments in a timely fashion, however we wanted to alert you to this potential delay. Thanks for your understanding. Eagerly awaiting our meeting, (signed:) Island - How Islands Transform the World
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Isn't this the cutest order and shipping confirmation you could ever receive? This was written by one book-nutter to another and so, very much intrigued, I clicked on their website's history. I loved it just as I will love their book "Island - How Islands Transform the World", I'm sure.
