I’ve
just returned from a visit to my local Op-Shop, where for six bucks I purchased
a winter jumper and four books for the princely sum of six dollars and ten
cents. It’s been at least a year since
my last visit there and I was dismayed to see the children’s book section had
reduced quite considerably.
I’ve
picked up some great classics there over the years, such as Anne of Green Gables, Little Women, Peter Pan,
the first three Narnia books and Treasure
Island. Today I purchased a copy of Oliver Twist, because Dickens is one
classic author whose books I’ve never read.
I tried to read A Tale of Two Cities
many years ago, but couldn’t get much further than the first paragraph. I’m hoping Oliver will grab my attention a
little better.
It’s
true that a lot of these classic books can be downloaded for free on tablets or
e-readers these days, and I have read quite a few that way this year –
particularly some obscure ones – but I find it easier on the eyes, and more
comfortable for overworked hands to read from the printed page. The last thing I feel like doing after
staring at a computer screen all day is stare at another screen.
Flicking through the books today, I considered purchasing Robinson
Crusoe until another title caught my eye and made me gasp aloud. What induced me to abandon Crusoe on his desert
island? The Riddle of Trumpalar by Judy Bernard-Waite. Of all the books I was forced to read for
high school, this was the one I loved most (the only other one I recall
enjoying was Sally Morgan’s My Place). I kept all of my high school English books –
despite the fact I didn’t enjoy most of them – but back in year eight or nine I
loaned my copy of Trumpalar to
someone with the initials SG. When I asked
for it back, SG said she’d given it to NM.
When I asked NM for it back, she said it was her book. She showed it to me. The cover, which had had a sticker with my
name on it, had been completely peeled off.
As much as I love The Book Thief,
I was not impressed with these book thief bullies for stealing my favourite high
school English book (not to mention the difficulties I had finishing my
assignment on it).
I
am looking forward to reading this time-slip adventure once more, and sharing it with my kids. I remember
loving the riddles and poems at the beginning of each chapter, and it’s a well-established
fact that I love a book with a map.
Best
bit of Op-Shops: Finding pieces of your
childhood in hidden corners.
Questions can sometimes be answered
Storm clouds be swift blown away,
The weft of a dream can be held in the
heart,
A memory that lives and will stay. – From The Riddle of the Trumpalar by Judy
Bernard-Waite
