When I was growing up during the analog era -- a decade or so before the digital age started to seep into the daily fabric of life, my sister and I spent hours playing together the old-fashioned way: outside on see-saws, swings, and jungle gyms or endlessly roller-skating around our neighborhood. Inside, we liked to play with board games, or "pretend" with our dolls and kitchen sets: Pretend we are at a fancy ball; pretend we are cooking dinner; pretend we are in an airplane flying to Japan.
Our childhood was filled with whatever our imaginations could conjure up for us. Of course, we didn't really have a choice either. There were no such thing as DVDs, VCRs, CDs, DS's, Wii's or any of the other acronyms that have come to represent our modern forms of entertainment.
Then there were our books.
We not only read them but also wrote our own stories and "made" books with tape, paper, and colored pencils. Our shelves overflowed with books and then there were the boxes next to the shelves filled with books. Some of my fondest childhood memories centered around books, such as sitting with my mother while she read us Little Women in Japanese, her native language. Or going to the bookstore with my father when he came home from work on Sunday afternoons. And of course, eagerly awaiting our monthly surprise in the mail from the Weekly Reader Children's Book Club. The books from those subscription years are still sitting on a shelf at my parents' home, now waiting to be enjoyed by my son and my sister's four children.
Books have always had a special place in my life. And I'm sure for many others as well. Books are truly enduring relics laden with as much personal meaning as they are with historical, political, social, creative, artistic, or cultural significance.
Little Paper Hen is my homage to the tradition of books. In this blog, we will explore pages from the past that are vibrant examples of good old-fashioned storytelling with ink and paper, books that are the vessels of timeless stories and gorgeous illustrations.
There will also be a LPH etsy shop where you will be able to purchase "vintage book bundles," adding wonderful stories from yesteryear to your collection as well. This and more, all in the works to be available very soon, I promise!
As e-books continue to rise and carve a place for themselves in our present and future, my hope through Little Paper Hen is to do my part to ensuring that bound books hold their place alongside the digital revolution. May the tactile joy of turning pages never lose its novelty for my child and his generation who are at the cusp of this inevitable literary transition.
Very well organized and nice personal touch.
ReplyDeleteKurt