A Bookish Retreat

Welcome!

Kaleidoscope by inkspired 

Colder weather always makes me want to stay inside, turn the fireplace on, make a mug of hot chocolate 

and curl up under a throw with a good book.

Whimsies and dreams

By artist Yaoyao Ma Van As

There are some very creative book lovers out there that have made special book nooks.

These inspire me!

Posted on Pinterest by fancydecors 

 Posted on Pinterest by

goodgollymisshollybooks.blogspot.com

 Posted on Pinterest by indulgy.com

Posted on Pinterest by Scottish Book Trust

Here is a great idea of transforming a closet 

into a cozy book nook!

Posted on Pinterest by Deb McGuiness

What a great idea for recycling milk jugs -

Courtesy diyprojects.ideas2live4.com

Courtesy projectgreenify.com

This fold up nook is easily made with cardboard and duct tape! Visit the site for instructions.

Reading is so fun,

once you get the hang of it.

Practice, practice, practice!

‘Til next time,

inkspired

Truth:

(Usually experienced before 10 am, or coffee)

Don’t put your shoes and socks on in a dark closet.

You will most likely be embarrassed when your 

color choices are seen in the light ...

Reading is good for the Soul

Welcome!

Kaleidoscope by inkspired

‘A reader lives a thousand lives
before he dies.’

- George R.R. Martin 

Unknown artist; found on Pinterest

Apparently I am in a reading books mood!
I think the early nightfall contributes to this.

Cozy up with a soft blanket in front of the fireplace
and reading a good book -
Wonderful!

Artist Inge Look

 ‘Reading gives us someplace to go
when we have to stay
where we are.’

- Mason Cooley

In a bookstore, somewhere!

I love the poems in a dispenser idea!

This is a free library found in Larimer Tree Gardens,
Wiltshire, England

London, England Book Barge
‘word on the water’

C.S. Lewis quote

I hope you have been encouraged to go visit your local bookstore, and also your local library!

Bibliobarn’s Bibliobargains

Photo credit: yeksitra

(Anybody know where this can be found?)

Chicago South Side, IL, USA

This large library has an interesting story behind it.

In 2012 artist Theaster Gates purchased an abandoned bank building. The roof had fallen in, and it was a wreck.

He paid $1.00.

He is in the process of turning it into a huge 

Arts Center!

This photo is of the Johnson Publishing Archive,

at Stony Island Bank.

😲

So go find a book to read, already!

‘Til next time,

inkspired

Kaleidoscope by inkspired

Truth:

It works best if you take the lid off your tea kettle 

before attempting to fill.

(lessons from actual experience)

Let’s look for Books

Welcome!

Kaleidoscope by inkspired 

‘Happiness.

That’s what books smell like.

Happiness.

That’s why I always wanted to have

a bookshop.

What better life than to trade in

happiness?

- Sarah MacLean (The Rogue Not Taken)

Something that I would say, wholeheartedly!

Today I would like to share some photos of Bookshops,

Book Nooks, and Mobile Bookstores

from around the world.

Unfortunately many I could not find out 

exactly where they were located, 

so we will have to guess on those.

Let the tour begin!

Fullerton Public Library Vending Machine

Not sure where that is.

Tree Library, Berlin Germany

Re-purposed Telephone Box, Great Britain

Bibliambule, found in Paris.
travelbetweenthepages.com

‘Maybe this is why we read,
and why in moments of darkness
we return to books
to find words for what we already
know.’

-Alberto Manguel

Found on a beach, location unknown 

Book Bike

San Pedro branch of the Los Angeles Public Library system, USA

A book shop in Italy.
Love the books along the walkway!

Banana Stand Little Free Library,
Galloway, OH, USA

Pop-Up libraries,
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA


‘Let us remember:
  One book, one pen,
  one child, and
one teacher can
Change the world.’

- Malala Yousafzai

Floating Bookshop at Foxton Locks
(I don’t know where that is!)

Re-purposed phone booth, Germany

La Carreta Literaria
Possibly Cartagena, Columbia

and for my last one today
(Understand there are many more great libraries 
Around the world)
here is 


‘Weapon of Mass Instruction’

A converted tank by Argentine artist Raul Lemesoff

I love all the creativity!
But, isn’t that what reading is all about, anyway?
Adventure!
Fantasy!
Creativity!
Truth & Lies!
Knowledge!

I hope today finds you
Thinking outside of your box,
even if that means trying horseradish on something
you have never tried before.

‘Til next time,
inkspired

Truth, learned by experience:

‘Skunk smell may remain in your carpets
for up to one year.’

😢

Snuggle with a book

Welcome!

Kaleidoscope by inkspired

Colder weather always awakens in me a desire 

to snuggle under a blanket and read a book.

Artist: Kim Parkhurst 


‘I have always imagined paradise
will be a kind of library.’

- Jorge Luis Borges (Obvious State)


I have always loved to read.
A big part of that is due to my 1st grade teacher.
She taught us how to read using method A.
It took us approximately 6 months to become proficient.

Then she taught us how to read using method B.
We learned that in 2 months.

Then she taught us a reading method C.
We all got that in 1 month.

At the end of the school year
we all tested in the top 3% of reading scores 
in the entire state of Alabama!

Fabulous Book Nook!

‘She read books as one
would breathe air,
to fill up and live’

- Annie Dillard (The Living)

Artist: George Hartley, American, born 1933


I have no use for the reading ‘method’ of learning
a prescribed list of words.
What happens when you come to a word not on the list?
You have no idea how to read it.
You never learned the basics of how letters
sound.
I believe this is a large part of America’s
Dumbing Down.
Keep the people illiterate 
and you have control over them.
(Rant over now)

June 1923 magazine cover

Read, read, read!

Unknown artist

Make a nice, cozy spot where you can cocoon yourself
away from the world,
the daily stresses and constant interruptions.
Then travel to other places, other worlds!

Photo manipulation digital art by Gusti Yogiswara

‘That’s the thing about books.
They let you travel without
moving your feet.’

- Jhumpa Lahiri 

Photo manipulation digital art by German artist Christine Ellger
Hmmm...
I think I hear a book calling my name!

‘Til next time,
inkspired

Truth:
No matter how many times you go in your closet
You will not find any coffee there.

(Truisms are learned by myself from actual experiences,
Usually before 9:30am and/or coffee.)
😁