I was taking a picture of the Texas Capitol building while at the Texas Book Festival last Saturday when something caught my eye. It was right on the bench behind me. I went over and took a look. No one else was around. Where was its owner? Should I take it? What if someone saw me? Was this like candid camera or something? Maybe it was a joke. I started to walk away.
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| Texas Capitol Building |
But I couldn’t leave it there. What if it rained later and it got all wet? What if someone threw it away? I would never forgive myself. I turned right around. I sat next to it. Slowly and with a little hesitation, I reached over and touched it. Then I picked it up. I opened it! I laughed out loud and shook my head in amazement. A “traveling book.” At first, I had no idea what a traveling book was until I read what was written on the label inside the cover:
“I’m a very special book. You see, I’m traveling around the world making new friends. I hope I’ve made another one in you. If so, please go to www.bookcrossing.com, where you can make a brief journey entry with my BCID number (below). You will see where I’ve been, and my old friends will be happy to know I’m safe here in your hands. Then help keep my dream alive – READ & RELEASE me!”
I’m convinced the “traveling book” found me. You see, being the book lover that I am, it knew it would be safe in my hands. The title of the book? Middlesex written by Jeffrey Eugenides. It won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction and the Ambassador Book Award. It has been featured in Oprah’s Book Club.
That was my unexpected surprise! How often do you find a book right out in the open? I am anxious to find out the journey of this book. According to the label, it was last picked up in Colorado. I will soon release it and send it on its way placing it somewhere where hopefully another book lover will find it as well. What a novel idea!
“To this day, I don’t sit down and say, I’m writing a novel. That would terrify me! Novels are long and complicated and I don’t know how anyone ever writes one! No, I sit down and say I’m writing a story, and today I’m going to write either two pages, or one scene, whichever comes first!” — Linda Sue Park
