Is there such a thing as planned serendipity?
It might sound like an odd idea, but I’m thinking it must apply to the life of a professional book reviewer. Although it’s true that I never quite know what’s going to show up in the next day’s book-mail, I know it can’t be just flat-out ANYTHING.
I recently had a five-day visit from a friend who’s every bit as inveterately bookish as I am, so I couldn’t help but recognize the two foremost signs:
An old bookish friend of mine, compatriot at many a library book sale, used to have a clear organizational hierarchy for the books he acquired.
Many years ago, I had an old friend who was severely addicted to murder mystery novels. He wasn’t interested in true tales of actual murders (he could be surprisingly squeamish), nor was he all that keen on murders when they happened elsewhere in the fictional world.
I’ve been in what’s vaguely referred to as ‘the book business’ for a fairly long time. I’ve been a book reviewer, of course, but also a retail bookseller, a copy editor, an Arts & Entertainment writer, a Books section editor, and, as you see, a Books columnist.