Monday, November 21, 2011

Lost and Forgotten



I'll admit to using all kinds of strange things to mark my page in a book: envelopes, pictures, a popsicle stick.

 I featured the blog Forgotten Bookmarks about a year-and-a-half ago and also follow on Twitter.

Michael Popek is a used and rare bookseller who blogs about the personal, funny, heartbreaking and weird things he finds in books.

Some examples:


(Mrs. Eisenhower's Fudge recipe)


(a check from 1940-something)


(A checklist of names, some crossed off with the word BAD next to the name)


I'd say he has one of the coolest jobs EVER! 


And now he has a BOOK out called FORGOTTEN BOOKMARKS (another GREAT holiday gift idea!):





What do you use to mark books?

28 comments:

Sarah said...

This is extremely cool! I'll have to check this out. But I ... I don't mark books with anything, because nearly all my reading is done on an e-reader. Hmmm.

Christina Lee said...

I hear ya, Sarah! A large percentage of mine is too and the thought of that makes me melancholy! But then there's magazines and chapter books I'm reading to my child. We use things in a pinch to mark our pages.

Stina said...

The bad list is funny. That must be Santa's list.

I hope the popsicle sticks are clean, Christina. :D

Unknown said...

This post sent me to some place magical!!! I was imagining myself sitting there experiencing his findings with him! Too bad that couldn't be my job. I suppose now I'll just have to imagine it. Thank God for being a writer. The creativity never leaves!

Have a fabulous MONDAY!

LisaDay said...

I love it. What a great book. I am glad to hear a book full of others don't dog-ear their pages. My current bookmark is a receipt for my oil change supplies.

LisaDay

Christina Lee said...

Stina--LOL!!!!

Joanne said...

What a fascinating look at people's lives. I've found interesting markers in library books over the years, and they sometimes get you thinking. One that comes to mind is a Prayer card in a nonfiction book on immigrants. You just wonder about the story behind the marker.

Donna K. Weaver said...

Those are delightful! Who'd think that some little note or recipe, that's stuffed into a book and forgotten can have meaning so many years later. I love it.

Stacy S. Jensen said...

I've been using the "hold" slips from the library. I can see now I need to step up my game. This is an awesome book and I'm checking out that blog ...

Pamela Gold said...

I "Like" his Facebook page. I love seeing what treasures he comes by. Lately? If I'm reading an actual book vs. using my Kindle, I use a photograph that says "It will be okay in the morning". It's quite colorful and so very true!

S.A. Larsenッ said...

What a totally cool idea for a book! I have used so many different things to bookmark a book. I should make a list...

Slamdunk said...

Thanks for the link to Michael's site. As a fan of history, this would be right up my alley.

My mom passed away almost 2 decades ago, and a few years after her death I was happy to find a handwritten Sunday school lesson from when she was in hs--something she was randomly using as a bookmark.

Liz Mays said...

That really would be a fun job! I love that!

I tend to use those magazine insert cards for my bookmarks.

PS. My BF snagged himself an agent. :)

Meredith said...

That's so cool! I love finding other people's bookmarks (or post-it-notes or postcards or whatever they used to mark their place) in library books. What a great idea for a book!

Kim Van Sickler said...

I use anything handy to mark my place that fits, such as: candy wrappers, ripped off pieces of newspapers, envelopes, letters, library due date slips, leaves, segment of an orange peel, pine needles, old to-do lists.

Unknown said...

That's so cool. I found a $2 bill in an envelope from the bank marking my spot in my childhood copy of A Wrinkle in Time

Karen S. Elliott said...

I use a piece of lined paper - I take notes on every book I read. "Forgotten Bookmarks" looks very interesting!

JEM said...

I'm the same way about bookmarks, I'll use anything that's thin and at hand. I'm reading an old book right now that has a built in bookmark, and it's so much easier! All books should come with built in bookmarks.

Lourie said...

Well now that is just cool! haha. I have used receipts the most I think. Envelopes. Bills. Post-its. I think I even used a gum wrapper once or twice. haha.

Dianne K. Salerni said...

Proof of Santa! That's great!

I'll use just about any old piece of paper for a bookmark, or else I (gasp) dog-ear the page!

Christina Lee said...

Jem-- the ribbon kind? Yeah they're great!

Kelly Polark said...

THat is so cool!
I have plenty of beautiful or cool bookmarks, but I usually end up using old receipts or torn pieces of paper to mark my page instead. I don't want to lose my bookmarks! Silly!

mshatch said...

I used to be bad and fold down the corners. Now I have my own bookmarks.

Sarah Tokeley said...

I have lots of lovely bookmarks, but I usually end up using bus tickets or folded over post it notes.

K. M. Walton said...

Hey!! I'm a post-it gal. They're kind of my most favorite obsession all around.

Matthew MacNish said...

I remember discussing this. I think on Facebook. The strangest thing I've marked a book with (that I can admit to online) is probably another book.

Len Lambert said...

I was smiling as I read this. I guess all of us do this. I use receipts, paperclips, ripped cardboard, anything I could get my hands on to use as bookmarks...it's not that I run out of good bookmarks...I just get what's the easiest and the nearest to me! LOL! Thank you, this is a lovely post! I'm now a follower :)

Peggy Eddleman said...

How very cool! I love that!