Books brought a lifelong love of discovery

The library in my small hometown was my favorite place in the whole world. I was safe, warm, protected, and could be alone in my own little world. It was wonderful.

One of my favorite books from the library was The Secret Garden. I loved the story. It inspired and nurtured in me a great gift – the gift of compassion, of transference of feeling from one human being to another. It opened my heart and soul to another’s pain, another’s joy, another’s tribulations. I was probably 10 years old when I read the book. I felt so much

When I was 14, I began reading my mother’s magazines. They were magazines like True Romance, Real Romance and True Story. She would drop my dad off to work at 5 a.m. and then go back to bed. My sister and I would crawl into bed with her and read the magazines with her. Those stories, too, taught me about kindness, love, misery, heartbreak, perseverance, patience and all those many attributes a person needs to get through life, to get through each day’s challenges.

Those stories took me out of myself, transported me to other worlds, introduced me to so many different, interesting personalities. They helped me to realize that life could be full of joy and sorrow at the same time, that life was a mixture of good and bad, and that we have choices. They taught me that we are our best friend and worst enemy, and that, no matter what, we can prevail.

My education happened at the Winona Public Library. It was my supplemental grade school, my supplemental high school, and my entire college. Through books, I learned how to start and run a successful business. I learned how to be a kind, caring, compassionate person.

That is what The Secret Garden introduced me to – the love of reading, which has led to a lifelong love of discovery, of adventure, of learning – all through the marvelous, amazing world of books.

– Sherry Pringle, Spare Room Mini Storage

SHARE YOUR FAVORITE CHILDHOOD BOOK: We'd love to hear about the book (or books) that made a difference to you as a child. It can be a video or an essay. Here's a link that gives you the guidelines.

We're counting down to the big day!

Well, it won't be long now. More time has passed since the last Florida Antiquarian Book Fair than still remains until the next one. In just a few weeks, antiquarian booksellers from across the country will gather at The Coliseum in downtown St. Petersburg for the 33rd annual Florida Antiquarian Book Fair.

We're particularly excited, of course, because it's the time we live for all year long. We realize that not everyone is quite as obsessive about the arrival of the book fair, though we have empirical evidence that we're not alone.

One reason we're so excited is that we'll be seeing a lot of old friends. Many of the dealers who exhibit at the book fair have been coming to the fair for decades. It's part of their life. And they are part of ours.

Another reason we're excited, though, is that there will be new dealers here, too. New friends. It's always great to make new friends.

No matter whether they're regulars or brand new to the book fair, our dealers always bring the most fascinating books, ephemera, prints, maps, and a whole host of other related items. If you like this stuff (and you wouldn't be reading this far into this post if you didn't), this is the place for you.

There's an atmosphere at the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair that is quite special, and we'll talk more about that in a later post. In the meantime, you're welcome to share this countdown post with anyone you think might want a reminder about the book fair. It only happens once a year. It's only for three days, and you don't want to miss it.

Tap into your inner child at the book fair

Our theme for the 2014 Florida Antiquarian Book fair is all about the children—and the inner child in you!

Children's Literature: Pages of Wonder calls to mind those youthful days of all book enthusiasts when everything was new. It was a time of discovery, a time of awesome
spectacle, and yes, a time of wonder.


Now, does that mean that children's books are the only things to be found at the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair? Of course not. Don't worry! We'll have the full complement of books, maps, prints, ephemera, autographs, incunabula, and more at this year's book fair.

But it does mean that you're likely to discover that long lost treasure of your childhood. That one book that turned you on to a lifetime of loving books for the worlds they opened up to you.

What's more, the book fair is likely to reveal to you some amazing tome you're going to be eager to share with the young people in your life because it meant so much to you when you were a child.

HOW TO SHARE YOUR BOOK: We're asking people to share some of their memories about special books that meant so much to them as youngsters, and you're welcome to participate. There are two ways to share.

At the top of this article, you'll find a video from writer Jon Wilson, who shared his memory. If you'd like to do the same, it's easy. You can record your memory on your cell phone if you'd like. (We'd ask that you try to get it in focus and turn your phone to the horizontal position. It makes a better picture that way.) Keep it short. Less than a minute is best. If you need a little more time, go ahead but make it interesting.

Send your video to us by email to floridabookfair@gmail.com. If the file is too big, send us an email to let us know and we'll set up a Dropbox you can put it in.

The other way is easier if you don't want to deal with video. Write your memory in 100 words or less. Snap a selfie, attached it to an email and send it to us at floridabookfair@gmail.com. Leave enough room above your head for an excerpt from your 100 words, and some room on the side for a logo. There's an example below.

Don't worry about formatting. We'll take care of converting your photo or video to black & white and making it look like the others. Be sure to include your name and your claim to fame.We hope to end up with a wall full of these memories. It'll be fun!

 MY FAVORITE CHILDHOOD BOOK: "When I was young I remember going to our local Carnegie library maybe once a week or so – and there was a whole floor of children's books there. I read a good part of them but there was one in particular that really captured my imagination – Otto of the Silver Hand. Immediately upon reading that I was fascinated by all sorts of knights, and read Ivanhoe and looked forward to the Sunday papers with Prince Valiant. I spent the rest of my childhood reading about knights of one kind or another, and all because of Otto of the Silver Hand."

– Michael Slicker, Lighthouse Books, ABAA

FLORIDA ANTIQUARIAN BOOK FAIR, March 14-16, 2014, The Coliseum, St. Petersburg

If you blog about books, etcetera, let us know!

Here's the deal. If you're blogging regularly about the things we're about, we want it make it as easy as we can for you to blog about the Florida Antiquarian Book Fair.

So, this year for the first time, we're making available social media credentials for serious bloggers and social media folks who are talking to their followers about books or book collecting or ephemera collecting, or the lost art of letterpress printing, or a host of other things that are related. If  this describes you, then send us an email requesting to register for social media credentials for the 2014 Florida Antiquarian Book Fair. This is the first time we've done this, so you're getting in on the ground floor, so to speak.

Send us an email at floridabookfair@gmail.com. Tell us who you are, what you blog about and how often, and send us a link to your blog. If you're selected, we'll need a photo of you.

If you pass muster, we'll keep you clued in about possible story ideas and interviews you might do before the book fair to tell your readers about all the exciting things that will be happening. We'll send you advance news releases and contact information so you can do your own articles. We'll also have a social media pass available at Will Call for easy access to the book fair all weekend.

Here's a link for more details. We're looking forward to hearing from you.