Book love

Every once in a while we have someone come in with a tattered book, asking if we will mend it for them. No fancy first editions, no collected works of Shakespeare signed by the author. The books people bring in are far more valuable than that: gifts from beloved grandparents, Bibles handed down through family generations, the first book they ever purchased. For those people who are trying to preserve a piece of themselves, we have a new book that will help you: The Care and Feeding of Books Old and New: a simple repair manual for book lovers. Authors Margot Rosenberg and Bern Marcowitz own a bookstore in New York City, and they share easy techniques for maintaining and repairing the special books in your life. The nice thing about this book is that they use easily obtained supplies and simple to follow procedures. You don't need to be a trained archivist to renovate your personal library. This excellent guide covers such common problems as page tears, stinky books, dog-eared pages, wet books and loose pages. It also discusses routine cleaning, creating the proper environment for your books, and how to put together your own little repair kit. This is a must-read for anyone who loves their books (just don't dog-ear the pages!).