BOOKS IN THE HOME

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 983, 28 May 1930, Page 6

BOOKS IN THE HOME

IMPROVE ODD CORNERS AIDS TO DECORATION Books are the friends we like to have close at hand when wanted. And even when they are not expressly wanted, it is pleasant to have them near —favourite books whose silent presence Is sometimes the most sympathetic company in the world. But they must be real books, books that are really read and loved, books whose covers, while not necessarily shabby, seem to indicate in some intangible way that they have been opened and reopened and closed reluctantly a-t the last page, only to be dipped into again and again. *

For there are hooks and books. There are real books, and there are the kind that are bound in strange ornamental bindings, hard and shiny and heavily embellished with gilt, or soft and limp, with intricate designs sprawling about and making the title almost impossible to read. These are the books that are placed “carelessly” upon the occasional table in the drawing-room. They obviously have never been opened, nor ever will be opened; they are dead books, and they strike a chill in the heart of the true book lover.

Apart from the mental pleasure that they give, real books can have a definite decorative yalue. Modern publishers are realising this more and more, and are producing books that are bound attractively and in harmony with the trend of modern decoration. Books should not be confined to the library. Well-bound volumes in unexpected places add colour and Interest to the living room, and to the bedroom, particularly if the occupant likes to read at night before going to sleep. There is no reason why bookcases should not be considered as a part of the actual construction of the house Itself, and built into the wall. The corners of a room may generally be used to excellent advantage in this ■way. It is often difficult to furnish odd corners attractively, and the addition of well-proportioned bookcases adds materially to the room's appearance.