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One for all
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Buy bagfuls of them at the exhibition of old books at Y.M.C.A, Secunderabad
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Thousands of titles are up for grabs — Photo: K. Gajendran
THE SMELL of time, and of stories well-told and enjoyed set apart the musty odour of old books into something that has a nostalgic appeal to the nostrils. Unless you are allergic, do not miss a whiff of the timelessness wafting through Y.M.C.A, Secunderabad - the venue for a mammoth exhibition of old books. Or regret for the years you are alive.
Best Books beckon all ye bookworms to the ongoing sale of used books. The one-room bookstore from above Tip Top Dry Cleaners in Lakdi-ka-pool has brought a better part of its existing collection to the exhibition for the delight of all bibliophiles. Says Mohd. Ahmed Ali, managing partner: "None will go empty handed from here. There is one for all."
Admittedly it is unavoidable to stumble upon something interesting, worthy of note in the eclectic display. The repertoire of subjects range from cuisine to computers, comics and children literature, fiction, sex, science, arts, gardening, jewellery, religion, politics, management, numismatics, astrology, self-help, economics and almost any word that has been written about. There are books that have exchanged hands for over two centuries, and some as new as Bill Gates' The Road Ahead.
Visit to a book exhibition is quietly engaging almost always; it isn't much different at the Old Books Exhibition. Only economics makes it more enjoyable, everything is within reach - as cheap as dirt. Naturally, one leaves loaded with bagfuls of his or her favourite titles sighing relief at the cost.
Affordably yours
Nothing is more than Rs. 100, excepting encyclopaedias and some rare titles. The rarity of a few books like Reader's Digest Collector's-editions available nowhere in the twin cities, makes the exhibition all the more extraordinary.
Get lucky with some old classics you could not find anywhere on earth, or with some titles you could never lay your hands on. Who knows you may chance upon them in the treasure trove, or you may even find books you had lost in college and forgotten about.
Leaf through the pages, in between a torn and tattered preface of many a book here - one can find lines that pompously proclaim, "Stolen by ... " Hey that's someone I knew! That's the magic of old books: As you curl up with one, someone comes to mind naturally.
The exhibition ends Wednesday night.
SOUVIK CHOWDHURY
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