Greetings!
Last night I went to the Red Sox game at Fenway (and had seats!). The game was so bad I won't even talk about it (not even Ortiz managed a hit -- but that's because the wussy pitchers walked him all night), but before the game ....
I walked by Commonwealth Books on the way to Fenway (it is on the way ... this was not a book detour!), and polked around the bargain racks outside. I've never been inside, as it has the appearance of being more refined than I usually like (rare books, etc). But, as I found a triology of novellas by a German author I'd never heard of (who, back in the 1930's was being hoorah-ed as the best since Joyce) I had to venture inside to pay for it.
Of course, once inside, I became captivated by the stacks and shelves of books -- all kinds and covering all areas (a very thorough history section divided by country and/or contintent). It reminded me of my grandpa and his basement of books.
Poking around I found a charming little red book: "Baedeker's Great Britain." It's a "traveller's guide" to Great Britain and appears to be a second edition ("revised and augmented") published in 1890. The first edition was published in 1887.
It has beautiful marble-edged pages, and lots of little pull out maps and city plans .. even cathederal layouts. It was love and first site, and at $15, relatively inexpensive. I'm guessing from it's condition that no one ever took it traveling, and that's just fine by me!
Of course the first thing I did is look up Winchester (page 75). Baedeker notes that on route fro London to Winchester by train, "Byond Woking the train passes Woking Convict Prison for invalid prisoners and the Brookwood Lunatic Asylum (both on the right)."
I love that in 1890 that was considered worth pointing out as a point of interest. Later on during his description of the route he mentions Basingstoke, and the: "The remainder of the route to Winchester traverses the chalk downs and presents no features of special interest."
'Cause nothing is more interesting than a lunatic asylum ... which is true, I guess, if you think about it.
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2 comments:
Badaeker...that sounds really familiar. Isn't that the type of guidebook used in "A Room With a View" when they are touring Italy. (A movie and book, which I might add, is fabulous.) Ah, insane asylums. Remember the one that we saw when were in Dublin? I've still got the picture of the painting on the outside. Or was it a asylum for the infirm? Can't remember...
Wooooooooooo
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