Shaking It Up In Shaker Heights

We did not hit the road for Cleveland the day after I last posted after all. I overdid it packing the 100 boxes of  books and paid for it big-time. The crone returned in all her hunched over glory --  all she needed was a cauldron in which to toss some eye of newt and central casting would have hired her on the spot for the opening scene of Macbeth. I ended up missing the NOBS meeting again and  was so upset over it you’d have thought I slept through Christmas. I had been taking notes on things I wanted to ask or to comment on, but by the time we meet again it won’t matter because the book fair will be ancient history.

Yesterday I was better though so Eric agreed we could go to the Shaker Heights sale as long as I swore not to pick up anything heavier than a Kleenex. We went early, parked our bags at the library and were actually first in line, though it didn’t matter because when the sale started the crazies roared down the hall like the bulls at Pamplona. Not that I cared because we headed straight for the specials room and remained there for the duration. But once again this lack of civility symbolizes everything I dislike about online selling these days.

Anyway, after we stashed our bags at the library we went to explore some places we’d been wanting to check out. First stop was a storefront on Shaker Square where a long time bookseller and collector was selling off part of his collection. Because he’s so well known and we missed the first day of the sale due to my bad back we found that  it  had been picked over like a turkey carcass the Saturday after Thanksgiving, so of course we didn’t get anything. That’s okay though because right next door was a charming Hungarian restaurant called Balaton http://www.cleveland.com/sites/balaton/ where we enjoyed a wonderful soup the name of which I can’t recall, fabulous bread, and  stuffed cabbage. I love ethnic restaurants, but here in Medina they don’t exactly sprout on every street corner. So this was a great treat.

After that we headed over to Loganberry Books http://www.loganberrybooks.com/, a store so enchanting it’s like entering a third dimension.  I knew I would swoon when I saw it because I’ve visited online many times, but the sheer size of it, plus the never-ending surprises far surpassed my expectations. The only thing that was missing was Otis the cat who stayed home that day, but we nonetheless left happy, satiated and $118 poorer. I also loved the display of altered books, an art form very similar to what I do with my collage. I’ve dabbled in it a little, but every time I see a display like this it makes me want to learn more. I would join their group in a heartbeat were it not for the fact that it’s an hour each way from Medina.

The other thing about Loganberry we wanted to see is what I refer to as the magnum opus on the side of the building (photos above and below). The mural stretches  an astonishing 74 feet across and was created by Cleveland artist Gene Epstein who photographed and enlarged each book, the titles of which came from community suggestions. It’s  printed on a special coated vinyl that can withstand harsh weather – at least for a decade or so. Truly, it’s a dazzler.

As for the library sale, in some ways it felt like an afterthought, but was still fun, especially considering that  we managed not to get trampled like a pair of bugs and I spent lots of time talking to one of my favorite sellers. I didn’t buy a lot because the prices are high in the specials room – I think maybe I got 20 books or so, but they’re in the garage on the bookshelves because I can’t  bring one more thing into  my office until I process what I already have or  the Magical Makeover will be history. I did, however, isolate my favorite thing ( see below). It’s a Jewish Bible made of metal and encrusted with stones. It was printed in Israel, written in both Hebrew and English, and illustrated with color plates. I’m probably going to hang onto it for awhile, or forever, depending on how I feel later.

So there you have the latest shenanigans from these parts. Now if only I can keep upright we might even have some more!