It is often much harder to get rid of books than it is to acquire them. They stick to us in that pact of need and oblivion we make with them, witnesses to a moment in our lives we will never see again. While they are still there, it is a part of us. I have noticed that many people make a note of the day, month, and year that they read a book; they build up a secret calendar. Others, before lending one, write their name on the flyleaf, note whom they lent it to in an address book, and add the date. I have known some book owners who stamp them or slip a card between their pages the way they do in public libraries. Nobody wants to mislay a book. We prefer to lose a ring, a watch, our umbrella, rather than a book whose pages we will never read again, but which retains, just in the sound of its title, a remote and perhaps long-lost emotion. Anonymous
About This Quote

In this quote by Ernest Hemingway, he is saying that it is harder to get rid of books than it is to acquire them. Many people just can't part with their books when they are done with them because they become part of the person. The act of putting the book back on the shelf just reminds them of all the pain and suffering that happened in their life when they read it. When someone does lose a book, they usually don't even miss it until they come across it again.

They might even try to throw away the book so they don't have to think about it anymore. However, the person ends up finding out about their old love when they go looking for their old book.

Source: The House Of Paper

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