I don't know what prompted this, because my memory is a blur. But I innocently ran a Google search on one particular hard-to-find item that I've been coveting for years, and lo and behold, there's one on eBay right now.
Okay, it's a book. Not just a book, but the book that got me hooked on science fiction. I read it after Star Wars had piqued my interest in all things science fictiony, and since there were no worthwhile movies or television programs out to give me my fix, I eventually turned to book--voraciously. I checked it out of the little Nesbitt Memorial Library the summer of 1979. It was the first "big" book I ever read--big being defined as one more than 100 pages long with small text and few illustrations. Looking back, I'm amazed that they stocked such a blatantly SF book. I checked it out half a dozen times, and read it incessantly. I went back a few years ago to look for it, but it'd long been cleared out, disposed of in some book sale I suppose.
The eBay listing included an image of the well-preserved dust jacket cover. Boom! The exact same retro-cool cover that sucked me in the first time I saw it, and prompted me to overcome my fear of big books. I felt that same gosh-wow flutter in my stomach. That cover promises amazement contained within. And it hasn't lost anything in the intervening years.
What's even more amazing is that this book appears to be in excellent condition, is a first edition, and is priced well below what ratty second-editions go for on ABE. I have, of course, placed a bid, which is why I'm not telling any of you which book it is. I'll go into detail if and when I win. Of course, if that happens, I'll have to explain the bill to Lisa...
Now Playing: The Kinks The Great Lost Kinks Album
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