Monday, September 26, 2011

Dumpster Reading

At the dumpsters (aka Recycling Center) last week I was putting my mixed paper into the big bin and right there on top were some books.

I couldn't resist.

First of all was my old friend Nancy Drew who, in this incarnation has teamed up with the Hardy Boys and they, along with her ever-faithful boy friend, Ned Nickerson (those two have been dating since the 1930's and I don't think Ned has gotten to second base yet,) and her girl pals Bess and George are having a beach party on Padre Island.


I grew up on a combination of the early Nancy Drew's along with the Fifties version and I was a little surprised by the romance novels elements that have crept into the 1989 version. Nancy, that minx, has unresolved feelings toward one of the Hardy boys and is a bit of a flirt with another guy. The cover should have been a giveaway. 
Then I picked up a little clutch of Christian apocalyptic books.  W. G. Heslop was predicting doom back in 1937 (if I'm reading those Roman numerals correctly.) Ron Parsley's books are more recent --1990 and 1992.
But what I want to know is why these books were discarded rather than passed on to someone who might be receptive to their message.  Did the previous owner decide the books were useless? Or was he/she caught up in a kind of pre-Rapture Rapture and the books tossed in the recycle bin by skeptical family members who were left behind.

Inquiring minds want to know...

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21 comments:

Ms. A said...

I am frequently shocked by the things people throw away! Seems everything is disposable.

Martin said...

Sounds like a case of 'life laundry' to me.

Stella Jones said...

I expect the owners just couldn't be bothered to take them to the charity shop? I always take mine to the charity shop because I feel as I'm helping someone somewhere but also because if I've enjoyed the book, I want to share the pleasure. I also buy a lot of books in there, especially if I want to try a new author to me and I don't want to spend the full price just trying them out.
I've never read a Nancy Drew book, although I have heard of them. I don't think they are so popular in England? Maybe someone will correct me on that?

Brian Miller said...

the apocalyptic books were maybe beingputout oftheir misery...'the coming..." sounds like another failed attempt to guessthe end of the world date...

Elora said...

I have a LOT of trouble throwing out books. They have souls, after all. I want to beg anyone to take them when faced with the need for space!

Consequently, my major "stuff" overload is...books!

Elora

JJ Roa Rodriguez said...

there are always been good things in the recycle bin. Maybe they put it there for somebody to see and may like and pick it up. I for myself was asking my ex to throw me on the blue bin, somebody might want to pick me up. LOL! :-)

I love the last pic btw!

Have a great week Miss Vicki!

JJRod'z

Deanna said...

I cannot throw a book away. Just the other day I ran across some of my kids' books from their childhood and - well I sure didn't pitch them! I'm hoping their children or children's children will enjoy them. My china cabinet has some of my Little Golden Books in it!

So, what is Nancy Drew up to these days?

Witch of Stitches said...

Interesting finds! I would never throw away a book. A friend and I, along with my mother, exchange and share books. We all buy enough to keep the authors in business though, as out bookshelves will attest to! ; )
I "adopt" any books that have lost a home and pass them on to like-minded individuals if they are not "keepers."
Of course you couldn't pass up those books!

Barbara Rogers said...

Whowzer, my Nancy Drew covers were dusty blue (the color, no dust ever settled on them!)...without pictures on the covers! A group of us do a unscheduled bi-annual free book exchange, and if that doesn't do it, we donate the rest to a book sale at church. I've paid 10 cents for some lovely finds. Good for you rescuing those books from the bin, you indeed recycled them!

jennyfreckles said...

Interesting to speculate on what kind of person (yourself excluded) might enjoy both Nancy Drew and Christian apocalyptic texts. Do you think they were dumped by the same person? I don't think either are on most people's book lists here.

Wayfarin' Stranger said...

My wife and I share an inability to part with books we've enjoyed. We've just about run out of places to put another bookcase. Thankfully there are used book stores that will accept less-loved books for credit toward new titles that perhaps we'll like better.

Sally said...

Nancy Drew is one of my childhood friend.

So many fond memories of her mysteries read in the hammock among the trees, or curled up before a crackling fire.

Tracy Golightly-Garcia said...

Hello Vicki

I love books and have a very hard time getting rid of them. I hope one day to have a book room where I can go and have my private time and put all my books there!!

Best
Tracy :)

Kristen Haskell said...

That is great that you rescued them. I sell my jewelry to our library's little gift shop. It is banned books month and I was asked to display my earrings on cards with a theme revolving around banned books. Perhaps the individual that tossed the books banned them from their own personal library? What a shame they could have donated them to the Good Will.

R. Burnett Baker said...

I loved Nancy Drew books back in the day. But I don't approve of that cover OR Nancy's "updated" world views!! I'll stick with the "jeepers!" versions of the 50's and early 60's! I bought a box of nancy Drew books with the old blue hardbacks a couple of months ago for 50cents each....

NCmountainwoman said...

This inquiring mind wants to know; when did Nancy get boobs and such a well-defined waist?

Victoria said...

Well, that cover was a bit of a shock! My aunt left me her Nancy Drew collection, circa 1930's and 1940's. I could never throw out a book...even if I hate the book, I still pass it along to someone else.

Vicki Lane said...

I gotta admit, for me none of these books are keepers -- just curiosity made me pick them up. I'll put them on our library's free table or give them, as Star suggests, to the local charity shop.

Merisi said...

Before I moved, I tried to give away many of my books. Would you believe how hard it is? I was lucky at the end, I found good homes for what I had to leave behind, but I was very close to have to get many of them to the dumpster.

Unknown said...

Well I'd have rescued them too. I did not realize all this had happened to Nancy Drew who was one of my favorites back in my day too. A couple years ago I picked up a Nancy at a book sale and intended to read it just for fun, will have to get that off the shelf.

We are fortunate in this area to have many outlets for used books--our local library accepts them and we members of the Friends of the Library shelf them in a room donated by a local business then host a monthly used book sale and raise funds for the Library; several of the local churches have their own libraries and since I meet with my book club at the Lutheran Church I donate books to them regularly too--they do not just limit to religious, but all sorts of books including fiction and mysteries. And of course our Goodwill and Salvation Army stores gladly accept books.

I keep many books but cannot add another shelf so donate plenty too. Left to my own devices I'd keep them all but realize that is not a good idea!

It is amusing, this could happen to me; you go to dispose of something and end up acquiring!

Jeanne Estridge said...

Visiting via the Goddess....

I had to cull some books from my collection recently (because they were starting to take over), but I'm giving them to the Planned Parenthood Book Sale. Sad to think of all the effort an author puts into penning a book, only to have it go in the trash.