How my great books journey began
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- Опубліковано 5 жов 2024
- #booktubenewbie #booktubenewbietag
A personal story of how I got interested in reading The Great Books of the Western World. Where and how did your journey start? Leave a comment!
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Howdy Sir - Thank you for sharing your family story about how this set of books came to be in your personal library! Since you asked for about our engagement with the Great Books, here's my story:
In my twenties, I used to carry in my wallet a list of books that I wanted to own if I could find them at a price I could afford. I was a waiter back then, with a young family and little in the way of expendable income to be spent on books. I lived near Houston, so I was blessed with an entire city of quality used book stores that I could frequent. In order to avoid impulse buys, I would consult my list prior to making a purchase, to be sure that I was spending my modest book budget wisely.
One day while out running errands with my then-toddler son in tow, I noticed a small handwritten sign along a busy thoroughfare pointing passersby into a neighborhood for an estate sale. Being a nice day and in an older neighborhood that I enjoyed visiting, I followed the signs to the sale. Inside, I found a pair of middle-aged sisters administering an estate sale of their recently-deceased father's home. He must've been an avid reader, as he had a considerable personal library and a comfortable chair tucked away in a spare bedroom. That is where I saw, for the first time, the Great Books of the Western World. Somehow I had never heard of the set, and was astounded to discover that nearly two-thirds the books on my list were present within the set.
I don't remember the exact price being asked, only that is was well above my meager cash-in-pocket budget, and that it was set on a scale such that the price that first day of the sale was the highest, and the price on the last day of the sale was the lowest. One of the sisters noticed my young son and I examining the set, and took interest in our interest. She told me that she doubted very much that they would remain until the last day of the sale, as multiple dealers had already been by and made note of the price discount set to occur. She noticed my list and asked to see it. Looking it over, with eyebrows raised, she said she wouldn't have taken me for that kind of reader. She sighed, looked at my son, and said that her Dad would've wanted me to have the set.
She said I could have it for whatever amount I could afford today. I began to decline, explaining that I had only my weekly grocery budget with me ($80, and that had to cover diapers too), which if memory serves was approximately half of the asking price on the lowest price day of the sale. She said she'd take $60, so I'd at least have something with which to buy food for my son. That price even included the ten-volume Gateway to the Great Books series. I gratefully agreed and loaded the books on a blanket in the bed of my two-door pickup truck; my son's car seat left no room in the cab for so many books.
I drove them home, unloaded them in such a way that my wife wouldn't see them when she first walked in the door, and spent the rest of the day figuring out how I'd explain to my wife how I'd spent our grocery money, and deciding what to sell so I could get back to running errands (I sold a guitar amp to a pawn broker). I think of the woman, her father, and the family history she shared with me as we spoke that day. Mostly, I think of her (and her father's) investment in me - every time I grab one of those books off my shelves.
What a fantastic story, Scott! Thanks for sharing.
I've learned a lot about repairing the spines of those books over the years because it was almost inevitable they would break when I read them. Now they are in pretty good condition and I haven't had one crack in several years
Pray tell, how do you fix them??
I enjoyed hearing your story!
Thanks!
Thanks very much for sharing your journey into deep learning. I came across this set in a second hand book store in about 1998. It was selling for R1000.00 in South African currency, about 50 dollars in your country. For several months I would visit the second-hand book store almost every Sunday morning looking for good bargains and each time I would ponder whether I could justify paying such an amount. I spent many weeks contemplating the purchase until eventually the excitement and curiosity overwhelmed me. I ended up bargaining this ridiculously low price down even further to R800.00 not then realizing the true value of the set, not just resale value but more importantly its educational use. I whizzed thru it in about two years of intense long sessions as a sort of familiarizing project and then settled down to a longer term more focused study of those parts that interested me most. Like many people I struggled with the serious mathematical works, but on the whole this entire set has been invaluable in changing my outlook on life.
Great story! I agree that these books can change your perspective on life. That's what it's all about.
Totally enjoying catching up with your past videos 📚
Glad you like them!
I have all three sets of sets those too. I think I heard about them from a friend and bought the sets on ebay. That was 20 years ago and I've barely read any of them. I think the page formatting is what I don't like. It feels sterile. Two years ago I toyed with the idea of reading them and annotating them instead of staring at them but I couldn't do it.
I hear you. There's something almost foolhardy about their entire publishing project, but I'm also nostalgic about it. Many readers complain about the small type size and double column format, and one of these days I'll do a video about it. Thanks for the comment!
Well done on your reading habit! I recommend the Oxford Classics. They have excellent footnotes!
Thanks! Yes, I have a bunch of Oxfords and will no doubt feature some down the line!
@@greatbooksbigideas
Excellent, thank you!
As western civilization continues its ever rapidly increasing decline, books like this will be more important than ever ! We're entering a new kind of 'Dark Age', our own 'Middle Ages'. As these books were our salvation in the past, they may also be our best hope for the future. Most libraries used to contain reference copies of The Great Books, but they've mostly been purged and banished from the shelves and disbursed through library sales. That's probably how you acquired some of your collection. Libraries no longer view themselves as repositories for 'books', but as 'research' or 'computer' centers, or entertainment emporiums...with librarians functioning more like carnival barkers or 'coaches' for young people. For the fewer remaining people who seek real education and enlightenment, these the Great Books collections like yours are an ever- diminishing resource. To possess such a set is a kind of lifeline to the greater world of ideas. To pick up such a book off the shelf and read it. is to enter into an intimate conversation with some of the greatest minds that ever lived, and to share their deepest, innermost thoughts. It is the enterprise of a lifetime, the great University of the World...
Well said!!
Hi. Much enjoyed how your journey began as I can kind of relate. Our Dad had the Britaninica encyclopedia volumes both the adult and the kids back in the days when we were young. We kids would peruse through them and be wowed and wooed by the pictures if nothing else. I am sure that those books helped out book journey. Thank you for sharing,
Thanks for the comment. I suspect that we are not alone in our experiences! I wish I could ask my Dad about his reasons for getting the set in the first place.
Wonderful! I am very much looking forward to your future discussions. I've read about the series, but not poked through the volumes themselves.
Thanks! I'm working on the next video about this series. Hopefully will have something out soon!
Inspiring Thank you. I enjoy reading and writing about 4 hours a day like my Grandfather and Dad.
I respect your dedication to reading and writing. You can get a lot accomplished in 4 hours a day!
I think it's wonderful that you have this enduring interest in the classics and that you have shared this interest with the rest of us. For my money, it beats the almost unrelating stream of sports events and films. Another collection like this is the Harvard Classics; both can be gotten used for an amazing price. These collections are also a Home/Self Schooling paradise.
Thanks! Rob Prie has a UA-cam channel called The Cause, and he’s going through the Harvard Classics one by one. Recommended!
@@greatbooksbigideas I subscribed!
I just found your channel and I am looking forward to catching up on past videos. You have a new subscriber from Melbourne, Australia. 😊
Thank you!
This has been a great story. I remember a friend of a friend had some kind of social work employment, where she had to do home inspections with possibly critical consequences. And one of the criteria which informed her decisions was the presence of books. Even the presence of unread books means something, I think - and, as you say, in your case the “white elephant” turned out to have unexpected consequences.
What an incredible collection! I really enjoyed hearing about your journey, and I will look forward to seeing future videos and having more of a dialogue with you. Thank you for posting this video!
Thanks so much, Pat. Looking forward to the back and forth!
Reading all those books sounds like a wild ride and a great education. Thank you for sharing.
It really is!
Interesting history, both yours and the great books. First, that your father purchased them in the fist place. I've seen the books usually incomplete or random copies in remainder and discount sections at used bookstores for decades. I've look through them but never purchased one. I did not realize how much editorial care came into putting them together including the color coding. I did not grow up with books. I came to read the classics on my own as an adult. You are correct that one does not need a formal education to understand the books, just the curiosity, will, and patience to sit down and make the books part of one's life. Glad you made the video.
Thanks, Libro! It's never too late to start reading classic books. A lifelong journey. I like how you put it: you just need "curosity, will, and patience."
How nice that your parents' purchased the books and you benefit so much from them even to this day. My parents also purchased sets of classic novels. They had an entire set of the works of Shakespeare. So I was exposed to many great books when I was young though I didn't read them much until later in life. I always include a few classics in my TBR each year. I'm currently reading Les Misérables.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, I'm thankful to my parents for having books around the house. They certainly rubbed off on me! Les Misérables I read many years ago, and loved. It was the Penguin Classics edition. How are you liking it?
I realized 3 years that I have time to read great books while driving truck. I researched some lists and decided to use GBWW set as a framework for my reading. I found a set missing only 1 for $100 at Half-price book store. I use Hoopla which has a lot of these. Many have become new favorites such as Plato, Don Quixote, and Tom Jones. I have branched out to many other classics in literature, philosophy, and theology as well. I was able to start a book club recently which I greatly enjoy. Some books I like more than others, but in general, This passion has given me a new lease on life.
I love it. Get a great books education while driving truck. Amazing! That's a decent price for a near complete set. Plato was a big influence on my early great books reading career. Love Don Quixote and Tom Jones too.
@@greatbooksbigideas Yes access to so many audiobooks wasn't possible until very recently, but it's such a great opportunity.
Yes, the books are there for the taking!
Great info. Thx you
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks for sharing the story of your collection and journey with the Great books set. I look forward to seeing your videos on the volumes.
Thanks for watching!
Wow what a charming video Jim. I just found your channel as it was suggested to mevery glad to subscribe and follow this journey as you discuss the books. All the best Mark and Elvis
Welcome aboard!
Some great books there. Best wishes.
Thanks, you too!
Hi Jim!
I certainly enjoyed this video. I’ll be following along and paying close attention. I’m glad I found your channel. It’s wonderful. 😊Floss
Thanks so much, Floss!
Very helpful. ☮️
Glad you think so!
I've just became aware of this set and hoping birthday Claus will bring them down my chimney. I've had a goal to be well read when I was 19 and didn't even have a frame of reference for what that means. After 14 years I finally have that frame of reference to properly appreciate a collection like this. I have twin 1 year old boys that I plan on homeschooling and this will be the corpus of their education. Did you have success with a chronological reading or would you recommend the ten year plan
Thanks for the comment. I have been casual in my approach to the set. I'd call it a loose chronology, but I have jumped around some and read other editions, like Penguin Classics and so forth. I think if I were to start over, I'd want to try the 10 year plan. It's solid. For kids, see if you can hunt down the Gateway to the Great Books set. It's geared for young people, and it too has reading plans to follow.
@@greatbooksbigideas my heart wants to March through one to the next and sort of relive the history of the ideas but my mind thinks I'll get to the 10th Greek playwrite and lose some motivation. Thanks for the reply and glad their will be at least one other person go chat with when I do start the journey.
Anytime!!
You mentioned you had a set of World Book Encyclopedia. Do you still have it now?
Sadly, no. We unhauled the World Book when my parents sold their home. All I have left is one or two of the yearbooks.