First Officer's Log - No 4: Reality, Biased and Otherwise

While we're fond of saying that reality stops at the front door in the Haunted Bookshop, there is a certain delight in bringing reality inside. Reality, in this case, refers to the Sociology (now Cultural Studies), Journalism, Political Science, Political Biography, Labour, and Current Events sections. That's a lot of reality, right there.

My own fascination with politics has grown steadily over the past ten years, and popular culture is always intriguing, simply because it can go from either extreme of awesome to horrid in 3.5 seconds. Cultural studies (which include all of the reality-leaning topics above, I think) is interesting in this regard, because, as favourite character of mine states: "If there are three people in a room having a conversation, there will be six opinions." Wise words.

The reason I bring up reality as the topic of the day is that recently I found myself in one of the enormous chain booksellers that one usually sees in and around shopping malls. Whilst wandering through the shop, I came upon their political science / social studies section. While the extreme bias in titles didn't surprise me, the heavy conservative slant did puzzle me somewhat. When I commented on the bias to a friend of mine, he observed that perhaps those titles are more prevalent in new bookstores because conservative-minded readers tend to have the money to procure such titles.

This got me thinking about how it's hard to be a bookseller and leave your own personal opinions at the door. To our good fortune, most of our clientele at the bookshop share our views, and so we're welcome to discuss opinions if such discussions come up. It's also interesting when people come in asking for books on opinions that might differ from theirs or our own viewpoints, because we might be able to find a book for them that suits a happy medium for all. In my experience of working in a new bookstore, I found that I did not have such freedoms and could not share my interests or opinions with clients, because to do so invited conflict.

In the current sphere of political diatribe and dialog, cultural controversies and conflicts, it's important to recognize that there are dozens of books available that can answer questions, and perhaps open eyes to other viewpoints. I know from personal experience that sometime one must bite one's tongue and delve into a kind of 'enemy territory' in reading a book that one might not have otherwise tried, but I have found that in reading books by people whose viewpoints I do not agree with I have been forced to question my own views, and perhaps explore why and how I have come to my current understandings and beliefs.

In this regard, this bookseller offers a request: next time you come in the shop, try to find something you might not necessarily read, whether you're a fiction reader, a political science person, a pop culture buff, or even a science fiction fan. Whatever your interest is, look for something that you otherwise might not go for. Trust me, you'll surprise yourself

Until next week, fellow bibliophiles.