I have a true Lost in the Stacks story to share with you. Last winter, perhaps right before the holidays a number of books by Irene Nemirovsky were added to my library's collection. I had checked a couple of them out but didn't have time to read them so returned them intending to try again later. Later became a week or so ago. I went in search of the two books, which according to our online catalog showed available. Unfortunately they were not in their appointed places on the shelf or anywhere nearby. That happens sometimes--patrons might pick up books to look at and leave them on a table to be reshelved.
A few days later and another search on the shelves and still no books, so it was time to ask Circulation to put a search on the books. I've searched, circulation staff have searched and they are now listed as "missing" in the catalog. Talking to a coworker in the library I discovered that one of our workers who was a shelver apparently didn't like his job and in order to get rid of the carts of books quickly would stick them anywhere on the shelves and not in Library of Congress call number order. This, of course caused all sorts of problems for those working in Circulation and Building (to say nothing of our poor patrons in search of needed materials for their studies). If you're looking for a book with a P call number and it is mistakenly shelved with the B call numbers you are not going to have any luck. And when there are literally thousands of books and range upon range of shelving it is like looking for a needle in a very large haystack.
Since the books are proving rather elusive to find, I'm wondering if our, umm, not very dedicated shelver decided he didn't like the looks of the cart and unloaded the books elsewhere. The timing is about right. His handiwork was discovered about the same time the Nemirovskys were returned. So, I'm thinking that these books are well and truly lost in the stacks. If you were a French novel translated into English with a striking Vintage UK cover where would you be hiding? Pick a call number, A-Z!
It's not like I don't have anything else to read, but.... The one (or two) books you think you desire but can't get your hands on suddenly become the books you want above all else. Okay, it's not that bad as I am very involved in several other really good books. There are two that I will mention now and save the others to talk about later. Both are mysteries set in distinctly different places and times. Both are stories I am enjoying immensely, but they share one interesting element. Have you ever had a fictional crush? Is that really silly sounding? It's nice to empathize with characters or for them to be likable, but crushes? Really? Okay, really.
The first is Laurence Bartram from Elizabeth Speller's The Return of Captain John Emmett. I've been reading this on my Nook. I've been taking my time with it, though I'm nearing the end and am very happy I already have her second book, The Strange Fate of Kitty Easton lined up. The story is set post-WWI in London and Laurence is just terribly likable. It's not that he's so very average, though maybe he is, but he's very sensitive, and not exactly the cunningest of detectives having fallen into it by way of helping a friend. He survived the war but his wife and son died in childbirth. He seems a little lonely and without direction and it's all presented in a very attractive manner.
Now Nicolas Le Floch is something else entirely. He is Jean-Francois Parot's young detective in The Chatelet Apprentice. I'm reading this for Paris in July and am so glad I picked it up as it is well written and so descriptive I almost feel like I am walking the streets of 18th century Paris along with Nicolas. Nicolas is young and has been accepted to enter 'the king's service', so he must learn the ropes. I'm not yet sure of the details of his background other than he was raised in Brittany and it was through his godfather that he was sent to Paris. He is quickly learning how to navigate the streets of Paris and when to speak and when to remain silent in the presence of his superiors. I'm not sure what it is about him exactly, but I like reading about him and eagerly look forward to picking up the book each day.
What about you? Have you ever had a crush on a character in a book?