The Eclectic Reader

I found this lovely portrait of two young ladies, entitled “The Novel Readers,” in Arthur’s Home Magazine. The book once belonged to my great grandmother, Olive Sophia Chubb Barnard, to whom I apologize for finding humor in the melodrama of the contents.  It was once considered quite unwholesome for young women to read novels as it inflamed their passions and could lead them astray.  Ladies, we’ve come a long way.

15% off your next purchase to the individual with the best caption for this picture.  Exception: rare books. 

Reading is a great escape during these *”worst of times.” The Eclectic Reader has added hundreds of new titles to its overflowing bookshelves. Some impressive libraries have come through the door as more people are downsizing during the pandemic. Philosophy, metaphysics, religion, ancient history, mythology, and fishing, are fattening up.

*Here is the quote referenced: Do you know what book this is from?

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”