Skip to main content

The Great Literary Trip: Day 3

 I'm back! Welcome to the day 3 recap!


Day 3

CITIES

We were physically in three main cities today: Charlottesville, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. We only did activities/site-saw in one of those cities. Today, we visited the George Peabody Library at Johns Hopkins University and another bookstore, Greedy Reads, in Baltimore, Maryland. 


LIBRARIES

We had the opportunity to visit the most Instagram-able library of every Pinterest girl's dreams: the George Peabody Library. Social media aside, it truly is breathtaking. As soon as we walked into the beautiful, heavy wooden doors, I knew this would be a memorable experience.

George Peabody's vision for this library during its conception in 1878 was for it to be a "cathedral of books." Peabody, philanthropist and patron of the humanities, created the library to be a center of arts and culture for the people of his beloved Baltimore. The George Peabody Library was America's first music conservatory. The Peabody Institute remains one of the world's best music schools. 

The space is designed as an open and airy atrium. Gorgeous light pours through the ceiling windows. Glossy marble floors provide a foundation for six floors filled with massive, wooden bookshelves. Ornate railings give the huge space a luxurious feeling. 

Most of the books in the library are reference volumes dating up to the late 19th century. The subjects are diverse, ranging from genealogy (we found my family's Scottish tartan in the first book we picked up) to Shakespeare companions to records of New Amsterdam. 

Now, the library is open to visitors and is under the jurisdiction of Johns Hopkins University. Television shows and movies are filmed on location in the library, and there is even a special feature on the website where you can book the famous atrium for events and weddings. George Peabody is booked solid until March 2024, so be sure to reserve your date asap if you wish to live out your wildest Instagram dreams. 


BOOKSTORES

We visited one bookstore today: Greedy Reads in Baltimore. We, unfortunately, did not get to go into this shop. We did not feel entirely comfortable leaving our car in the area of Baltimore where Greedy Reads is located. While we did not get to physically go inside the bookstore, I did snap a couple photos from the road of the storefront. 

We have found that quite a few of the bookstores on our route have been in questionable neighborhoods, and it is just day three of our trip. I believe wholeheartedly that everyone needs books, and every community benefits from literature; however, personal safety should be a top priority navigating some of the country's largest cities. So fair warning, if I were traveling alone, I would be unsure of some of my surroundings. 



I will check in tomorrow with another update!!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Author Spotlight: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley At my school, I am a Library Leader. (Library Leaders promote reading in the middle school and recommend books for the younger grades.) The Library Leaders had the fortunate opportunity of eating lunch and meeting with Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. We got to ask her questions and just talk with her. Mrs. Bradley also spoke to the whole seventh and eighth grade in assembly about her research. 1)      When/How does she write? Mrs. Bradley writes in the morning, but this depends on her chores for the day. She got into her routine when her children, now graduating college and out of college, were small and went to school. She would always wait until her husband took them to drop them off at school. She likes for her writing space to be very quiet. She prefers typing when she when she writes as to writing. (This may be pretty common; I do not know what the common format among writers is today. I just thought I would include eve...
Post a Comment
Read more

2020 So Far In Books

Thus far this year, I have read more books than in any previous year, recorded on this blog or not. Whether my goal to read a lot this year or quarantine fueled my reading, my list is long (not the longest, but long enough to be very proud of). I will start doing these reports on a regular basis. It keeps me accountable to you all in my reading.  I have read 15 books as of the end of July 2020. Here are a couple of charts and statistics that represent the group.  Links of those that I HAVE reviewed are below: http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/07/the-murder-on-links.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/07/an-inspector-calls.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/07/all-kings-men.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/07/head-over-heels.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-great-gatsby.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-man-in-high-castle.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/06/the-abc-murders.html http://betweenp.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-importance-of-be...
1 comment
Read more

BTP's ROMANCE Book Pet Peeves

In January, I shared a list of Bookish Pet Peeves . Well it's July, and I am back with more pet peeves but this time relating to romance books. Let me know if you think any of these things are nerve-shredding too.  Romance is a genre with many tropes (enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, forced proximity, etc.). A very frequently used theme for romance books is the classic "opposites fall in love" or become really good friends in the beginning. While I have read books with this trope and liked them, I don't fully understand how this is supposed to work. If two people "are polar opposites" (as some back covers report), how did they meet or become friends (much less lovers)? Shared experience is how I've met almost everyone I know, so if two people "have nothing in common," they couldn't have become even acquaintances.  If the protagonist has a "unique name" - I'm out. O-U-T. Any Pepperidges, Zeldas, or Evies, and I can't g...
Post a Comment
Read more