2B

Magazine Editor:

Ian DIllingham

Deputy Editor:

Natalie Gadbois

Design Editor:

Jake Wellins

Photo Editor:

Luna Anna Archey

Creative Director:

Cheryll Victuelles

Editor in Chief:

Jennifer Calfas

Managing Editor:

 Lev Facher

Copy Editors:

Hannah Bates

Laura Schinagle

Emma Sutherland

THE statement

“My initial vision (for the store) was from growing up in New 
York City, in Brooklyn, and seeing the Fourth Ave. bookstores. 

It’s funny that I just happened to be by these famous 

bookstores. What interested me was that the booksellers were 
so knowledgeable about everything they had — the places were 
often swamped with things you couldn’t find — but the owners 
knew where everything was. I’m kind of the same way now. I 
can locate anything if you ask for it. The difference between 

them and me is that I am literate. They were illiterate, but they 

knew books. They knew what the books were and what they 

were worth, but they didn’t ever read them!

– JEFFREY PICKELL, owner of Kaleidoscope Books & Collectibles

Wednesday, November 25, 2015 // The Statement

In a sentimental mood

I 

truly admire J.K. Rowling. I realize 
this isn’t the most controversial state-
ment, and it’s probably a sentiment 

that most people share. Her crowning 
achievement, to me, was the ascension of 
her books to actual pop culture phenom-
enon. Where today we line up outside 
movie theaters for midnight premieres, we 
waited then outside Borders for midnight 
releases. Where we wait months for the 
trailer of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” 
we waited years for the release of “Deathly 
Hallows.”

This is what amazes me about Harry 

Potter. The concept of books being a bona 
fide national obsession among people our 
age seems to have been a casualty from TV 
and film’s rise to the top of the pop culture 
food chain. More people binge-watch than 
read for pleasure, and it’s not for lack of 
time. Yet, we’ll always have Harry Potter.

And truthfully, the series’ quality is 

irrelevant. The things we held close to our 
chest in childhood we hold even closer in 
our adulthood. An objectively bad movie 
(“Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Men-
ace”) is considered an all-time classic (by 
me) simply because of its association with 
a faintly remembered youth.

The power of sentimentality is one of 

my favorite things about life. It makes me 
incredibly, inexplicably happy that we look 
at everything from our formative years in 
the most crimson of rose-tinted glasses. It’s 
why I defend “The Office” so fiercely and 

love Batman like I love my grandmother. 
There’s a VHS tape of the Backstreet 
Boys’ official Black & Blue tour sitting 
somewhere in my house; I watched it over 
and over as a child, and I’ll never get rid of 
it. And no one will ever convince me that 
“Space Jam” got bad reviews.

Is this worth it, though? Do we lose some 

sort of critical edge if we turn a blind eye 
to the things we grew up with? To grow 
up playing football would likely lead to a 
reluctance to answer uncomfortable con-
versations about concussions in the sport. 
To spend one’s youth going hunting would 
likely translate to a reluctance toward gun 
control. Unfortunately, it seems senti-
mentality is often our biggest obstacle to 
change, as well. 

To be sure, this is a long line to draw. 

Assigning sentimental value to certain 
concepts is a naturally human occurrence, 
but it can also be dangerous. I grow too 
attached to movies, books, shows, people, 
things from my childhood for which I can 
often never see the other side, and I’ve been 
alarmed at the degree to which this is true. 
It’s odd, I know, to analyze the idea of being 
attached to things from your childhood, 
and it’s something probably no one has 
ever done before because no one has ever 
even thought about why it’s necessary, but I 
think it’s worth noting. It’s a concept that’s 
so universal, so ingrained that we never 
stop to think about why it is such, and that 
in itself is an important process.

B Y N A B E E L C H O L L A M PAT

LUNA ARCHEY/DAILY

THOUGHT 
BUBBLE

COVER BY LUNA ARCHEY

BOOKS ON BOOKS!

