DELHI - After half a year in media-starved China, coming to India is a chance to reimmerse myself in literary culture.
Every place I've been there's been wonderful book stores. As an example, in Dharmsala I picked up collection of Russian short stories written by a young woman during perestroika. It cost 90 rupees, which is a little over $2. The bookkeeper slipped a bookmark in between the text with a long poem about a free Tibet printed in raised olive ink. He called it a "bit of propaganda" to go with my purchase.
Delhi is the center of it all, with hundreds of tiny shops on the streets peddling modern and classic Indian authors and contemporary work from overseas. Unlike most non-English speaking countries, where the books are imported and prices even higher than in the States, the books are printed locally and priced around 50% of what Barnes & Noble charges.
I've taken advantage of the bounty at hand, stopping each store, even if it means groans and rolled-eyes from my two companions. They're all pretty good, but one place deserves a special mention, Jackson's Books.
Jackson's is located on the main backpacker strip, Pahanganj, in a two story structure that resembles a garage, which probably what the building served as many, many years ago. On both floors are piles and piles of books, with new and popular titles kept in a plastic coating, and used books stacked on the floor.
Customers are given free range of the collection. On my first visit, I was allowed to climb the shaky aluminum ladder and access books on the second floor, many covered in dust and some decades old. I found old accounts of journeys in Nepal, encyclopedias, photo books and novels from obscure Latin American authors. Given enough money, I could have bought out have the store.
I grabbed a travel book about a Vietnamese-American travelling by Pacific Rim by bicycle, and headed downstairs to pay. On the way out, I saw a copy of Paul Theroux's "Milroy the Magician," an old and out-of-print title from one of my favorite authors.
I asked the man in charge the price, but instead I got a biography. The man, now 53, had been in book business for 35 years with his brother, who stood a few feet away talking to another customer. He loved books, he knew the Theroux title and also that it was out of print; he used that information to charge $7 for the book, about $3 more than if it had been a regular title.
He showed me a white binder of clippings from travel guides and newspapers. The Times of India quoted him in a feature on comic books. The Rough Guide says his shop is a great place to browse for rare titles. He claims to be in the Lonely Planet, but I have the most current edition and did not see a mention.
"This book store is not famous in India," he said, "but it is very famous outside of India."
I can see why: The selection is excellent, the owners informed, the location is extremely central, and I left very satisfied.
