Skateboards and comic books appeared to have taken over Hastings when I stopped in during the holiday season. I’ve spent the last two years trying to weed out my bloated library giving box loads of books away, so it had been months since I last stopped in my local mall bookstore.

It took some hunting, but eventually I found what I was looking for–the nature and animal sections. Side-by-side, they had been moved since my last visit and, surprisingly, expanded. I perused the mix of new and used books for a half an hour trying to narrow my selection to a reasonable number.

By P. Nixon

The four I finally decided on should keep me going through the next few weeks of short, cold days. Now I just have to find a spot for them on one of my crowded bookshelves.