I've been selected as a giver for World Book Night 2013.
So I will have in my possession 30 copies of "Girl With A Pearl Earring" to distribute, free of charge. How awesome is that? Verily, it is mighty awesome indeed.
World Book Night giving is important to me, and I'll tell you why.
My grandfather died about a year and a half ago. He was very sick, and I stayed up all night with him, and all of the following day until he finally passed, holding his hand. The nurses were very kind, and let me use a vacant room to sleep in, but I very much wanted to be with him when he passed over, particularly as I knew he was afraid of dying.
He was drifting in and out of consciousness, and at time he was also experiencing a different reality to me. I think partly because of the morphine, and partly because he was straddling the parallel worlds of life and death for quite some time.
There was a small 'library' (book shelf) at the nursing home, which was largely filled with trashy romances and detective novels. One title stood out to me, though - "One Day".
Inside the jacket, there was a "World Book Night" label. This was an event I'd heard about before, and was excited by, so I decided to take the book to my grandfather's room and read it. I read almost the whole book that night and morning, and it is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read - and believe me, I've read a LOT of books. And this one will always be precious to me, because I spent the last few hours of my grandfather's long and dignified life holding his hand, and being comforted by the lives of two flawed, wonderful, complex characters in paper and print.
So this year, I'm going to distribute thirty copies of Girl With A Pearl Earring, in memory of my grandfather, in nursing homes, hospitals, clinics and waiting rooms. Because the right book at the right moment can make all the difference in the world.
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