Finding gold

The wise readers have a talent for finding the right book at the right time — they are masterful prospectors and know that wisdom rarely bestows unearned rewards.

Jeff Deutsch, In Praise of Good Bookstores

There seems to be a lot to unpack in that sentence from Jeff Deutsch's recent book In Praise of Good Bookstores. So let's try to  unpack it.

Because he is writing about bookstores, we can assume his subject is wise readers in bookstores, although there are other places where one might find the right book, such as a public library or even one's own bookshelves. What Deutsch says about wise readers seem equally applicable wherever those wise readers happen to be where books are also present.

And who are these wise readers? His statement defines them. They are those who seek without knowing specifically what they are looking for or where they are likely to find it. In other words, they are what we might call casual browsers, although casual seems hardly the appropriate word for those who take book browsing seriously.

Have you ever noticed the serious looks on people's faces as they are going through a buffet line? Browsers have similar looks on their faces. This may be loads of fun, but it is also serious business.

The "right book at the right time" is a meaningful phrase. Books we might have ignored on our last visit to the same bookstore can jump out at us now. Perhaps we have heard something favorable about the book or its author in the meantime. Perhaps the book's subject matter has since become more relevant to our lives. The time wasn't right for this book previously. Now it is the right time.

The comparison of browsers to prospectors seems apt. Thar's gold in them thar bookshelves, and we aim to find it. Every bookstore, I'm convinced, contains treasures, different treasures for different prospectors. Finding it is the delightful challenge.

"Wisdom rarely bestows unearned rewards." So what does that mean? It means that discoveries that may seem like luck or serendipity have more to do with wisdom and talent, as Deutsch has already suggested. And with effort. Wise browsers find their gold because they keep looking, while others stop too soon.

Deutsch puts it this way: "On some level, discoveries occur because we are searching. It's that simple. If serendipity is the discovery of something useful while on the hunt for something else, the expert browser doesn't even bother with the conceit that there need be a something else for which to hunt."