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karenleagermain's review
5.0
Thank you to Bloomsbury Academic for providing me with an advance copy of Rolf Potts' book, Object Lessons: Souvenir, in exchange for an honest review.
PLOT- Object Lessons is a short non-fiction book series, where different authors explore the history and meaning of ordinary objects. In this installment, Rolf Potts explores souvenirs.
LIKE- This is my second book in the Object Lessons series. Last week, I read Susan Harlan's Luggage. Perhaps it was the subject manner, but I was much more engaged in Potts' Souvenir, than I was in Harlan's Luggage. These books are relatively short and I was so throughly entertained by Souvenir, that I raced through it in a single sitting.
Potts writes about the concept of souvenirs through the ages; Christian pilgrims searching for relics or how in war, physical pieces of the enemy were kept as tokens. One rather grizzly and disgusting mention was of soldiers who would take their enemies teeth and have their own rotten tooth replaced with the one they captured. That's a fact that I won't soon forget.
Taking physical pieces of important objects has destroyed many great monuments and artifacts. Potts writes about how it was so common in the 1800's to take a piece of Plymouth Rock, that local businesses sold chiseling tools for those who had forgotten to bring their own. Eventually, the rock was so damaged, that it had to be fenced off. I was shocked to read that during a visit to Shakespeare's home in Stratford-Upon-Avon, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams took a slice of wood out of a chair that the Bard had supposedly sat on. If you visit Jefferson's home, Monticello, you can see his stolen piece of wood.
Why do we collect the things we do? Why is it important to buy cheap reminders of our travels? Potts speaks about how as children, souvenirs are an important form of identity. They are ways that a child shows what they admire or where they might want to travel later in life. When I was a kid, we went to Hawaii every year. This was great, but we never traveled anywhere else. I filled my room with pieces of other states and countries given to me by friends who had traveled there. In high school, I was obsessed with wanting to travel to New Orleans (Thanks Anne Rice) and anything New York, so my room was filled with Mardi Gras masks and Broadway Theater posters. I still haven't been to Louisiana and it's still high on the travel bucket list.
Potts writes about the type of things people collect. Some people collect cheap, physical objects, like a miniature Eiffel Tower, where as other people seek out objects that feel more authentic, like a food item or textile manufactured locally. Souvenir will make you think about your own collecting habits. It will make you reflect.
Until my mid-twenties or so, I fell into the cheap, physical object category. Shopping was a vital part of my tourism experience. I wanted to return home with my suitcase filled with stuff. I vividly remember this from my trips to Walt Disney World. I spent hundreds on souvenirs. In 1999/2000, I went nuts for Disney Pins. Pin trading was a big deal, but I wanted to have them, more than I wanted to trade them. In just a few years, I bought thousands. It's mortifying to admit. Now, they are collecting dust in a box somewhere. They are pretty pins, but they certainly don't reflect my memories of my travels. They are completely unimportant, almost a burden.
My need to own and collect has changed dramatically. In the last six years, I've been to several countries in Europe for the first time and I've hardly bought any souvenirs. I've savored the experience and taken pictures, rather than feeling the need to own objects from every place that I visit.
There are a few exceptions. We usually spend a few dollars on a magnet. It's a joy to look on our fridge and remember all of our travel experiences. If I find a local bookstore, I will buy a book written by a local author. This is mainly to support local writers/booksellers, but I love how this also has a way of extending our vacation, especially if the book is set in the same location of where we traveled. I also seek out books, primarily novels, about the place where we are traveling, before we go. I'm not precious about these books, I pass them along to a new reader as soon as I'm finished.
I will also buy food items or fragrances. This is my favorite way of extending our vacation and sharing our experiences with others. It's a temporary souvenir, but one that I savor. Enjoying cheese from Amsterdam or Victoria Plum jelly from England on a sunny day in California, takes me right back to Europe. It's time travel.
DISLIKE- Nothing. Object Lessons: Souvenir is a thoughtful and entertaining book.
RECOMMEND- Yes! Object Lessons: Souvenir is a great read for anyone who loves to travel or collect. It's engaging and thought-provoking. It will make you examine your own tourism and collecting habits. I look forward to reading more books in the Object Lessons series.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
PLOT- Object Lessons is a short non-fiction book series, where different authors explore the history and meaning of ordinary objects. In this installment, Rolf Potts explores souvenirs.
LIKE- This is my second book in the Object Lessons series. Last week, I read Susan Harlan's Luggage. Perhaps it was the subject manner, but I was much more engaged in Potts' Souvenir, than I was in Harlan's Luggage. These books are relatively short and I was so throughly entertained by Souvenir, that I raced through it in a single sitting.
Potts writes about the concept of souvenirs through the ages; Christian pilgrims searching for relics or how in war, physical pieces of the enemy were kept as tokens. One rather grizzly and disgusting mention was of soldiers who would take their enemies teeth and have their own rotten tooth replaced with the one they captured. That's a fact that I won't soon forget.
Taking physical pieces of important objects has destroyed many great monuments and artifacts. Potts writes about how it was so common in the 1800's to take a piece of Plymouth Rock, that local businesses sold chiseling tools for those who had forgotten to bring their own. Eventually, the rock was so damaged, that it had to be fenced off. I was shocked to read that during a visit to Shakespeare's home in Stratford-Upon-Avon, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams took a slice of wood out of a chair that the Bard had supposedly sat on. If you visit Jefferson's home, Monticello, you can see his stolen piece of wood.
Why do we collect the things we do? Why is it important to buy cheap reminders of our travels? Potts speaks about how as children, souvenirs are an important form of identity. They are ways that a child shows what they admire or where they might want to travel later in life. When I was a kid, we went to Hawaii every year. This was great, but we never traveled anywhere else. I filled my room with pieces of other states and countries given to me by friends who had traveled there. In high school, I was obsessed with wanting to travel to New Orleans (Thanks Anne Rice) and anything New York, so my room was filled with Mardi Gras masks and Broadway Theater posters. I still haven't been to Louisiana and it's still high on the travel bucket list.
Potts writes about the type of things people collect. Some people collect cheap, physical objects, like a miniature Eiffel Tower, where as other people seek out objects that feel more authentic, like a food item or textile manufactured locally. Souvenir will make you think about your own collecting habits. It will make you reflect.
Until my mid-twenties or so, I fell into the cheap, physical object category. Shopping was a vital part of my tourism experience. I wanted to return home with my suitcase filled with stuff. I vividly remember this from my trips to Walt Disney World. I spent hundreds on souvenirs. In 1999/2000, I went nuts for Disney Pins. Pin trading was a big deal, but I wanted to have them, more than I wanted to trade them. In just a few years, I bought thousands. It's mortifying to admit. Now, they are collecting dust in a box somewhere. They are pretty pins, but they certainly don't reflect my memories of my travels. They are completely unimportant, almost a burden.
My need to own and collect has changed dramatically. In the last six years, I've been to several countries in Europe for the first time and I've hardly bought any souvenirs. I've savored the experience and taken pictures, rather than feeling the need to own objects from every place that I visit.
There are a few exceptions. We usually spend a few dollars on a magnet. It's a joy to look on our fridge and remember all of our travel experiences. If I find a local bookstore, I will buy a book written by a local author. This is mainly to support local writers/booksellers, but I love how this also has a way of extending our vacation, especially if the book is set in the same location of where we traveled. I also seek out books, primarily novels, about the place where we are traveling, before we go. I'm not precious about these books, I pass them along to a new reader as soon as I'm finished.
I will also buy food items or fragrances. This is my favorite way of extending our vacation and sharing our experiences with others. It's a temporary souvenir, but one that I savor. Enjoying cheese from Amsterdam or Victoria Plum jelly from England on a sunny day in California, takes me right back to Europe. It's time travel.
DISLIKE- Nothing. Object Lessons: Souvenir is a thoughtful and entertaining book.
RECOMMEND- Yes! Object Lessons: Souvenir is a great read for anyone who loves to travel or collect. It's engaging and thought-provoking. It will make you examine your own tourism and collecting habits. I look forward to reading more books in the Object Lessons series.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
manny_calavera's review
4.0
A great short read about the history, cultural significance of souvenirs along with a bit of modern tourist behaviour thrown in. It seems to be well researched although the parts that struck a chord with me where his reflections on souvenirs and how we give a part of the self identity into them. I really liked the writing style of Potts which is more like a conversation with a friend
sawyerbell's review
4.0
If you're reading this at home, stop and look around you. Chances are your eyes will light on a souvenir. Perhaps it's a feather collected on a walk through a local park or perhaps something more exotic like a mask bought on a trip to India. Perhaps it's an 'authentic' cultural item such as a Haida totem pole key chain that was actually made in China. What do the items we collect as souvenirs say about us and about human nature?
Souvenir by Rolf Potts is part of the "Object Lessons" series which explores the hidden lives of ordinary things. The hidden lives of souvenirs from ancient times till today is a fascinating one. Did you know that travelers in Ancient Greece could take home a souvenir 'selfie', i.e. a tiny portrait of themselves painted in front of the Parthenon? Or that tourists visiting Alexandria in the second century BC could bring home souvenir gifts engraved with images of Ptolemaic queens? If these are the kinds of sociological factoids that excite you (as they do me) then you'll enjoy this book.
I look forward to reading more books in the Object Lessons series.
I received an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.
Souvenir by Rolf Potts is part of the "Object Lessons" series which explores the hidden lives of ordinary things. The hidden lives of souvenirs from ancient times till today is a fascinating one. Did you know that travelers in Ancient Greece could take home a souvenir 'selfie', i.e. a tiny portrait of themselves painted in front of the Parthenon? Or that tourists visiting Alexandria in the second century BC could bring home souvenir gifts engraved with images of Ptolemaic queens? If these are the kinds of sociological factoids that excite you (as they do me) then you'll enjoy this book.
I look forward to reading more books in the Object Lessons series.
I received an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.
shawn_brommer's review
5.0
As a maximalist and appreciator of interesting things, this little book helped me understand myself, my culture, and my idiosyncrasies in new and giant ways. I sense that I will reread it many times.
dejunker's review
5.0
I adore this book. It was a very well written history and personal observances on a topic that I have been aware of in my life. Very well read and researched. Deep enough to make you think about life while practical in its presentation of history and other facts. Flowed nicely.
balancinghistorybooks's review against another edition
3.0
I read Rolf Potts' Souvenir whilst on holiday, as it seemed a fitting tome to absorb whilst travelling. I have enjoyed the couple of books from the Object Lessons collection which I have read thus far, and I was quite looking forward to this one.
In a way, Potts' essay is a souvenir guidebook of sorts, not a rundown of which items to collect, or where to get them from; rather, it is an exploration of why we seek out such objects as mementoes when we travel, what they have represented to travellers in past ages, and how we use them to narrate our lives. The interesting history of souvenir collecting is also set out here.
Unlike in Veil and Luggage, two other particularly enjoyable books in this collection, there are no profound ideas here. Whilst there are certainly some areas of interest in Souvenir, I did not find it wholly engaging, and some sections were far easier to read than others.
In a way, Potts' essay is a souvenir guidebook of sorts, not a rundown of which items to collect, or where to get them from; rather, it is an exploration of why we seek out such objects as mementoes when we travel, what they have represented to travellers in past ages, and how we use them to narrate our lives. The interesting history of souvenir collecting is also set out here.
Unlike in Veil and Luggage, two other particularly enjoyable books in this collection, there are no profound ideas here. Whilst there are certainly some areas of interest in Souvenir, I did not find it wholly engaging, and some sections were far easier to read than others.
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