LIVING IN A LIBRARY
Ever since I learnt about Dewey Decimal Classifications — the first time I went to a school with a LIBRARY! — I have wanted life to be categorisable in a similar way. I say this because I live in constant chaos and can’t keep things separated, whether we’re talking about household items, ideas, people or yolks and albumen. An ideal holiday from this cacophony would be to spend a week, preferably longer, at the Library Hotel in New York, where everything WOULD conform. Had I found this place 20 years ago, when I first visited the US, I would have booked Room 133 or 150 and read everything, and perhaps everything in between too if the guests allowed me in. Then I’d need to extend the stay, but get moved to Room 001 or 002, which would obviously be in the basement considering the subject matter.If I could get into Room 90 or 91 for at least a look, I would get shivers down my spine - they hold the old illuminated manuscripts and hand-painted books of hours that still make me tingle all over. (Other than those two rooms the ground floor would be pretty much admin and peopled by clerks in cardigans). For years I could have booked any room between 390 and 399, while specifically avoiding the 400s and 500s but could be right at home anywhere on the second or ninth floor. For sheer comfort I could hunker down in 745 or 746 and year after year I’d return to 728 to see what’s been added. ~ ~ ~ In 2003 the owners of the Dewey system sued the hotel for using their numbering system, but a deal was reached and the Library Hotel is still operating. From some bumpf about the hotel: A ten floor hotel, with each floor dedicated to a category of reading, and each bedroom to a specific theme. From romance to astrology - choose your reading matter and relax. The Library Hotel in New York City is the first hotel to arrange guestroom floors, room art and reading material in the 10 major categories of the Dewy Decimal System of book classification. Floor choices include Science and Math, Language, Literature, History and Technology - with sub topics further defining individual rooms. Each of the 60 rooms is uniquely adorned with a collection of books and art exploring a distinctive topic within the category or floor it belongs to.

