Book presents

Friends who visited this week brought an uncle who was immediately taken into the study to see (some) of my books. He was quite excited, admitted to having a shelf for books waiting to be read - and asked to borrow one of mine. Clearly a fellow bookaholic!
A year or two ago I bought one of those half price collections of classics in paperback; sorted, skimmed threw out 3 and kept 3 to check through one day. I tried giving the same collection as a gift and realised immediately it was a mistake. So I started investigating 'books I have been presented with' over the years.
The most recent was John Stott's The Living Church-memoirs of a lifelong Pastor The giver said it was only just published so I couldn't have read it yet! -but she did not know that he was the Rector of All Souls when I was a student at the Middlesex Hospital- and it is a treasure. Then I found a gift of some years ago called Joy a study of Philippians; set aside at the time as being a bit of a challenge I started reading it this week. Then I found a classic in a red cover The Imitation of Christ given me by a school friend and 50 years or so late decided I might now appreciate it (though in small 'bites') so that is in the 'to be read' shelf.
By now I was really enjoying the search. Several neat little leather covered classics (unread) were inscribed to me ' from Grandma and Auntie Lorna' for Christmas from 1950 to 1955. Vanity Fair, Sense and Sensibility, Lorna Doone- the last I did try because Grandma had grown up in the Exmoor area, been to schoo in Dunster, but it was all too boring. Funnily enough I had the impression that Gran had not read them herself!
There were older books, tattered from being around so long rather than much read, which had apparently belonged to my Dad; I think they had been given to him as presents- included the works of Longfellow, Tennyson, Browning; a gold-leafed black leather bound Bible with the date 1923 just legible on the flyleaf which was perhaps given to Dad on his baptism aged 17 years. The same year he received Ben-Hur for Christmas 'with best wishes from his sister Helen'. There is also a small book of Dickens Christmas books (apparently three others beside Christmas Carol) in which I made a discovery. In faded pencil I think is the inscription 'To Frank with love from Daddy' Christmas 1915. I never knew my Grandfather but there is an imposing photo of him about that time:-bearded, with moustache and cap looking very like Earl Haig or even George vth ( presumably the fashion of the time)- though he was a humble medical orderly in the First World War.
So I suppose I shall make other finds on my book shelves but I do wonder at these worthy gifts not necessarilly read. In the days before even radio, reading lengthy and solemn books aloud was probably a good way of spending a long winter evening by the fire; but I'm rather glad I was given rather lighter reading by authors like Enid Blighton, Angela Brazil and Elizabeth Goudge, The Little Princess and The Secret Garden. They are long gone but I did enjoy them!