Wednesday, August the 24th, 2005

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Title and Author

Wait until it has stopped raining, then put on a pair of stout boots and stride off to your nearest bog. Bear with me, there is a point to this. Now, do not stop when you get to the bog, but carry on going, step on in. As you do, listen carefully. What is the sound you hear as your boots squelch through the bog? Is it something like glob … glob … glob? Splendid! You are now able to appreciate to the full the happy conjunction of title and author that I want to tell you about.

I grew up in a house crammed with books, and my parents had eclectic tastes. One volume I recall with particular relish, even though I never read it, was The Bog People by P V Glob. Bog, Glob—perfect, really. I suspect my childhood memories of these words printed together on a blue paperback spine have influenced me in all sorts of ways. P V Glob (1911-1985) was the Director General of Museums and Antiquities for the State of Denmark and Director of the National Museum in Copenhagen, and his book is subtitled Iron-Age Man Preserved. You can read all about it at bookslut.