The Inheritance of Likes

It is not just qualities/characteristics/traits that we inherit from our parents. I believe we also inherit (or perhaps, some would say, develop) likes and dislikes from our parents. When my brother and I were young, our parents inculcated and encouraged  a reading habit in us. Dad used to get some very nice books for us whenever he went on trips, and we invariably bought books from those “Wheeler & Co” stalls at railway stations when we traveled by train. Living in the small town that we did, we didn’t have any other source for reading material. So, as we grew older, we resorted to experimenting with books from Dad’s collection. And that is from where I acquired a liking for Alistair McLean, Desmond Bagley, and Gardner’s Perry Mason – he had a huge range of these.

McLean is a particular favorite of mine. I love his style (I think I’ve mentioned that earlier in this blog) for the fast paced action, and witty dialogue exchanges. I read many of his novels from Dad’s collection, and over the years, proceeded to complete reading and/or collecting all of his works. Between three of us (Dad, Bro and I) we should be having most (if not all) of McLean’s novels, likely  with some duplication.

I haven’t read much in last three years, and therefore didn’t buy anything, except perhaps some books for Sid. Another reason for not being able to buy is unending interruptions from Sid whenever I enter a bookstore. Finally, last month I had some uninterrupted time to spend in a bookshop, and bought some books after a long time. Any surprises that two of these are by McLean – The Way to Dusty Death (which I’ve read before) and The Lonely Sea (Short stories, which I haven’t read). I also got Love in the Time of Cholera – of which I have heard a lot, but never got around to reading.