On March 22nd, 2020, life changed. For better or for worse, no one knows, but it changed for good.
"The future's uncertain and the end is always near..." ~ Jim Morrison
These prophetic words penned by the Lizard King have been ringing truer ever since. On top of this rather overwhelming prospect, any hopes of a return to the 'normal' are being dashed with every passing day.
[WANT TO READ MORE IN 2021?
ADD YOURSELF TO THE BIBLIOTHERAPY READERS' LIST]
Stranger things also tend to happen when established world orders crumble and grand plans collapse, almost overnight.
For the first time in three-and-a-half decades, I started consuming less, creating more. For my sanity, if nothing else.
Thus, on the day my corner of the world shut down, Project Bibliotherapy was launched on Instagram with a simple mission in mind - 'To chase the blues away, one book at a time...'
And now, sixteen weeks later, this little sanity project of mine is one of the earliest inhabitants of ScrollStack - 'a place to discover thinkers and creators worth following.'
Before proceeding any further, I recommend checking out my debut post on ScrollStack - the tale of my journey as a reader, told through nine montages, nine quotes.
Already read it? Awesome. Now...
This trilogy of posts is an attempt to make some sense of this strangest of summers, through a scroll to the bottom of the Instagram feed - a guided walk through 111 days of Bibliotherapy in reverse chronological order.
Each of the chapters below contains an overview of posting activity on Instagram within a certain time-frame, along with a select few of my favourites replicated in their entirety for your reading pleasure.
Also included is a slideshow of Instagram stories shared during that time period - a mix of public service announcements, goodreads, quotable quotes and other random musings from the archives - best viewed in full screen.
So without further ado, let us go down the rabbit hole...
Chapter I
June 26th - July 10th, 2020: The One With the ScrollStack Debut...
Every single pixel in the montages featured in 'One Billion Seconds... plus a few million more...' is a potential clue for future Bibliotherapy posts -
Mostly about the books I've experienced, a few excerpts from the first draft of my work-in-progress book (working title - 'Don't Panic, Don't Try')...
...and further experiments with content creation - 'spread across a potpourri of interests and inspired by a motley of experiences from saner times.'
Basically, anything which I feel might help chase the blues away - both for the reader as well as me.
(View on Instagram --> a selection of above highlights from the story archive)
Chapter II
June 3rd - 25th, 2020: Grateful Dead, Archie Comics, Hollywood Vampires, Hunter S. Thompson, Bibliotherapy Digest on Linkedin, Lizard King, Spike Milligan, Scott Adams...
'Kafka on the Shore' - No longer tsundoku...
Add to Library --> Kafka on the Shore - Haruki Murakami
A serendipitous afternoon in Los Angeles...
(View on Instagram --> a selection of above highlights from the story archive)
Chapter III
May 16th - June 2nd, 2020: Pop Culture Publishing / Comic Con India, @scroll.to.the.bottom, Random x Mad Magazine, Bob Dylan, Bournvita Quiz Contest, @nostalgiaholix, Beatlemania, Sidharth Bhatia, Arambolla...
Don't panic, and always carry a towel...
add to library --> The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
add to library --> Don't Panic: Douglas Adams & The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Neil Gaiman
An 'Eclectic Book Review'...
add to library --> On the Road - Jack Kerouac
(View on Instagram --> a selection of above highlights from the story archive)
Thanks for scrolling to the bottom of part one of three. Here's part two...
Name. One book/author/topic on your reading list for 2021. Email. Phone number (optional). That’s all.
Sign up below to READ MORE this year and beyond... :)
Write a comment ...