📚 February 2023

The books I packed to New Zealand

‘One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.’ — Henry Miller

Woman reading by Berthe Morisot, 1873 © The Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio

Moving to a different place always entails leaving something behind. The hardest thing about moving to Auckland (New Zealand) from London has definitely been saying ‘see you later (in two years)’ to close friends and family that live both in the UK and in Spain. The second hardest thing has been giving away most of our plants (some are being taken care of for a little while by very good friends). The third and last hardest thing has been packing and storing my books - taking only a handful of them to travel lean - and knowing that for the next two years, I won’t have access to my beloved library.

Attachment is a strange beast. Before packing and moving, when my partner and I were getting ready for this adventure, I kept feeling a bizarre sort of future nostalgia for London, for my people on this (that) side of the world, and for my precious plants and books I hadn’t yet left behind. But after going through the ‘kondo’ process and having arrived leaner (with 3 suitcases and a backpack) in NZ, I don’t feel that strange nostalgia and attachment anymore; at least, not at that level. I now have a sense of freedom and lightness, a feeling that a fresh chapter is beginning.

In preparation for this 2-year adventure in NZ, I bought a Kindle reader so I could ‘pack’ as many books as possible without worrying about their weight. That was a sort of revelation: I have always been reticent to read books on a digital reader, I love the feeling and smell of the physical book and I love having a library at home. But after buying the Kindle reader and starting using it I was super surprised that I was indeed enjoying it, and not only that but also, I was preferring it.

I realised that the attachment I felt for the books wasn’t that strong after all, that in reality, what was important to me wasn’t the thing or the product, but the process of reading. And now with the digital reader, I could read even more because it was more easily accessible and cheaper to get books. Don’t get me wrong - I still love my books, but I am starting to see the benefit of using both media.

And precisely because I love my books, I decided I was going to pack some of the most precious ones to have them with me during my 2-year adventure in NZ. These are the ones I’ve taken and the reason why:

• ‘The Artist’s Way’ is Julia Cameron’s masterpiece on creative journeys. It was a special book at a special time that helped me open my eyes. It is a companion I go back to from time to time.

• ‘The Photographer’s Playbook’ is a fantastic book on observation and creativity with many different hacks, fun exercises, and assignments designed by great photographers and artists.

• ‘El Principito’ was a gift from my mum when I was a kid. I read this book every year and always travels with me wherever I go.

• After discovering Hockney’s musings on art and pictures, I needed to take him and his ‘Spring Cannot Be Cancelled’ to NZ. Another creative companion to help me look.

• A couple of books on NZ to help me navigate the place: ‘New Zealand Lonely Planet’ and a special gift from my brother-in-law and friend, ‘Auckland Architecture: A Walking Guide’.

• Agatha Christie’s ‘Partners in Crime’ to read with my partner.

• Three tiny books I bought recently on creativity and sketching: ‘Brief Lessons in Creativity’, ‘Brief Lessons in Seeing Differently’ and ‘The Urban Sketching Handbook’

Books I have taken with me to NZ

Happy reading! 📚✨

Ana

---

📚 What I’m reading in Feburary 2023:

• I just finished reading ‘The Sound of Paper’ by Julia Cameron

• I started reading ‘Ego is the Enemy’ by Ryan Holiday - a very interesting read to help me navigate my own decision-making processes and thoughts and to better understand people in the creative industry that Design is, generally full of big egos and characters.

• ‘Auckland Architecture: A Walking Guide’ by John Walsh and Patrick Reynolds. This book is wonderful.

• ‘Urban Code. 100 Lessons for Understanding the City’. Great read I found at work on humble behaviour observations in the neighbourhood of Soho in New York.

---

Thanks so much for reading!

If you enjoy reading The Sketch Club, please consider upgrading your subscription or donating 💛

Also, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases on the books I link.