Souvenir

Why do we love to collect souvenirs? Have you ever really thought about them? This book takes a deep, thorough interest in the kitschy keychains you casually picked up at the airport, or the seashell you tucked in your pocket during a walk on the beach, or the carefully chosen scarf you found for your mother-in-law while shopping in Paris. We collect souvenirs for many reasons, and the author explores a variety of them, from how they help us remember our travels, to making sense of the world and our place in it, to reminding us of our own mortality, or perhaps our victory over it. Souvenirs have meaning far beyond the objective value of the item, and they hold different meaning for different cultures and are collected in different ways. The author explores the evolution of souvenirs as well, from relics meant to convey divine power, collected on pilgrimages, to the ubiquitous mass-produced plastic goods now hawked around the world to casual sightseers. It is a fascinating journey that covers a lot of ground, and the author muses upon it with an engaging and charming curiosity. Readers of this little treatise will never look at souvenirs the same way again.