Decimation

So it has come to this. The shelves are empty. After packing and transporting books for a week or two, we have managed to move them all out of our house. It was pretty heartbreaking, I must admit. Last time I packed up all of my books it was after a nasty break-up and when they disappeared into storage I had no idea when or under what circumstances I would see them again. Unpacking them in our current home, with Bibliohubby at my side, made me incredibly happy. So having them disappear again feels emotional, although obviously this time the circumstances are totally different: we have decided to move to Canada for a few years, to be closer to certain family and friends, and to give the kids a different cultural experience before we settle down for good and buy a house. Adventures lie ahead! So really, this is a joyous time and the books will be well cared for until I am reunited with them. 

Still. There is something awfully sad about an empty bookcase, and looking at it last night reminded me of the most moving monument I have ever seen. It lies in the middle of Bebelplatz, Berlin, on the south side of the Unter den Linden boulevard. Gazing across the square, the monument is not visible. Only once one approaches the centre of the square can it be seen, and this is because it is located under the ground.

Here is what it looks like:

Book burning monument, Bebelplatz Berlin

It is a monument to mark the site of the Nazi book burning ceremony that was held in May 1933 by members of the SA, SS, Nazi students and Hitler Youth groups, on the instigation of Joseph Goebbels. Approximately 20,000 books were burned, including works by Thomas Mann, Karl Marx and Albert Einstein. 

It is the only monument I have seen which is composed of emptiness. Those barren bookshelves speak volumes, and the inscription is nothing short of perfect:

"Das war ein Vorspiel nur, dort wo man Buecher verbrennt, verbrennt man am ende auch Menschen."

-  "Where they burn books, they will in the end also burn people."

Very little more needs be said, really.