Having just read Belle, Book, and Candle’s thoughtful writing on commonplace books, and a bit too busy right now to write a new post myself. I am reposting my own post on commonplace, which I wrote several years ago, in hopes that you will not only take the time to read Belle, but that you will consider keeping a commonplace book yourself – or tell us about the one you do have. Belle, Book, and Candle’s post can be found here. Thank you, Belle, for the inspiration I needed today. Penny
Commonplace. The recording of words and ideas in a common place. It was started many hundreds of years ago and became known as commonplacein the 1600′s. It is used to this day by writers, poets, speechwriters and songwriters – even scrap bookers. I started thinking about the practice of gathering ideas in a commonplace book as I was reading a blog about books.
Do you have any idea how many blogs there are just about books? There are blogs about mysteries and children’s literature and authors. There are Pearl Buck and Jane Austen blogs. There are blogs about decorating with books and making books, and, of course, many authors these days have their own blogs.
They are all commonplace.
I have kept card files on books I’ve read since my first Kiddie Lit class. I no longer include such things as publisher and copyright date, but, I do write a brief synopsis of the book, what it was about, the month and year I read it and sometimes, when I’m really full of myself, I rate it. ★★★★★ Commonplace.
I also have kept a book with quotes. If I hear something notable or read something, I will write it down and cite the author. Sometimes, I will cut a quote out of a magazine or on a greeting card and paste it onto a page of my quote book. Commonplace.
Emerson and Thoreau, Jefferson and Whitman, Hardy and Twain all kept such personal books. Many even learned the practice of commonplacing at Oxford or Harvard – or at their tutor’s direction.
My mother kept scrapbooks of pictures and memorabilia that I enjoy today and my father kept succinct books that recorded good fishing spots and articles.
I first heard such a collection of phrases mentioned as a commonplace in “Tasha Tudor’s Heirloom Crafts”. Tudor was, among many things, a crafter of dolls. Her dolls lived in intricate, homemade doll houses, so famed that they were attracted to the folks at the Smithsonian and displayed there. Her dolls, clothed and appointed with furniture evoking the 1800′s, had their own commonplace book with tiny writing on the pages.
I love the idea of a commonplace book and was intrigued by the realization that I have kept such books not knowing their origins for much of my adult life. Quite exciting for something so common to me.
Do you practice commonplacing?
Do you keep a journal, special notebook, scrapbook, or log?
The image is from “Tasha Tudor’s Heirloom Crafts”. Photography by Richard W. Brown.
Lifeonthecutoff's Blog 
yes I keep a daily diary, another with quotations about art, another with memorabilia, old postcards,
Annie v.
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That is marvelous, Annie. I”m sure they are filled with bits of your life, as well as history and such. Isn’t it fun to occasionally look back on them?
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Penny, first of all, I am impressed that you kept up with your card file since Kiddie Lit. I kept mine for years (not updated though). I loaned it to a new teacher and that was the end of that.
This post came at a serendipitous time for me. I spent the day going through totes of books and reorganizing them so I could put them in an old cedar chest. I ran across a notebook that I kept the first two summers that my Granddaughter, Celeste stayed with us. She was 4, 5, and 6 during that time. I kept a list of her quotes and our activities with us. I’m so glad I did. I also journal during most of our vacations. I don’t journal on a daily basis, though. I usually have a small notebook with me that I put quotes, books I want to read, lists, descriptions, and various things like that. I call it “My Brain Dump.” Maybe I should change that to Commonplace Book.
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Oh, Janet, the Kiddie Lit file is packed away in a box of yesterdays, somewhere in the house. I’ve had other files since then and my computer and a notepad seem to host most of those books these days, but, I do keep a list(s). I’m sorry you lost your Kiddie Lit card file, but, I am sure it has guided that new teacher along his or her way. I would love to take another Kiddle Lit class – just for the fun of it, though it was fun the first time. (I just bough 6 Soup books at the library for a grand total of 60 cents. Are you proud of me?)
How exciting that you came across Celeste’s quotes and activities! How amazing it must be to look at her words and actions now that she is well on her to growing up. I always journal on trips. I might have know you do, too. I’ll just bet you journaled the most on PEI. Don’t change “My Brain Dump”. It is a perfect title for a Commonplace Book.
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How fascinating. I’ve keep journals for years, and into them I paste notices of concerts or movies I’ve enjoyed, notable quotes, sometimes a photo printed out on ordinary paper, observations of the seasons, and my own thoughts and experiences. I didn’t know that Tasha Tudor’s interests extended into dolls, and was very interested in this and the picture you include.
I also keep a little ‘quotes’ book, and at times have written out poems that I love. I like the word ‘commonplace book’ – it’s not one I’ve been aware of. Thank you Penny, for bringing all this to my attention.
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I can imagine all that you put into your journals, Juliet. If you look closely at the picture, the girl is holding a little Commonplace book, that was made for the dolls in the background by Tasha Tudor. Her interests were many; dollhouses, living in a style of the early 1800’s, gardening. . . I should do on post on some of the books that came out about her lifestyle.
I often copy out poems, too, Juliet. Isn’t it wonderful to have these books, common or not so common, to look back on? You are very welcome.
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Oh Lord, Penny. You’re going to kill me twice in one week.
MTM and I keep a journal of the, um, bedroom variety. It isn’t kinky or graphic or video-graphied. But it is a way to make sure that, as our time together progresses, we are taking care of that part of our relationship. We call it our O Journal. We have one for each year of our marriage.
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Oh, no, Andrea. I meant no harm.
What a loving journal your O Journal must be that will carry you through a long, long relationship. Thank you for sharing.
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I’m afraid I do none of these, Penny, though I did keep a brief diary that covered my university years. Sadly it’s now lost. When I was younger i had an extremely good memory for disconnected facts and quotes and so I relied on that, instead of keeping any kind of commonplace book. I do keep letters and souvenirs, but they aren’t at all organised….:-(
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How fortunate you were to have such a good memory, Perpetua, and I’m sure you have some good memories, still. I think it is just in the keeping of such things as letters and souvenirs that are a sort of commonplace – then, there is your thoughtful blog. Just look at your ash tree that has been recorded in all its seasons and all its glory.
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It is incredibly impressive that you have kept records of your reading all that time, Penny. The thought of the commonplace is most enticing; perhaps because in the commonplace, so many times, hides the extraordinary?
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Perhaps, Kate. Perhaps. I love to put quotes and such in my commonplace book, I suppose because it is a place where I can still put pen to paper.
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I love the term Commonplace. I have only just started to make a note about books I have read…..partly because I keep forgetting…and only remember when I’m half way through, again, that something seems a little familiar. I have cousins in Australia who record all their favourite things…books, theatre, film, meals, trips…and really enjoy looking back at what they have enjoyed every year. Its a great idea. J.
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Isn’t it a wonderfully quant term, Janice? Notes on books can be anywhere; books, cards, computer. I think many people keep them in ways they aren’t always aware of. I’ve done that with books -even with a listing of what I’ve read. I think each of those things would be wonderful to record. It could be very simple, just name, place sort of thing. I do keep travel journals and put in them where we eat, and what we eat. When I used to journal more regularly than I do now, I always wrote the date and time of day I wrote, sometimes the temperature. I can’t tell you how many times I referred back to those pages, Janice.
Thank you for commenting. Hope you are doing okay.
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Thanks, Penny, for the kind mention.
I have kept dozens of journals – mostly of the woe-is-me variety – and occasionally have stuffed mementos and quotes between their pages. But, I have never been as consistently dedicated as you are to your commonplace book. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
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It is I who should thank you, Belle. See all that your post brought forth.
It is just those things, the mementoes and quotes and such, that make something a commonplace book. Your Southern Literary Tour is certainly a good example.
You are very welcome.
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Commonplacing is a new term for me that I use for the voluminous journals I have kept for many years. I do or have kept journals on daily activities, the saga of our feral cat family, favorite quotes, and favorite books. I have been compulsive about this since I retired. I also keep old letters and such things as my high school report cards. My study is a fire hazard but I can put my hands on anything I want if I need it. The daily journals have solved “disputes” with my husband over certain events. Before retirement, I testified in a legal deposition from my journal. At my age, I really need to cease this hoarding habit! Loved what you wrote in your essay.
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I admire all your journal keeping, Marilyn, and that you know where it all is. I’m afraid much of what I’ve jotted down, written, or slipped into pages is put away here and there. Good for you and how intriguing that you, and your journal, have testified. You have more history and information at hand that most people do, Marilyn, and I find it commendable that yo did keep records. Don’t stop!
Thank you very much.
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Oh I like this post. I keep a written reading journal that I’ve been updating for seven or eight years now.
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I’m so glad you do, Nicola. That is a long time to keep a reading journal, and I hope you keep it for a longer time, still.
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I have resisted keeping diaries or journals; never wanted to leave too much of “me” behind on a written page. However, I do have the odd bits of ephemera — random greeting cards, copies of old Christmas letters I’ve written, the card that came with the corsage from my senior prom, bits and scraps with quotes and pithy sayings… Like Janice, I think I should have kept a commonplace book, listing those things I’ve read…more than once I’ve purchased a book, only to later discover that I already own it. Maybe I should start one? 🙂
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It’s never too late to start one, Karen, and you really already have the makings of one with what you have on hand. A simple notebook is a good place to start. It is so lovely that you have these things; bits and pieces of your own history and pithy sayings that I imagine you find yourself using now and then.
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I’ve kept various “scrapbooks” of quotes, articles, poems etc. over the years. They vary from glued in to the photobook type with lift up pages (that work for other things besides photos) to the plastic page protector ones in a 3 ring notebook as well as a small journal type book that I’ve handwritten quotes from some favorite authors. I also keep a list of books read – old lists are on index cards by author, then in small spiral notebooks and now on the computer. I have added the entries in some of the notebooks to my list on the computer and think about typing in the titles on those old index cards someday. Amazon sells some sort of book journal that I believe is set up so you will record title, author, publisher, date etc about each book you read. Another book to find a space for on my overflowing shelves so I passed.
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Oh, Joyce, these are all forms of commonplace books; common things in different places, and they sound a lot like what I have been doing here for years. I tend to keep my calendars; the kind that are like a daily journal, where my appointments, birthdays, worldly events are recorded. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to refer to them from several years back for any manner of reference. I’ve passed on the same sort of book journal myself for the same reason.
In my notebook of books to read, I have “Harvest In Stillmeadow”, underlined and circled with a note that says “for Joyce in Kansas”. Who knows when it will come across my path and on to you?
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I really like the term “commonplace books” and the history attached to it. I used to keep a journal on a regular basis but now do it only intermittently. It’s a shame that I stopped, because whenever I go back and look at what I’ve written in the past I discover so much valuable information about what I was doing then and even who I was back then. These books are valuable for so many reasons. This post makes me want to start keeping one again!
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I did as well, Sunday. It seems that when I started blogging, my journal keeping took a back seat. I need to find a way to do both. Journaling provides such insights, doesn’t it, and a log of of our lives. I hope you, and I, will start keeping journals again. Good luck.
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