36、Time spent in bookshop can be most enjoyable, whether you are a book-lover or only there to buy a book as a present. You may even have entered the shop just to find shelter from a sudden shower. Whatever the person, you can soon become totally unaware of your surroundings. The desire to pick up a book with an attractive design is irresistible, although this method of selection ought not be followed, as you might end up with a rather uninteresting book. You soon become lost in some books or other, and usually it is only much later that you realize you have spent far too much time there and must hurry to keep some forgotten appointment --- without buying a book, of course.
The opportunity to escape the realities of everyday life is, I think, the main attraction of a bookshop. There are not many places where it is possible to do this. A music shop is very like a bookshop. You can go to such places as much as you wish. If it is a good shop, no assistant will approach you with the greeting: "Can I help you, sir?" You needn't buy anything you don't want. In a bookshop, an assistant should remain in the background until you have finished reading. You may want to find out where a particular section is. Then, and only then, are his services necessary. But when he has led you there, the assistant should leave politely and look as if he is not interested in selling a single book.