A 99-piece mini puzzle of a bookshop interior, in a box small enough for a coat pocket.
Why old books smell the way they do
There is a real chemistry to it, and it is one of the more pleasing facts in the world.
Paper made from wood pulp contains lignin, the polymer that stiffens plant cell walls. As it slowly breaks down over decades it releases a range of volatile compounds — among them vanillin, the same molecule that gives vanilla its scent, along with others that read as almond, grass and faint acidity. That is the smell of a secondhand bookshop: paper degrading, very slowly, into vanilla.
Newer books smell different because modern paper is often lignin-free — which also means it lasts far longer without yellowing. The lovely smell is, strictly speaking, the smell of a book falling apart.
Also visible in most bookshops
Books are shelved spine-out, which seems obvious and is in fact quite recent. Until roughly the sixteenth century books were shelved with the fore-edge outward, and titles were written along the pages rather than on the spine — books were scarce enough that you knew what you had.
The puzzle itself
99 pieces, finishing at 10 × 14 cm — about the size of a postcard. The box is 9 × 6 × 2 cm and fits a pocket. Recycled cardboard, packed without plastic. Reckon on half an hour to an hour.
Doing it well
Start with the edge, which is over a third of a 99-piece puzzle. Then a warning specific to this image: shelves of books are one of the hardest things to puzzle. Rows of small vertical blocks in mixed colours look almost identical from piece to piece, and at this scale the titles are unreadable. Use the horizontal shelf lines as your anchors and build outward from them, rather than trying to match spine to spine.
Work on a tray, and use good light — more than usual for this one.
Matcha & CO
Matcha & CO
Iswari
Piecely Puzzles
