A Matter of Spine Alignment

Returning inside after a full day out, the quiet of the apartment was welcome. On the lower shelf of the oak bookcase, however, a thick clothbound volume had slumped diagonally across two neighboring paperbacks. An unstable lean. I walked across the polished wood, positioned my left shoulder against the heavy hardback, and braced my shoes against the grain. With a measured shove, I brought the book upright until its spine sat flush and perpendicular to the shelf edge. The paperbacks relaxed into neat vertical columns on either side. Structural integrity restored. I slipped my hand back into my trouser pocket, resting in the still evening.