Cathy Rentzenbrink on the joy of reading: 'After the wheel, the book must be one of the great inventions'

Her Cork-born dad ran away to sea as a teenager, but the author has produced a widely-praised account of how the rest of us can find solace in the printed word 

Cathy Rentzenbrink author Picture: Peter Flude

To call Cathy Rentzenbrink a bibliophile seems like a bit of an understatement. In her new book, she recalls how, in a brief dalliance with online dating, she described herself as an ‘amiable bookworm’, which also undersells her passion for reading somewhat. She is more like an evangelist for the sacred power of books, talking about them with a reverential awe that reminds me of how much we take these humble rectangular portals for granted.

“It is just such a perfect delivery mechanism, the book. It is amazing, it is so low-tech — after the wheel, the book must be one of the great inventions,” says Rentzenbrink from her home in Cornwall.