Book advertising

(Baonghean) - I stopped in front of the market gate, where the sidewalk was covered with books on plastic sheets.

The saleswoman chattered incessantly like a parrot:

- You should buy this book to be the first to buy it. This is a brand new book: "Hearts in the Open Era." It's a psychological romance novel, sir. I guarantee you'll be hooked from the first page to the last. The story of love is complicated, fraught with difficulties, and very moving; even the hardest heart wouldn't be able to hold back tears...

I don't know if she's even read it, but she's rambling on and on. I'm already over 60, why would I need to read this kind of book! I'll leave it to the younger generation.

I slowly walked over to another bookstore, enduring the long, disapproving glare of the shopkeeper.

The young man, who had been sitting with his knees drawn up, suddenly sprang up as if waking from a terrible dream:

"Dad! Here's a brand new book: 'The Heart of the Open Era.' You'd be missing out if you didn't read this. It's a very thrilling case. Look, sir, the cover has a drawing of a heart dripping with blood." Dad shook his head. "If you're so stingy and reluctant to spend money, then please leave. Running into this old geezer so early in the morning, what bad luck..."

I quickly retreated to avoid a barrage of vulgar language that was about to sting my face.

One book, two people recommending it in two different ways, it's hard to know which one to choose.

The third bookseller was a middle-aged man with a shifty face, who stared intently at the customers while introducing the books:

"What kind of book do you need, sir? We have this newly published one suitable for the elderly," he said, holding up a thick book titled "The Heart in the Open Era," thrusting it to my nose like an advertisement for perfume. "Health experts guide you on how to maintain a healthy heart in this era of fierce competition and stress management. Just by looking at your complexion, I can tell you have liver disease. My wife used to have a sallow complexion, but thanks to reading this book, she's cured and now has a honey-red complexion, climbing stairs as nimbly as a seventeen-year-old girl. It's a newly reprinted edition; buy it quickly before it's gone."

Appealing to my ears, I bought a copy, but I wasn't entirely convinced by the bookseller's words. When I got home and read the table of contents, I was shocked to realize it was a book of advice on love and relationships.

Chapter One: The Heart Contains Seven Kinds of Emotions
Chapter Two: 101 Ways to Win the Heart of Your Target
Chapter three: What to do when you've had a heartbreak.

I threw the brand-new book into the pile of waste paper meant for the junk dealer.

So, "The Heart of the Open Era" had to open the door to my house and go find the place where it was turned into pulp.

Tu Quynh