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Henry Bemis, who loved all things literary, would be delighted to hear that the Books page has returned to the News & Record. Conversely, Mrs. Bemis (she would not permit us to address her as "Helen") is probably turning over in her grave, appalled by the fact that the editors will devote so much time and ink to "silly, ridiculous, nonsensical doggerel." To those who are not acquainted with Mr. and Mrs. Bemis, a brief introduction is in order.

On Nov. 20, 1959, CBS aired an episode of "The Twilight Zone" called "Time Enough At Last," which became an instant classic. (I wasn't born yet, but I saw it years later. You can easily find it through Google.) The episode, which is based on a short story by Lyn Venable, features Burgess Meredith in the role of Henry Bemis, a bespectacled bank teller whose fanatical devotion to books and reading nearly gets him fired. Bemis' wife, the tyrannical Helen, vehemently disapproves of her husband's bookishness -- so much so that she hides or destroys his reading material.

The infinite nature of Helen's cruelty is displayed one evening when she feigns interest in, and asks Henry to read aloud from, a book of poetry he attempts to conceal in his jacket. Euphoric over his wife's sudden interest in the written word, Henry lovingly opens the volume, only to discover that Helen has defiled the pages with a marker, rendering the text illegible. Mrs. Bemis, sneering with smug self-satisfaction, methodically dismembers the book, yanking the pages from the spine, shredding them and dropping them in a heap before Henry, who falls to his knees to gather the tattered remnants.

Among bibliophiles, Mrs. Bemis (let's call her Helen, just for spite) is a loathsome, despicable individual. Of course, we are thankful that she is a work of fiction. Very few of our neighbors are outwardly hostile toward books, newspapers and periodicals; however, indifference to the written word is fairly common. Nonreaders, as you and I know, are depriving themselves of pleasures immeasurable. For adults, this is merely unfortunate; for children, tragic.

More often than not, those who claim they "don't like to read" simply have not encountered the right authors and the right subject matter. The return of this newspaper's Books page should alleviate that problem. So, too, should your "favorite books" submissions, which adorn these pages today.

Speaking of which, my favorite book of all time is "The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft" by George Gissing. The book, published in 1918, is actually a thinly veiled autobiography. Most of you are not familiar with it or the author, except, perhaps, from previous allusions to them in this column. "The Private Papers" is the most enthralling book I have ever read. Movies and music of the highest order send a chill up the spine or bring a tear to the eye, but Gissing is the only author I've encountered who casts the same spell with the written word. And he does so routinely. Page after page. I wish I could persuade Mrs. Bemis to read it. Care for a sample?

"Dozens of my books were purchased with money which ought to have been spent upon what are called the necessities of life. Many a time I have stood before a stall, or a bookseller's window, torn by conflict of intellectual desire and bodily need. At the very hour of dinner, when my stomach clamored for food, I have been stopped by sight of a volume so long coveted, and marked at so advantageous a price, that I could not let it go; yet to buy it meant pangs of famine."

The bibliophile understands Gissing's dilemma, and his eventual decision: "I paced the pavement, fingering the coppers in my pocket, eyeing the stall, two appetites at combat within me. The book was bought and I went home with it, and as I made a dinner of bread and butter I gloated over the pages."

Henry Bemis, I suspect, would have made the same decision. So would I, and perhaps, many of you. As Allen Johnson wrote last week, Greensboro teems with book lovers. Because of your calls and letters, the Books page is back; our "One City, One Book" program is extremely successful; the Barnes & Noble at Friendly Center is among the chain's busiest stores; and your response to the newspaper's "favorite books" solicitation was overwhelming. It is comforting to be among kindred spirits--Henry Bemis, George Gissing, and all of you.

Charles Davenport Jr. (cddavenportjr@hotmail.com) is a freelance columnist who appears alternate Sundays in the News & Record.