Two book collections as diverse as the East is from the West were chosen as winners of the 2007 Nicole Basbanes ’04 Book Collecting Contest.

One bibliophile’s tomes almost sing from the shelves – books about music, opera and performers. The other’s reveal deep themes in the collector’s life and interests – colonialism, Diaspora and globalization.

Indeed, Sweet Briar College juniors Erin Rogers and Zehra Asghar are passionate about their book collections. On April 30, their zeal was recognized when each was awarded a $300 prize at a ceremony held in the Browsing Room of the Mary Cochran Library.

The award is sponsored by Nicholas Basbanes, author of “A Splendor of Letters” and “A Gentle Madness,” among others. His daughter – the competition’s namesake – graduated from Sweet Briar in 2004.

The judges consist of the elder Basbanes, library professors John Jaffe and Lisa Johnston, and Dr. Lee Piepho, professor emeritus of English. “[Judges are] looking for breadth of collection,” Joe Malloy, SBC associate library professor, said.

“They have to write an essay [and] have to have at least twenty-five books. They don’t have to be on one subject. … What the judges look for is the love of book collecting, not because they’re class books [or] text books, but because they’re subjects they’re interested in.”

Competitors’ entries also must include a bibliography with annotations.

Erin RogersRogers, of Homestead, Fla., says her collection of music-related books was accumulated mostly in the past three years, although her interest in music goes way back.

“I have memories of singing and dancing through my living room to the background of particular movies – The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, and especially … Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” Rogers writes in her essay.

“I believe I watched and listened to the latter so often that is has not only become permanently ingrained in my psyche, but in those of my parents and close childhood friends.”

Now majoring in music at Sweet Briar, Rogers’ books came to rest on her bookshelf for a variety of reasons – gifts, textbooks and personal interest.

“These are the sort of books that – regardless of how many notated margins, highlighted lines or bent corners shower the pages – can be reread over and over again as the meanings of their contents continue to change as I revisit them and experience new things,” she said.

“Even in the textbooks that are still in the process of being read and the volumes that contain many more pages to notate and outline, I know that they hold the opportunity for further explorations and discoveries.”

Zehra AsgharAsghar is a first-generation American. Her parents are from India, and her literary choices reflect what she called a “search for self, truth and motivation through books.” Titles in her collection include, among others, Arundhati Roy’s “The God of Small Things,” “The Kite Runner” and “The Remains of the Day.”

Growing up, Asghar writes in her essay, she struggled with her dual identity. “As a child, I grew up wishing there were more people with my similar experience for me to befriend,” the Lynchburg, Va., resident said.

“Someone whose family did not have age-old Christmas traditions, someone whose name was frequently mispronounced, someone who watched Bollywood films in their original language and ate homemade biryani on an average Tuesday evening.”

On the other hand, she longed for friends who also loved the Beatles, ate sushi and planned to go to college. “Like many people of my background, I struggle with two different identities that somehow never felt compatible. For many years of my life, I felt like no one, other than my little sister, knew or understood what if felt like to be split in half in such a way.”

In 2003, Asghar said “things began to change” after she read “The God of Small Things.” She became interested in political issues, particularly “diasporic identities,” globalization and colonialism. Her book collection grew out of this interest.

“In these subjects, I have found pieces of myself,” she writes. “I have found the history I was seeking, the issues I feel everyday, and the worldwide problems that I feel somehow linked to. … Books are my source of freedom, knowledge and empowerment.”

As winners of the Sweet Briar contest, Asghar’s and Rogers’ collections will automatically be entered in the Fine Books & Collections Collegiate Book-Collecting Championship. The winner in that competition is awarded $2,500.

— By Suzanne Ramsey, SBC staff writer