Twin Peaks Prop – Laura Palmer’s Home University Bookshelf Volume 5

Following an afternoon of New Year’s Day travel back to my home in Florida, I received a direct message from fellow Bookhouse Boy Matthew Haywood about a prop he identified from David Lynch’s Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. Matthew’s previous tip about the identity of the actor who played the dead guy in Carrie Page’s house in Twin Peaks – Part 18 lead to the most popular story on Twin Peaks Blog in 2024. This time, he found the textbook Laura Palmer carries throughout most of the film. Upon closer examination, I identified the story she was reading while seated at her desk bedroom, which was either an uncanny coincidence or selected by design.

IDENTIFYING LAURA PALMER’S HOME UNIVERSITY BOOKSHELF BOOK

Using the first image in this article of Laura Palmer and Donna Hayward walking away from Bobby Briggs in the Twin Peaks High School courtyard, Matthew identified the book by perspective shifting the best shot of it” and conducting a reverse image search.

It’s ‘The Home University Bookshelf, Volume 5: Famous Stories and Verse” by The University Society Incorporated from New York. The Internet Archive has a copy online, which was incredibly helpful for identifying Laura’s homework assignment.

I easily found a reasonably priced copy on eBay, which will allow me to make a better high-resolution scan of the cover artwork. The book Laura is carrying has a green cover, but I have seen later editions with a red or maroon cover.

This hardcover book appears to be part of a 10-25 volume collection of various compiled stories and texts. The inside book cover contains gorgeous hand drawn illustrations inspired by tales found inside the various volumes.

The Home University Bookshelf was first published in 1927. I wasn’t able to locate much information about the The University Society other than they were located in New York. I found a classified advertisement from the late 1920s asking for women to travel door to door selling these books.

Most likely, this was an earlier version of something like The Classics Club, which published John Locke’s “On Politics and Education” which Audrey Horne selects in Twin Peaks episode 2.018.

According to the title page, the book was prepared under the supervision of The Editorial Board of the University Society.

The publisher’s page mentions pulling previously published works into this new volume from the early 1900s, including highly successful predecessors namely, “Boys and Girls Bookshelf,” copyright 1912, 1915, 1920; “Young Folks Treasure,” copyright 1909, 1917, 1919; “Father and Son Library,” copyright 1921; “Modern Boy Activity,” copyright 1921, 1923; “The Mother’s Book,” copyright 1919; “The Child Welfare Manual,” copyright 1916; “The Home Kindergarten Manual,” copyright 1921; and “Bible Stories and Character Building,” copyright 1915.

The 400-page book contains a wealth of retold stories from “The Emperor’s New Clothes” to “Black Beauty.” There are also stories about King Arthur and His Knights, along with poems, verses and tales of joy and sorrow.”

WHICH STORY WAS LAURA PALMER READING IN TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME?

In Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, Laura Palmer is seen sitting at her desk doing homework. This is the scene just before her father Leland enters her bedroom to apologize. On her desk, you can see a notebook along with the Home University Bookshelf book opened to a specific page. The book is about 400 pages, so I figured the story was about halfway through the book. An illustration on the page closest to camera is half-covered by her notebook.

So I turned to the Internet Archive’s copy and started thumbing through pages virtually beginning with page 240. A few turns later, I found a match on page 259. The line breaks in the adjacent text appear to match the onscreen copy.

Laura was reading an abridged version of William M. Thackeray’s “The Rose and the Ring,” satirical fantasy fiction first published on Christmas day in 1854 which criticizes attitudes of the monarchy and the affluent in society about their ideals of beauty and marriage. A brief summary of the book’s plot is provided on Wikipedia:

“Set in the fictional countries of Paflagonia and Crim Tartary, the story revolves around the lives and fortunes of four young royal cousins, Princesses Angelica and Rosalba, and Princes Bulbo and Giglio. Each page is headed by a line of poetry summing up the plot at that point and the storyline as a whole is laid out, as the book states, as ‘A Fireside Pantomime’. The original edition had illustrations by Thackeray who had once intended a career as an illustrator.”

So was Laura’s book opened intentionally to this story? I’ve not found any official source indicating this was a conscious choice yet the reference to the “Ring” could be a nod to the “Owl Cave Ring” which Laura was told not to take.

The “Rose” could either be a nod to Gordon Cole’s “Blue Rose Case,” the rose and floral imagery found throughout the Palmer house, or the fact Laura was once referenced as a “beautiful flower who was cut down.”

There is even a cut scene from the film where, after Laura jumps off James Hurley’s bike at the light at Sparkwood and 21, the camera was supposed to pan down to Doc Hayward’s wilted rose along the side of the road. This was a follow up scene to a magic trick the doctor performed for Laura and Donna earlier in the film.

Knowing David Lynch’s penchant for having intentional nods or references in his films, I can’t help but think the story was selected by design.

A related example takes place later in the film when Laura is seen walking through the school hall carrying “The Human Comedy” by William Saroyan. The way she is holding the book so the title can be read seems intentional. Then again, I may be reading into all of this.

APPEARANCES OF THE BOOK IN TWIN PEAKS: FIRE WALK WITH ME

The book is first seen as James Hurley stops to speak with Laura Palmer on the stairs of Twin Peaks High School. As Laura turns the corner, the book’s cover is briefly flashed on camera. I’m assuming she was also holding it as she walked to school with Donna (“Mike is the real man” scene).

The corner of the green-covered book is seen as Laura stops to use the bathroom.

As Laura closes the bathroom stall, the book’s cover is again briefly seen on camera. I wonder who played the other two students in this scene.

As the school day ends, Laura and Donna cross the school’s courtyard. You can see the Home University Bookshelf book in Laura’s arms.

A better look is seen as Donna pulls Laura away from Bobby Briggs after she defuses his anger at not knowing her whereabouts.

As Laura smokes on her bed and opens her secret diary, the book is spotted next to her under her brown handbag and by her coat.

Later that night, she is seen at her desk with the book, lost in thought as she attempts to do her homework assignment.

Killer BOB passes by the desk with the Home University Bookshelf book and her three-ring binder on the way to Laura’s bed.

The next morning, Leland Palmer confront Laura in her bedroom. She has gathered her school books to which we can see the Home University Bookshelf book in her arms.

The final glimpse of Laura’s book is seen as she descends the staircase, away from her father and on the way to school. This scene was shot on a soundstage which means the book traveled from the location scenes of Twin Peaks High School in Snohomish, Washington to Van Nuys, California.

Thank you to Matthew for finding another treasure to add to the ever-growing list of identified Twin Peaks props and set decorating items.