In my dream house, I would have a library: walls of floor-to-ceiling, glass-fronted bookcases. In reality I have six open bookcases and a woodstove, a dust procreator. Periodically I remove all the books, vacuum the top edges of them, wipe them, and cull out the books I don’t need to keep. It is my favorite cleaning project: old friends are fondly acknowledged, unread books are opened and sighed over. There are discoveries and dialogs. Yes, I talk to myself.
Here then, are my thoughts while cleaning and shelving books.
• What discoveries! Many books have Post-it flags dotted across the top; I found (and removed) other forms of bookmarks. One square of toilet tissue. A white plastic flosser. A register receipt. Bear that in mind if you want to borrow my books.
• I moved Charles and Mary Lamb’s Tales from Shakespeare
• There is the problem of the Norton Anthologies
• I love the idea, and occasionally the practice, of deep reading. Reading through all the works of a great author. Ignatius Press has issued The Collected Works
• The internet has made so many reference books redundant. Take The New York Public Library Desk Reference
• I couldn’t just dust the art books without some lookie-loos. Winslow Homer, I love you.
• I’ve been called a Grammar Nazi a few times lately, a label I protest. This shelf, however, tells a different story.
What tales do your bookshelves tell?
A Living Pencil 
Two things:I don’t know what genetic connection bibliophiles have- but I’m glad you’re my sister.Secondly- From Dawn to Decadence- Jacques Barzun. If you haven’t, you should. If for no other reason than the references to other books… After discussing an important topic/person, etc., Barzun always sticks in “the book to read is…..”Ok, a third thing… I have several volumes of the Chesterton series… There is no way the e-version can come close- despite the major price difference…..just saying..
As we prepare to return to Brazil I know I have to unload lots of books, but when I go to the shelves to thin them out, I get caught up in the nostalgia of “Oh, my, wasn’t that a wonderful book!?” or “Won’t this be fun to read someday?” I’m not doing a very good job of decluttering, but I sure am enjoying myself.
Nazi is the wrong word. How about grammar connoisseur? Grammar queen? Grammar aficianado?I can’t wait to see your bookshelves again (-:Di
“What discoveries! Many books have Post-it flags dotted across the top; I found (and removed) other forms of bookmarks. One square of toilet tissue. A white plastic flosser. A register receipt. Bear that in mind if you want to borrow my books.” Yes for an emergency bookmark I suppose all sorts of things end up as a book mark. “exactly what precisely should a person bear in mind? That if you leave something really sordid, then your book borrowing privilege is revoked or that you would notice it and fume about?Sounds like fun here I will subscribe.
My bookshelves probably reflect that I am a generalist who knows too little about too many things and not enough about anything… But I can live with it 🙂 And quite a lot of books are second hand, acquired pretty much at random.
I especially like the flosser. Clearly you have strong resistance to dog-earing! I loved this post and saw some “old friends” here. I will have these thoughts in mind as I look at my own shelves…
@jalanmiller – I’ve had From Dawn to Decadence on my shelf for TOO long. I picked it up, nosed around, and dived into the introduction. Oh, YES! This is going to be a great ride. (You mentioning that Barzun includes book recommendations was too enticing. I’m a sucker for authors telling me further books to explore.)I would never want to read Chesterton’s works in an e-book. No, sir. I want the collection on. my. shelf.
“In my dream house, I would have a library: walls of floor-to-ceiling, glass-fronted bookcases.”==I couldn’t agree more!I love bookshelves and book-cases almost as much as I love books. They are a thing of beauty, whether they’re neatly arranged or haphazard. :)Don’t apologize for this post–I thoroughly enjoyed it!Cindy at Cindy’s Book Club
I need someone to tell me what my bookshelves are saying other than: “Read me, read me! Read me again!” and “My, you need to build some more shelves and take a load off the ones that are already over-loaded.”