I love books! I have been a lifelong reader and collector of books. As I’ve mentioned before, it is easy for me to assign emotional meaning to material stuff, and books are no exception. We have a bookshelf full of books (mostly mine) and 3-4 large bins of books in the garage. Having bins of books in storage really defeats the purpose of keeping the books in my opinion. I keep books for a few reasons:
1. Future reference (justification for self help and text books)
2. Show off how enlightened/cool/well read/etc I am to guests who check out the books on our shelves
3. For the book itself – some books are too great to give away!
4. Sentimental reasons (the book reminds me of a special time in my life, was a gift, was a book I once loved)
5. This quote: “A room without books is like a body without a soul.” – Cicero
I like the idea of a house with a bookshelves and stacks of books in every room. It is comforting and reminds me of my grandparents’ house. It just seems like the right thing to do.
I also like the idea of a minimalist lifestyle. I can hear you all laughing at me right now, but it something to aspire to, right?
Something has gotten into me lately because I purged my books. I have only one shelf of books left. Two shelves worth and all 3-4 plastic bins worth are GONE. Donated. Off to find a new owner who will love them as much as I did. It was really liberating, and now I have space for things I actually use on a regular basis and would like to have at arm’s reach.
So tell me – how do you feel about owning books? Are you a book hoarder? Or a reformed hoarder like me?
TOTAL hoarder. You’ve seen the bookshelf pics from Caroline’s room? It was full of books before and now they are in a huge bin. I am in awe that you gave yours away!
Total book hoarder over here. G is too which makes the situation even worse. I have a ton of books packed up and ready for donation but every time I go to do it G starts his nonsense talk about our future dream house with a library that has floor to ceiling shelves of our beloved books, and I am right back to square one. Sigh. One of these days I work up the courage to pass them along (or win the lottery and actually OWN that dream house, lol)
I love this post and totally agree with your reasons. There are few things in life I love more than books. I have no need for the kindle or the nook. We have shelves and shelves of books and constantly adding more displays. If I move out of this house, our books are one of the few things I’d take along!