I have no advice, as I firmly believe the right number of books is as many as you currently have, plus a few more. This helpfully provides an ever extending target. But I did want to say how much I love seeing pictures of other people's book shelves. I always like to check and see what looks interesting, and what I have also read and enjoyed (which strongly indicates the owner is likely to be a good person). I am very suspicious of the sterile looking houses in homes magazines that have no books on show (this strongly indicates I would not enjoy the owner). I wish you luck with your cull.
Great observation on "I always like to check and see what looks interesting, and what I have also read and enjoyed (which strongly indicates the owner is likely to be a good person). I am very suspicious of the sterile looking houses in homes magazines that have no books on show (this strongly indicates I would not enjoy the owner)" SO true :)
People without books are also without a soul. That said, I have books in every room in my house except the bathrooms, and that’s only because Sydney is too mould-friendly. I hate culling them, but the Lifeline Bookfairs are a godsend for those I have had wrenched from my tightly clenched fingers.
I used to go to the one in Canberra - people bring large boxes and shovel books into them. Canberra is brilliant for second hand and remaindered bookshops - I miss the one in Lyneham, where the owner regularly went to Sydney to rummage in the skip behind an art book publisher (with permission, of course). Books I could never afford - not in any number - came home to add to my groaning bookshelves.
Sorry, no tips for the cull as I have a similar problem. Just came on here to say I’ve spent a fair bit of time zooming in on your pics to try and read the titles! Especially the favourites shelf 🤦♀️ Good luck x
Culling books is a gruelling task. Three years ago I moved to a new, smaller apartment and had to reduce my books — over 90 boxes of them — by half. I was struggling. Then my son ( a publisher, so a book man himself) said, 'Imagine they're all going. What would you save from a sinking ship? ' Amazingly, that made it easier. Masses of fiction went. Shelves of women's studies. Almost all literary theory. Essays, non-fiction of various kinds — Would I save this? Honest answer: No. Some went to my publisher son. Some to granddaughters. Because of space, most of my large cookbook collection went to my restaurateur son (have I cooked from this in the last two years? Three years? Ten years? ). Boxes of gardening books to the Friends of the Royal Botanical gardens for their book sale. The rest went to Rotary for their book sales (they got them because they were the only well intentioned people who would come and collect all those boxes.) I still have a 6 metre long, 2 m tall, wall of bookshelves, double stacked, even more idiosyncratic than before. At the time, I did feel as though my life was being thinned out, that part of what made me who I am was being dispersed, but that no longer troubles me much, if at all. And yes, I occasionally regret a book that is no longer there, but far less often than you'd think. Good luck, dear Maggie.
My approach is to keep books that are inscribed, that were momentously significant in my life, that I’m pretty sure are out of print (eg lesbian detective novels from the 80s). I also keep the best of my children’s books(a whole bookcase), a shelf on motherhood, a shelf on lgbt books, one on dogs, one on psychotherapy. What I try to get rid of is famous or best selling novels (no matter how much I loved them), ie books you'd find in a library. I figure I don’t need to keep Jane Eyre or a Booker winner as I can always access them in a library. So I constantly cull books and move them along. Street libraries are your friend! as well as human friends, sisters, charity shops, etc. Even so, I’m always taking in more books (from the same street libraries) so I try to give myself deadlines - if I got a book for free and haven’t opened it in six months, back out it goes.
Wow, you are disciplined! The point about not keeping books you can get from a library makes total sense, but the minute I got rid of them, I’m sure I would immediately want to reference them. Lesbian detective novels from the 80s sounds like a genre I need to know more about. What is a classic?
I love all your bookshelves! I too am a bibliophile/hoarder who is overdue a cull. I’m still a bit sad/embarrassed I accidentally culled a signed copy of a book by a certain Maggie Alderson 🤦🏻♀️ which is why I will go slower next time. No advice to give, just recognition and understanding. Best wishes climbing back down that mountain.
It’s so hard to get rid of books, even though you know you’ll never reread them.
My particular fetish is cookery books so an in-depth post on yours would be fantastic! But tbh acquiring cookbooks is a relatively harmless indulgence…
I used to go to a cookbook club organised by Thane Prince, it was the just the most wonderful thing, amongst my friends, I had an insane amount of cookbooks but there, I was really just a beginner
I love your collection. It's the perfect size. I look at it this way: books are the ultimate compressed files: you open them and infinite worlds emerge. So they are a rather economical form of storage. Blah blah blah. At least that's what I tell myself...
Down sizing forced me into culling. But it was HARD. I am not a re-reader so most of the novels went, the exceptions being something signed by the author, or something given to me with an inscription. I now buy all my light reading from the op-shop and donate it back when I'm done with it. That way I don't feel guilty if I don't particularly like a book but "have to read it because I spent $30 on it", and the charity gets another bite at the cherry. Unless I think a friend might like it then I pass it on.
Lots of children's books went into boxes for when my children have children (I'm hoping!).
I do have an extensive fashion library, none of those were culled. And they bring me great joy :)
My tip is more shelves so I'm no help. I am working on myself by thinking as I am reading "if I don't keep this, who will enjoy it?" Then I can gift it with pleasure.
I, too, pinch out when I see bookshelves online, and my idea of heaven is mooching 2nd hand bookshops in new areas. Some of my favourite books I have to rebuy and gift. Can't just leave the best ones unread and unloved in some faraway town!
A favourite possession is my Sapien bookshelf (google it). Like a spine, hence the name, it looks like a jenga pile but is a series of shelves. Handy for a dark corner where plants don't grow 😘.
I think we should all post photos of our bookshelves now! (If only we could!) Mine are (pats self on back) recently cleared and looking spiffy. Did the Marie Kondo approach and if it didn't spark joy it was tossed. Or if I would never read it again even though it did...so someone else could have the joy of the spark. Or if I remembered absolutely nothing about it. All gone. Now the ones I love only (or haven't yet read!) Oh, and the ones that look truly impressive of course. *wink*
We've just done this to our library (many IKEA billies overloaded with the printed word), plus our bookshelf bedhead and new (to us) revolving shelf. What can I say, we're bibliophiles! We're definitely procurers of all the things, so it was hard - we discovered duplicates, so that was easy, and then had to apply ruthlessness to cull the remainder. What didn't we enjoy, what will we never read again, what it something random we inherited and will never look at etc. The result? All shelves are nearly full...but definitely more civilised (and my beloved applied his librarian past to instil a modicum of order).
In short, you have to be in the mood to be less emotionally attached and more practical regarding addressing the very real possibility of being crushed to death by books.
Oh that's true and true (but funny!) "you have to be in the mood to be less emotionally attached and more practical regarding addressing the very real possibility of being crushed to death by books" My bookshelf nearly fell on me actually!
Oh no! I'm not sure if that's a really good or really bad way to go... 🤦🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️😂 But I'm glad you survived to spread the word of potential misadventure by bookshelf!
I have been devoted to that one since I bought it at the launch - and now he's so tragically gone (I still can't believe it) it's really precious, because he signed it for me. I absolutely loved him.
No tips from me. Have just moved & had to shed a few hundred books. Not an easy task, but tried not to be sentimental. An important key is we are no longer accumulating as we buy books on our e-readers these days. Only the odd few are bought. Anything I love I lend to friends so often these never return!! By the way I think your bookshelves look lovely. 💕
Many of my books are textile-related; so costume history, fashion, knitting, spinning, weaving, sewing, embroidery, dyeing... I have a far better collection than most libraries, and much of the information just isn't available on the internet, as there's never the depth. So most of them are essential.
Fiction is, in some ways easier to move on. Will I ever read it again? Is it sentimental? The rest can move on to a more appreciative home.
I have no advice, as I firmly believe the right number of books is as many as you currently have, plus a few more. This helpfully provides an ever extending target. But I did want to say how much I love seeing pictures of other people's book shelves. I always like to check and see what looks interesting, and what I have also read and enjoyed (which strongly indicates the owner is likely to be a good person). I am very suspicious of the sterile looking houses in homes magazines that have no books on show (this strongly indicates I would not enjoy the owner). I wish you luck with your cull.
Great observation on "I always like to check and see what looks interesting, and what I have also read and enjoyed (which strongly indicates the owner is likely to be a good person). I am very suspicious of the sterile looking houses in homes magazines that have no books on show (this strongly indicates I would not enjoy the owner)" SO true :)
People without books are also without a soul. That said, I have books in every room in my house except the bathrooms, and that’s only because Sydney is too mould-friendly. I hate culling them, but the Lifeline Bookfairs are a godsend for those I have had wrenched from my tightly clenched fingers.
what are these wonders??? Lifeline Bookfairs...
They're dens of iniquity
Three day sales of second hand books held regularly in large local halls. Books are sorted by topic.
Sometimes they run out of time to price the books, so your stack is measured with a ruler and you pay per centimetre.
Heaven, actually, despite what others have said!
PS a recent local sale raised $90k, to give an idea of scale.
I used to go to the one in Canberra - people bring large boxes and shovel books into them. Canberra is brilliant for second hand and remaindered bookshops - I miss the one in Lyneham, where the owner regularly went to Sydney to rummage in the skip behind an art book publisher (with permission, of course). Books I could never afford - not in any number - came home to add to my groaning bookshelves.
Lifeline book sales are our downfall!
Sorry, no tips for the cull as I have a similar problem. Just came on here to say I’ve spent a fair bit of time zooming in on your pics to try and read the titles! Especially the favourites shelf 🤦♀️ Good luck x
Oh that's funny - I never thought to zoom in! Going back right now!
Culling books is a gruelling task. Three years ago I moved to a new, smaller apartment and had to reduce my books — over 90 boxes of them — by half. I was struggling. Then my son ( a publisher, so a book man himself) said, 'Imagine they're all going. What would you save from a sinking ship? ' Amazingly, that made it easier. Masses of fiction went. Shelves of women's studies. Almost all literary theory. Essays, non-fiction of various kinds — Would I save this? Honest answer: No. Some went to my publisher son. Some to granddaughters. Because of space, most of my large cookbook collection went to my restaurateur son (have I cooked from this in the last two years? Three years? Ten years? ). Boxes of gardening books to the Friends of the Royal Botanical gardens for their book sale. The rest went to Rotary for their book sales (they got them because they were the only well intentioned people who would come and collect all those boxes.) I still have a 6 metre long, 2 m tall, wall of bookshelves, double stacked, even more idiosyncratic than before. At the time, I did feel as though my life was being thinned out, that part of what made me who I am was being dispersed, but that no longer troubles me much, if at all. And yes, I occasionally regret a book that is no longer there, but far less often than you'd think. Good luck, dear Maggie.
this is inspiring, thank you xxx
My approach is to keep books that are inscribed, that were momentously significant in my life, that I’m pretty sure are out of print (eg lesbian detective novels from the 80s). I also keep the best of my children’s books(a whole bookcase), a shelf on motherhood, a shelf on lgbt books, one on dogs, one on psychotherapy. What I try to get rid of is famous or best selling novels (no matter how much I loved them), ie books you'd find in a library. I figure I don’t need to keep Jane Eyre or a Booker winner as I can always access them in a library. So I constantly cull books and move them along. Street libraries are your friend! as well as human friends, sisters, charity shops, etc. Even so, I’m always taking in more books (from the same street libraries) so I try to give myself deadlines - if I got a book for free and haven’t opened it in six months, back out it goes.
Wow, you are disciplined! The point about not keeping books you can get from a library makes total sense, but the minute I got rid of them, I’m sure I would immediately want to reference them. Lesbian detective novels from the 80s sounds like a genre I need to know more about. What is a classic?
‘Murder in the Collective’!
Had this problem but started borrowing from council library. I have 11 holds at moment, no. 88 on 1. Now if I love it, I recommend to friends.
Still got full shelves of past loves.
I love all your bookshelves! I too am a bibliophile/hoarder who is overdue a cull. I’m still a bit sad/embarrassed I accidentally culled a signed copy of a book by a certain Maggie Alderson 🤦🏻♀️ which is why I will go slower next time. No advice to give, just recognition and understanding. Best wishes climbing back down that mountain.
I lent a beautifully signed Maggie copy to a friend, who then culled it. I was very, very miffed.
Oh it’s not just me. From now on I officially choose to believe that’s what happened to my copy as well (I have definitely lost books that way) 😁
It’s so hard to get rid of books, even though you know you’ll never reread them.
My particular fetish is cookery books so an in-depth post on yours would be fantastic! But tbh acquiring cookbooks is a relatively harmless indulgence…
I was thinking to do that! I find I don’t use them much any more… do you still use yours?
Maybe not for everyday stuff but when I’ve got people coming I do. But I do still like buying/acquiring them anyway….
I used to go to a cookbook club organised by Thane Prince, it was the just the most wonderful thing, amongst my friends, I had an insane amount of cookbooks but there, I was really just a beginner
I love your collection. It's the perfect size. I look at it this way: books are the ultimate compressed files: you open them and infinite worlds emerge. So they are a rather economical form of storage. Blah blah blah. At least that's what I tell myself...
Down sizing forced me into culling. But it was HARD. I am not a re-reader so most of the novels went, the exceptions being something signed by the author, or something given to me with an inscription. I now buy all my light reading from the op-shop and donate it back when I'm done with it. That way I don't feel guilty if I don't particularly like a book but "have to read it because I spent $30 on it", and the charity gets another bite at the cherry. Unless I think a friend might like it then I pass it on.
Lots of children's books went into boxes for when my children have children (I'm hoping!).
I do have an extensive fashion library, none of those were culled. And they bring me great joy :)
My tip is more shelves so I'm no help. I am working on myself by thinking as I am reading "if I don't keep this, who will enjoy it?" Then I can gift it with pleasure.
I, too, pinch out when I see bookshelves online, and my idea of heaven is mooching 2nd hand bookshops in new areas. Some of my favourite books I have to rebuy and gift. Can't just leave the best ones unread and unloved in some faraway town!
A favourite possession is my Sapien bookshelf (google it). Like a spine, hence the name, it looks like a jenga pile but is a series of shelves. Handy for a dark corner where plants don't grow 😘.
more shelves HA HA HA HA
I think we should all post photos of our bookshelves now! (If only we could!) Mine are (pats self on back) recently cleared and looking spiffy. Did the Marie Kondo approach and if it didn't spark joy it was tossed. Or if I would never read it again even though it did...so someone else could have the joy of the spark. Or if I remembered absolutely nothing about it. All gone. Now the ones I love only (or haven't yet read!) Oh, and the ones that look truly impressive of course. *wink*
The trophy book aspect is verrrrry important - for all of us (everyone on this thread) who feel defined by our books, I think that's proper.
We've just done this to our library (many IKEA billies overloaded with the printed word), plus our bookshelf bedhead and new (to us) revolving shelf. What can I say, we're bibliophiles! We're definitely procurers of all the things, so it was hard - we discovered duplicates, so that was easy, and then had to apply ruthlessness to cull the remainder. What didn't we enjoy, what will we never read again, what it something random we inherited and will never look at etc. The result? All shelves are nearly full...but definitely more civilised (and my beloved applied his librarian past to instil a modicum of order).
In short, you have to be in the mood to be less emotionally attached and more practical regarding addressing the very real possibility of being crushed to death by books.
the MOOOOOOOD is the thing. I am waiting for it to Come Upon me and then I will be like a dervish
Yes, it's definitely a once in a blue moon kind of feeling! May it land upon you soon and the whirling dervishness begin with gusto!
Oh that's true and true (but funny!) "you have to be in the mood to be less emotionally attached and more practical regarding addressing the very real possibility of being crushed to death by books" My bookshelf nearly fell on me actually!
Oh no! I'm not sure if that's a really good or really bad way to go... 🤦🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️😂 But I'm glad you survived to spread the word of potential misadventure by bookshelf!
I too, couldn’t/wouldn’t part with my Bill Granger cookbooks recently while ruthlessly culling for a downsize.
I have been devoted to that one since I bought it at the launch - and now he's so tragically gone (I still can't believe it) it's really precious, because he signed it for me. I absolutely loved him.
No tips from me. Have just moved & had to shed a few hundred books. Not an easy task, but tried not to be sentimental. An important key is we are no longer accumulating as we buy books on our e-readers these days. Only the odd few are bought. Anything I love I lend to friends so often these never return!! By the way I think your bookshelves look lovely. 💕
I just can't read on an e-reader. It's not for me. Thank you for kind words about my bookshelves. I do enjoy the arranging aspect.
Many of my books are textile-related; so costume history, fashion, knitting, spinning, weaving, sewing, embroidery, dyeing... I have a far better collection than most libraries, and much of the information just isn't available on the internet, as there's never the depth. So most of them are essential.
Fiction is, in some ways easier to move on. Will I ever read it again? Is it sentimental? The rest can move on to a more appreciative home.