The real problem, however, as most book lovers will immediately understand, is not my love of the printed book. Instead, it's the problem of finding the space to house all the books I already own and the time to actually read some of them. I'm not about to offer any solutions to those problems here because I have never come even close to solving either of them. I've resigned myself to the fact that I will never have enough of either...because no real book lover ever does. It's a given.
So why did I stop by Barnes & Noble today for god's sake? The reason will be obvious to my fellow book nerds: I was passing right in front of the store on my way home from a visit to my father's apartment (where I had already acquired a new book because someone there had given it to him so that he could pass it on to me). Come one, confess...you would have stopped at B&N, too...right?
And now I am the proud owner of three other books I never knew existed before my unplanned stop at the bookstore this morning. For now they are going to sit on the floor, right next to my desk, until I can find a better spot for them. I already know that I'm unlikely to read any of them in the next few weeks because I'm already rather frantically trying to finish several very long library books before they have to go back to the library in just a few days. I know that I could just return them late and pay the nominal fine involved, but I have a personal rule that I never purposely return a book late that another patron has placed on hold. I hate that when people do it to me when I'm next in line, and I refuse to do it to others. (I do admit that I'm tempted this time because of how long I waited for some of these books to become available to me. After all, it's not my fault that they all arrived at the same time.)
Problems of book lovers...aren't they great?
I'm in exactly the same situation. I put several books on hold at the library and then, as always happens, several came in at once. I'd been in the middle of a couple of my own books, but I put them aside to read the library ones. Now I'm feeling frantic! But if I walked past a used book store, a Barnes & Noble, I'd go in and probably come out with another book, too!
ReplyDeleteJoan, there has to be a name for this Book Nerd Law in which whole groups of library holds arrive at the same time. It's inevitable, seems like to me. If it has not been claimed, I'm going to start calling it Sattler's Law of Library Carnage. LOL
DeleteYesterday, I went to the library's monthly book sale to pick up a copy of A Passage to India for a book club next month. The greeter informed me that today is the annual 5-bucks-a-bag sale. Five dollars for all the books you can fit into a paper bag.
ReplyDeleteHe then handed me a paper grocery bag.
Oh, no, I thought. Oh, no.
Geez, James, I don't know how I could stand the stress of something like that...my heart might stop on me. Never happens here at my library system, and maybe that's a good thing for my sake.
DeleteSo much love and empathy for this post! Good on you for your library manners.
ReplyDeleteWe of the "Book Reading class" are definitely a minority these days, Susan, but I consider us to be the cream of the species crop. LOL
DeleteHeh, these are the kinds of problems it is nice to have, yes? :)
ReplyDeleteIf your over 60 at the library I go to the most, all fines are forgiven. However, if you lose a book you pay for it. I'm a voracious reader and book collector. A few years ago some people started The Little Library, which is a miniature house with glass doors sitting on a post. These have been placed in people's front yards and at elementary schools. The mission is to encourage reading and to give or take a book. It's a lending library with no strings. I plan on placing some of my already read books in these Little Libraries and recycling some books at Half-Price Books.
ReplyDeleteIf your over 60 at the library I go to the most, all fines are forgiven. However, if you lose a book you pay for it. I'm a voracious reader and book collector. A few years ago some people started The Little Library, which is a miniature house with glass doors sitting on a post. These have been placed in people's front yards and at elementary schools. The mission is to encourage reading and to give or take a book. It's a lending library with no strings. I plan on placing some of my already read books in these Little Libraries and recycling some books at Half-Price Books.
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely familiar with the space issue. A couple months ago I got all fired up about decluttering and getting my house clean. I decided I was going to cull my library a bit. I had visions of boxes of books I was going to donate - so much more room on my bookshelves! I got rid of 4 books.
ReplyDeleteI just couldn't do it.
I managed to get rid of close to 100 books during 2015 but it would be tough to let go of any of the books I have now. Maybe one or two...like that absolutely horrible novel Girl on a Train. I read it and it irritates me to think I wasted time on it every time I see it on a shelf in the closet.
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