How do you arrange your books on your shelves? Is it by author, by genre, or you just put it where it falls on?Ah, yes – shelving! Now there's a subject that can warm the heart! No, really – it's one of my favorite topics. And over the years and through all our changes of household, my husband and I have played with several different "systems." Because I suffer from a rampant case of OCD (Adrian Monk is my hero), I tend to like my books separated into fiction or nonfiction, and arranged in strict alphabetical order (by author, then by title). I haven't yet taken to arranging them by size or dust jacket color, but I'm sure that's coming one of these days.
My husband has a slightly different system for his academic books, and I'm not completely sure what that comprises. I know they're separated out into genres, or areas of study, and also by various literary eras. He also has a separate area where he shelves journals and periodicals – I think those might be divided into the volumes that have his articles in them, and those that don't. And every now and then he has purges in which he throws out all those nasty, unenlightened journals whose editors haven't seen fit to include his articles – and only keeps the "good stuff."
Of course, not all our books actually make it onto shelves. . . .
But that's a whole other long, messy tale.
If you didn't have that pile of unshelved books, the whole idea of bookshelves as a metaphor of mind would be lost. Gotta have some creative disorder in there! :-)
ReplyDeleteHow do you find what you want to read if you cannot see the title? Or, is that NOT a picture from your home?
ReplyDeleteBTW: I love, love, love Monk too.
I know all about those books that don't make it onto the shelves!!! I didn't even go there.
ReplyDeleteI have a lot of books who haven't made it onto shelves yet either! Someday though, after I've read them.
ReplyDelete- Meghan @ Medieval Bookworm
Blimey thats quite a pi;le of books there, I am getting TBR envy hahahaha. I like the fact shelving warms your heart to... it does mine!
ReplyDeleteMore and more of my books aren't making it onto shelves, but I can't start weeding out yet because there are so many of them that I haven't yet read.
ReplyDeleteOoh I love looking at that pile of books! So heartwarming! I currently don't have one but sometimes I do (not that many, though). :)
ReplyDeleteThat picture sort of looks like my system...lol
ReplyDeleteI organize by author and/or genre.
ReplyDeleteI used to separate the books by genre but not anymore. I also have books that don't fit into the shelves, usually the newest ones.
ReplyDeleteNothing says "cozy" like copious amounts of bookshelves filled to the brim and then overflowing! My, we ARE related aren't we -- my bookshelves are full, my window seat is full, my closet is filling up to the point that I am getting rid of handbags. And yet.....I shop -- with a list. We are a hopeless duo, dear, but I LIKE my books and I do find them cozy and companionable (they don't talk back or argue) and I just don't think I would be comfortable without my books around. Right now, mine are arranged by "read" and "to be read" in the order I might like to read them but then, that is always subject to change.
ReplyDeleteHa! Talk about OCD! I shelf my books by author's last name in alphabetical order. For fiction and literature, I single out the ones to be re-read and put them on a different case.
ReplyDeleteI've got three piles that never make it to the shelves!