This was hilariously refreshing and honest, especially about the friends’ books, and books gifted by friends. We should read them all, of course, but time is limited and one learns with time that so is the real estate of the mind. I am also glad to learn that illustrious authors can sometimes forget what they read over time , so that doesn’t only happen to me. There are some books that sink into the inner cortex of the mind, and those are the ones we might even want to read again. My mother-in-law, who was Italian, spent her later years reading and re-reading “Dr.Zhivago” in Italian translation. That was a worthy book in her mind, and one that spoke to her. She also read many other books as well, and loved to discuss them, and had her opinions. But the saga of Dr.Zhivago became a part of her in a way that the others did not. She would never forget that story, no matter what else happened in her life.
I think it is great, but of course I've only read it in translation. Had to read it in order to communicate with my mother-in-law. I also watched the movie, with Julie Christie, Omar Sharif, and the lovely Geraldine Chaplin. which was an experience in itself and a runaway hit -- but I remember thinking it not so good or insightful as the book.
It’s so true that some books just stick with us in a way that others don’t. Your mother-in-law’s love for “Dr. Zhivago” is a beautiful example of that. Thank you for sharing this insight.
Ah, such a good idea—the boring (but important), the admired (but boring) the 'I-mean-to" (but I won't). I also have a selection I bought cause the cover was that damn gorgeous. Not a lot, mind you, but some. I call them my 'art books.'
Oh yes! I broke down and got rid of a bunch of unread books during my last move...and packed a bunch MORE away in storage until we get into a more permanent place. But I didn't let being in temporary housing stop me from collecting new ones that I'll be promising myself to read.
"Oh, I simply must grab that copy of The Plot Whisperer! And what about that new creativity book by Rick Rubin?! Ooooh! The Stonewall Generation."
I finally got rid of a book that I liked looking at on the shelf, because it made me feel SMART. (House of Leaves.) It caused me real anxiety to donate it, but I was never going to finish it.
Loved reading this post. I even wrote down some of the books you haven’t read yet. I don’t think I’ll buy them yet because my stack of unread books is already to high. As an English major, I have the books that were required reading in college on a separate bookshelf because I keep thinking I’ll go back and read them someday. Let’s be real here. Do you think I ever will do that? Still, those books are so dear to me, and I remember the stimulating discussion in class. I’d never be able to part with them. Getting rid of books is painful for me. Except, maybe those gifted books. They are not usually my for forte either. I keep them on display for a few months than they are banished to bag of books I hope to donate or sell someday.
Your post really resonated with me. I also struggle with letting go of books, especially those that have sentimental value. It’s so hard to part with them, even if I know I may never read them again.
Thoroughly enjoyed this piece, Jane. I have books that fall into many of your same categories including books I will never likely read but can't let go of. Soon, however, my come-to-Thoreau moment will play out, as I am making a transatlantic move and have vowed to myself to only take the most precious books with me and give away the rest. This move is in February and this process must begin soon because it will be like casting beloved friends out the door, after years and years of loyalty. There will be tears, there will be pleas to reconsider. (Yes, my books and their authors talk to me, don't yours?) But the boxes are waiting in the corner and the Reckoning must begin.
Sounds like a difficult but necessary process. Wishing you strength and clarity as you decide which books to keep and which to give away. It’s tough saying goodbye to old friends, even if they are made of paper and ink.
Cracking up here over the DeLillo 😆🤣… Read Love in the time of cholera just last year for the first time and sadly did not enjoy- I should have read it when I was younger during ‘a different time’ 😄
Ah well. I think I'm secretly afraid of re-reading some books because I fear I'll hate them the second time around. I *loved* the book Even Cowgirls Get the Blues when I was in college, but when I picked it up a few years ago and at a used bookstore and skimmed through it, I was like: Oh no. No, no, no.
I do actually re-read some of my hundreds of books. That results in one of two responses: thank you, old friend, for never disappointing (Anne of Green Gables, A Gentleman in Moscow) and huh, what, I loved this WHY? Why exactly, which then destroys my remembered pleasure of the book.
Oh, and I forgot to mention Audible and Libby (audiobooks). Since I'm listening when I'm walking I have way too many audiobooks than I will ever walk to hear. At least they are not on display.
An art teacher friend of mine brought me a lovely picture of a living room that had fabulous book shelves like yours on all walls of the room. It was lovely as is your bookcase. I was remodeling at the time. You should do this, she said. I do love it, but I did not do it. It's NOT because I do not own enough books to fill (and overfill and still not have room for) books. When my friend and I go shopping and I buy yet another book she always says, "You know you already have more books than you can read before you die. And so it goes. I have a collection just like yours. I look it like I will bring literacy into my estate sale someday. Enjoy. Love this, good to laugh at ourselves in these times.
I have purged & purged and still.... The one about that felon who is running for pres again called Rage that I so want to read but there is so much upset in the world right now I don't want to Go There... Then there are the Kindle books--amazon Prime gives you a free book EVERY MONTH! I have to pick it, and do I read them...?? Only when they are thriller best sellers... The accumulation isn't as bad as my email box but it's bad enough--including all my Dad's Kindle books, after I gave him the app on an iPad along with my credit card...then he changed to his own credit card. He read so many books he used to return them to the bookstore--without wanting a refund, just trying to get them out of the house... He took bags to the library fundraiser drop off then went & perused the sale & invariably found he had bought back a few of the ones he dropped off (and read already..) I bought a used book (or possibly took it from him) called Tish as it's a nickname for my mom. It's ancient. Both parents are gone, and I'd like to read it, but...the pile... All the free books of poetry for donations... all the free books I got at writing conferences, or when I was teaching college English... It all makes me tired & I go put on videos...😳🙄
Oh yes...the piles of free books one accumulates as a writer / teacher. They feel like such a boon when they're first in your hands, but then...
Funny about "Tish." I bought a used book once just because it was called "Miss Jane." After about twenty years (of not reading it) I actually managed to get rid of it. It wasn't easy, but I did it!!
This was hilariously refreshing and honest, especially about the friends’ books, and books gifted by friends. We should read them all, of course, but time is limited and one learns with time that so is the real estate of the mind. I am also glad to learn that illustrious authors can sometimes forget what they read over time , so that doesn’t only happen to me. There are some books that sink into the inner cortex of the mind, and those are the ones we might even want to read again. My mother-in-law, who was Italian, spent her later years reading and re-reading “Dr.Zhivago” in Italian translation. That was a worthy book in her mind, and one that spoke to her. She also read many other books as well, and loved to discuss them, and had her opinions. But the saga of Dr.Zhivago became a part of her in a way that the others did not. She would never forget that story, no matter what else happened in her life.
Oh, I love that -- having one book that is nearest and dearest. I've never read Dr. Zhivago; maybe I should.
I think it is great, but of course I've only read it in translation. Had to read it in order to communicate with my mother-in-law. I also watched the movie, with Julie Christie, Omar Sharif, and the lovely Geraldine Chaplin. which was an experience in itself and a runaway hit -- but I remember thinking it not so good or insightful as the book.
I had to get the Pinsky version of the Iliad as I loved reading it in highs school... but have I read this translation? ...
It’s so true that some books just stick with us in a way that others don’t. Your mother-in-law’s love for “Dr. Zhivago” is a beautiful example of that. Thank you for sharing this insight.
Ah, such a good idea—the boring (but important), the admired (but boring) the 'I-mean-to" (but I won't). I also have a selection I bought cause the cover was that damn gorgeous. Not a lot, mind you, but some. I call them my 'art books.'
Let's just say that I identify with this post!
Oh yes! I broke down and got rid of a bunch of unread books during my last move...and packed a bunch MORE away in storage until we get into a more permanent place. But I didn't let being in temporary housing stop me from collecting new ones that I'll be promising myself to read.
"Oh, I simply must grab that copy of The Plot Whisperer! And what about that new creativity book by Rick Rubin?! Ooooh! The Stonewall Generation."
I finally got rid of a book that I liked looking at on the shelf, because it made me feel SMART. (House of Leaves.) It caused me real anxiety to donate it, but I was never going to finish it.
Hahah -- I think a good number of my unread books are still there because they make me feel smart. (Emerson!!)
Dreams From My Father was an amazing book! You should move it into a must-read category.
You're the second person to tell me this -- I will!!
This makes me feel so much better about the unread books in my shelf.
Loved reading this post. I even wrote down some of the books you haven’t read yet. I don’t think I’ll buy them yet because my stack of unread books is already to high. As an English major, I have the books that were required reading in college on a separate bookshelf because I keep thinking I’ll go back and read them someday. Let’s be real here. Do you think I ever will do that? Still, those books are so dear to me, and I remember the stimulating discussion in class. I’d never be able to part with them. Getting rid of books is painful for me. Except, maybe those gifted books. They are not usually my for forte either. I keep them on display for a few months than they are banished to bag of books I hope to donate or sell someday.
Your post really resonated with me. I also struggle with letting go of books, especially those that have sentimental value. It’s so hard to part with them, even if I know I may never read them again.
Thoroughly enjoyed this piece, Jane. I have books that fall into many of your same categories including books I will never likely read but can't let go of. Soon, however, my come-to-Thoreau moment will play out, as I am making a transatlantic move and have vowed to myself to only take the most precious books with me and give away the rest. This move is in February and this process must begin soon because it will be like casting beloved friends out the door, after years and years of loyalty. There will be tears, there will be pleas to reconsider. (Yes, my books and their authors talk to me, don't yours?) But the boxes are waiting in the corner and the Reckoning must begin.
It sounds awfully painful — good luck!!
Sounds like a difficult but necessary process. Wishing you strength and clarity as you decide which books to keep and which to give away. It’s tough saying goodbye to old friends, even if they are made of paper and ink.
Cracking up here over the DeLillo 😆🤣… Read Love in the time of cholera just last year for the first time and sadly did not enjoy- I should have read it when I was younger during ‘a different time’ 😄
Ah well. I think I'm secretly afraid of re-reading some books because I fear I'll hate them the second time around. I *loved* the book Even Cowgirls Get the Blues when I was in college, but when I picked it up a few years ago and at a used bookstore and skimmed through it, I was like: Oh no. No, no, no.
All of this!
I do actually re-read some of my hundreds of books. That results in one of two responses: thank you, old friend, for never disappointing (Anne of Green Gables, A Gentleman in Moscow) and huh, what, I loved this WHY? Why exactly, which then destroys my remembered pleasure of the book.
Yes! See my comment above re. "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues." Anne will never disappoint...
Oh, and I forgot to mention Audible and Libby (audiobooks). Since I'm listening when I'm walking I have way too many audiobooks than I will ever walk to hear. At least they are not on display.
Yes, digital overload doesn't have the same psychological effect!
An art teacher friend of mine brought me a lovely picture of a living room that had fabulous book shelves like yours on all walls of the room. It was lovely as is your bookcase. I was remodeling at the time. You should do this, she said. I do love it, but I did not do it. It's NOT because I do not own enough books to fill (and overfill and still not have room for) books. When my friend and I go shopping and I buy yet another book she always says, "You know you already have more books than you can read before you die. And so it goes. I have a collection just like yours. I look it like I will bring literacy into my estate sale someday. Enjoy. Love this, good to laugh at ourselves in these times.
Oh, I feel this so much!
I have purged & purged and still.... The one about that felon who is running for pres again called Rage that I so want to read but there is so much upset in the world right now I don't want to Go There... Then there are the Kindle books--amazon Prime gives you a free book EVERY MONTH! I have to pick it, and do I read them...?? Only when they are thriller best sellers... The accumulation isn't as bad as my email box but it's bad enough--including all my Dad's Kindle books, after I gave him the app on an iPad along with my credit card...then he changed to his own credit card. He read so many books he used to return them to the bookstore--without wanting a refund, just trying to get them out of the house... He took bags to the library fundraiser drop off then went & perused the sale & invariably found he had bought back a few of the ones he dropped off (and read already..) I bought a used book (or possibly took it from him) called Tish as it's a nickname for my mom. It's ancient. Both parents are gone, and I'd like to read it, but...the pile... All the free books of poetry for donations... all the free books I got at writing conferences, or when I was teaching college English... It all makes me tired & I go put on videos...😳🙄
Oh yes...the piles of free books one accumulates as a writer / teacher. They feel like such a boon when they're first in your hands, but then...
Funny about "Tish." I bought a used book once just because it was called "Miss Jane." After about twenty years (of not reading it) I actually managed to get rid of it. It wasn't easy, but I did it!!
It sounds like you have quite the collection of books to choose from! Maybe start with a short one to ease into it. 😊
Oh I have a bunch of those! LOL