Anyway, when I was done, I looked at my bookcase and scanned the books that we have.
I do not organize books by author, or alphabetically. I organize them by type and height. Some hate when books are not alphabetized, I cannot stand seeing a short book in the middle of two tall ones..tall, tall, short, tall, sticks too far out from the book it's next to...insanity!
This is what sits on the shelves and why I keep them:
Travel books.
Why keep these? If we were to go back to any of those places we'd need to get the updated books. I guess so I can look at them fondly knowing I was lucky enough to do some cool traveling. And it looks pretty.
Self Help/ Here's How to Raise Your Kid:
I buy these
with every intention of helping myself and learning how to feed and teach my kids the right things. I pretty much get through the first 5 pages of each book and never touch them again except when dusting.
I keep these to look smart and I might need to reference them in case the kids go wild or I finally have my mid-life crisis.
How-To Books:
I love "how -to" books! So many neat things to make and build. I dive in with such enthusiasm, look at the cool pictures, read the instructions and say to myself, "This sounds complicated, I'm just gonna wing it." Sometimes that works, and other times I throw down my tools and swear never to make anything again.
I keep these books so that I can repeat that cycle.
Series Books:
Charlaine Harris' "Sookie Stackhouse" books, Janet Evanovich and her "Stephanie Plum" series, Harry Potter...they each get their own shelves. This is the only time I will arrange books the way they're "supposed" to be. Although maybe I should go wild and set them out of order...how long before it drives me nuts?
I will never get rid of these books.
Sci-Fi:
These belong to my husband. He's allowed a shelf .
General Fiction:
I guess it's not really general..it's either murder, mystery, murder-mystery, romantic comedy or so funny I laugh out loud in public in places that are good to have a book to read but no one has a reason to laugh hysterically. Examples are: dmv, quiet hipster coffee shop where people are too cool to laugh, any kind of waiting room, and the parking lot of your kid's school.
I keep those to show that my brain is not just full of hilarious vampire murder romantic wizard books.
It's funny that most of my gut wrenching, life thinking books are from when I was young. "The Bridge to Terabithia", "The Outsiders", "Where the Red Fern Grows" ....Stay gold Pony Boy!
I can be deep.
I once belonged to a book club. The books were intriguing, deep, so full of emotion....and at the end of each one I was drained and wanted to jump off of a bridge.
They also bore what I now think of as my "mark of death" for books , the Oprah's Book Club seal.
I never understood why we couldn't mix it up a little. Joanna Fluke's books make you wonder who dunnit and has tasty recipes. That suggestion got me stares and cricket silence.
Yes, my name is Phyllis and I am a book hoarder. Love them. I still have books from when I was a kid. I want my kids to read them with the same excitement and fervor that I had, and still have.
I don't even get rid of the truly horrible ones. This explains why I still have the "Twilight" books, and since I have only two of them, I feel the need to get the others just so I have a complete set.
Someone help me!!!
What are your faves? What's your favorite genre? Are you an Oprah's Book Club president for your area?
