Finding Room for Our Past Reads

Books can be hard to part with.

We enjoyed a story. The book left a good impression on us, and we might want to read it again. So, what do we do? Save it, of course.

For those who’ve made the switch to e-readers, storing books is no problem.

The paper book readers among us who can’t bring ourselves to part with previously read books face a dilemma, though. Where do we store our books?

I don’t know about you, but I filled our bookshelves to the brim years ago. Since we have eight different bookcases in our house, this lets you know how important books are to Gwynly and me.

Even with my habit of giving away past reads or donating them to the library, the number of books in our house continues to increase. While I do a passable job of passing on romances I’ve read, my reference library filled with keepers keeps on growing.

I’m steeling myself to put our bookshelves on a diet, but even a strict reduction plan isn’t the answer. There are too many great books I can’t resist buying.

What am I to do?

Clearly, I can make better use of my Kindle. I like using it for fiction, but I prefer paper versions for non-fiction. Going digital for the romances I buy regularly will help, but I fear I have to face the fact that I need a more permanent solution to the ease our case of bookcase bloat.

For now, I ignore my OC tendencies, turn books on their sides, and fill the empty spaces above the neat rows below. And I dream of the day I can lay claim to our college daughter’s room and add another bookcase or two.

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Do you have trouble parting with past reads?

Are your bookshelves filled to overflowing?

How do you make room for all your beloved books?

image from iStockphoto