Do you collect books?

[Matt R.]

I was just curious how everyone maintains their collections of books. In my house we have shelves and boxes and boxes of books. Do you prefer hardcover, paperbacks or both (since some releases are paperback only)? Do you keep all of your books or do you trade and sell some after reading? We keep most of our books. I was just curious how others in this group maintain collections.

[Ravenskya]

I generally only read paperbacks... and I hoard them until they drive me crazy... then I go on a rampage and swap all of them out. Once I found the online trading sites, I have turned my meager bookshelf into a shrine of books "worth keeping" rather than hoarding every book I read... now a place on my bookcase has become an honor and I can work with that. It keeps my hubby happier that way too

[Tressa]

Oh, if only I had a mansion with a library that I could fill with the books I've read, am reading, or want to read. But, my rancher just can't hold them all.

I've had to week tons of books after two moves. I keep only the books that mean something to me, be they classics, my favorite horror novels, or poetry.

I do tend to collect Ray Bradbury, Richard Laymon, Michael McDowell, and Jack Ketchum books.

If I could only get my husband to stop buying sci-fi and fantasy paperbacks. He's seriously running out of room. But we plan to make a library out of a basement room next year.

[Kathy]

I keep everything and I have such a problem with space. Very rarely do I get rid of a book (unless I accidently buy duplicates....which does happen). lol) And if I do borrow a book from someone and like it, I end up having to get my own copy anyway, so what was the point? I also love hardcovers, they're my preference. I am surrounded by books! I have over 1,000. I Love it!!!!! :)

[Kathy]

I love looking at other people's books. You can really get an idea of what they are about, more then anything they could say.

[Kathy]

I really wish I could get rid of books. I have no room. I'm surrounded.

[Jenney]

i come from a family of book lovers/readers; so books take up a very large part of my house (life) -on shelves, in boxes, stacked on the floor. i have books in bedrooms, the family room, hallway, attic, & basement. i just love books:) i buy mostly first edition hardbacks; but read everywhere, so i usually pick up the paperback edition also -i shelve the hbk & read the pbk. once i'm finished with the pbk i either pass it on to a friend or turn it in at the used bookstore.

[William]

I used www.paperbackswap.com and www.bookmooch.com. There is really no need to keep books after you have read them. Trade them and share the love.

[Matt R.]

Fellow Aficionados, great comments. In addition to my family collection, we also visit the library frequently for books and purchase new and used books as well. It is always good to have books around when you are looking for something new to read.

[Kathy]

Rebecca wrote: "Kathy, if u want to get rid of your books, i'll take them. "


I'll let you know. It's totally impossible for me to part w/ my books. Even when I lend a book to a friend, I get nervous when it's not returned soon enough.

[Debra]

Good question, I've often wondered the same thing. When we moved from Santa Fe to AZ I gave away 18 boxes of books and decided then and there to just give them away as soon as I read them. Plus our house here is really pretty small so we can't really keep much of anything. Sometimes it's kinda hard, but that was my decision and I have to stick to it.

[Brett]

I pretty much keep most of what I read. My collection is mostly paperback and maybe one fourth hard cover.
I have over 5,000 books at the moment and nearly all are on shelves in my home.
I keep an online inventory at http://www.librarything.com/battlinjack

Yes, it looks like a library. A dirty library and messy! -grin-
I alphabetize by author and keep genres separate. It's easier for me that way. All my horror and mystery/suspense are in one room while everything else is in another.

I am ALWAYS looking for more books. I read fast and since I'm on disability, I have a LOT of free time.
So my collection is always changing and growing. I'm to the point where I'm going to have to build more shelving, but I really enjoy every bit of it!

[Paul]

I tend to keep all my books until I run out of spce - then it's off to the Charity shop with a few cardboard boxes full. The only trouble is that while I'm in the shop, I'll probably pick out another six or seven books! I prefer paperbacks generally, but anything is fine. There are boxes, shelves, tables, desks, floor, all littered with books, most of which I've read several times. My wife reads as well, but her tastes are totally different - biographies, books on the places she's been to - like Africa, Israel, Nepal - but we have one shelf in common - dictionaries, atlases, thesaurus and classics - Shakespeare, Walter Scott, Shute, Graham Greene, Homer. Oh, and 1 shelf devoted to computer science books and computer games like Baldur's Gate and Planescape Torment. For the rest, they're in no particular order. I have around 800 - 900 books.

[Gabrielle]

I keep the books that leave the greatest impression on me. I also go to estate sales to find old and out of print books. I just scored a first edition Rue Morgue Mysteries by Edgar Allen Poe for $3 at a sale the other day! :)

[Kathrynn]

I keep 'em all. It's the only thing I collect, so feel it's okay. Prefer paperbacks in my fiction, but will buy non-fiction in hardback because, usually, the information is current and by the time it comes out in paperback...not so much.

I re-sold some fiction books once and regretted it. Not likely to happen again.

Have an entire shelf for books that I want to read. They are sorted by genre. My read shelves are sorted by author.

Recently, I boxed up large series books (15+) that I am no longer interested in continuing the series or the author's books. Won't get rid of them, but they were taking up too much shelf space.

[Jason]

I'm a total addict.

[Kathy]

Welcome to the club! I've been for years and keep getting worse.....or better...lol

[Mofo]

Books are my crack. I can only go so long without taking a hit. If i don't get my fix I start to itch and get fidgety.

[Scott]

I am a total addict too. I keep all the horror, metaphysical, and spiritual books in the hall shelving and stuff all the others on anything shelflike in my condo. I am getting limited on space but I would rather come up with a sort of "community library" in my condo association rather than give them up. I'm a stellar library patron but if I am near any of my fave used book shops, I come out with armloads.

[Brett]

I know what you mean Mofo. I spend food money on books all the time. I will go into a book store "just to look around" and come out having spent my last penny on books.
This is why I coined the term "Bookaholic" to describe myself. My major vice and addiction...books.

[Kathy]

Brett wrote: "I know what you mean Mofo. I spend food money on books all the time. I will go into a book store "just to look around" and come out having spent my last penny on books.
This is why I coined the ter..."


Aren't there worse vices? Lol

[Tressa]

I was at an antique store and bought an armful of Jack Ketchum, Edward Lee, and Bentley Little books. They're hard to find so I have to collect them when I can.

I saw a few copies of Ketchum's Offspring and Offseason, which was surprising.

[Tressa]

I got:

Dan Simmons/A Winter Haunting
Edward Lee/City Infernal
Bryan Smith/House of Blood (I loved Freakshow)
Bentley Little/Dispatch
Richard Laymon/Blood Games

All for a buck each.

I could kill myself for getting rid of my copy of Off Season years ago. I don't remember if it was a first edition, but the cover was black and Off Season was written in red and dripping down the front cover. I think it was a very early edition. I thought I had too many books and got rid of some.

I also got rid of copy of Out Are the Lights by Laymon. I've never even seen a copy again of that book again.

[Matt R.]

Nice!

[Tressa]

Rob, if I had kept my old Off Season I'd have the edited and unedited one because I found a recently-published copy secondhand, too.

Rebecca, I'll let you know what I think about Ed Lee's book. Rob has said some good things about him so I can't wait to see what he's all about.

We're supposed to turn our extra basement room into a library some time this year. DH has way too many scifi books, but of course I don't have too many horror books. Can't wait to shelve my precious collection in the new library.

[William]

I read my books and then trade them.

[Chris]

That is so true, me too. And Ed would consider that a huge compliment! ;)

Rebecca wrote: "Scott,
YES, I can look at my books and remember when i read them and what was happening in my life at the time too, very cool that u brought that up!
I was in such a good place in my life when I..."

[Chris]

Too funny, Scott, because I do the same thing. I will always gravitate toward someone's bookshelves...and on second thought, if someone saw my bookshelves they might not want to come visit me again!

Scott wrote: "I love to look at other people's bookshelves, too.

I keep any books that I really like. They are like souvenirs of time I spent in another place. Even though I never reread them, I can still loo..."

[Chris]

Oh yes, indeed...I would agree! ;)

Rebecca wrote: "Ha! Same here Chris---I bet we'd love to check out each other's shelves and I don't think we'd want to run away----evil grin!"

[Melissa]

I buy a ton of books, but the only ones I really "collect" in the correct definition of the word are extreme horror or "splatterpunk" books. So far my collection is measly (at least compared to how many more I would love to add to it) but I have:
Snuff (Eric Enck)
Slither, Messenger, The Bighead, Flesh Gothic, and Family Tradition (Edward Lee)
This Symbiotic Fascination (Charlee Jacob)
American Psycho (Bret Easton Ellis)
Survivor (J.F Gonzalez)
The Off Season, The Girl Next Door (Jack Ketchum)
Splatterpunks 2 (anthology)
Exquisite Corpse (Poppy Z Brite)
Succulent Prey (Wrath James White)
Endless Night (Richard Laymon)
High Life (Matthew Stokoe)

Of course, I have other horror novels by those authors, but those are the ones that might be considered splatterpunk. I take pride in my gross-out book collection haha :D

[Chris]

I like to collect the books that have the short little stories in them, the ones you buy in gift shops when I'm on vacation or visiting some place. Like "Haunted Gettysburgh" or "Tales of Wyoming Outlaws". I can never pass up one on "Haunted......stories"!

[Chris]

Great list, Melissa...I wondered if you've heard of or read anything from THE reigning kings of splatterpunk horror (in my opinion, anyway) John Skipp & Craig Specter. They hit the scene in the 80's and pretty much defined "splatterpunk." You can probably find most of their out-of-print stuff in used bookstores or online, but check out The Scream and Animals (the best werewolf novel written).

Melissa wrote: "I buy a ton of books, but the only ones I really "collect" in the correct definition of the word are extreme horror or "splatterpunk" books. So far my collection is measly (at least compared to how..."

Chris wrote: "Oh yes, indeed...I would agree! ;)

Rebecca wrote: "Ha! Same here Chris---I bet we'd love to check out each other's shelves and I don't think we'd want to run away----evil grin!"

"

[Ravenskya]

Didn't Skipp just release a novel through Leisure? I feel like I just read something by him but I'm drawing a blank

[Jason]

Kristen wrote: "Didn't Skipp just release a novel through Leisure? I feel like I just read something by him but I'm drawing a blank"

Jake's Wake.

[Chris]

And The Long Last Call...which was freakin' awesome!

Jason wrote: "Kristen wrote: "Didn't Skipp just release a novel through Leisure? I feel like I just read something by him but I'm drawing a blank"

Jake's Wake."

[Melissa]

Hah, I actually just ordered The Long Last Call. It's out of stock right now though, so it might be awhile until I read it...

But yup, I've heard of all of Skipp/Spector's books: The Cleanup, Animals, The Scream, Book of the Dead, The Bridge, etc...haven't actually been able to get ahold of any , except TLLC..:\ There's only one used bookstore near me, and the horror section is extremely limited..(I bought all of the whole Ed Lee section...although it was only 2 books hahah.)

[Brett]

Melissa wrote: "I buy a ton of books, but the only ones I really "collect" in the correct definition of the word are extreme horror or "splatterpunk" books. So far my collection is measly (at least compared to how..."

I really like Splatterpunk as well. How about Bizarro, Melissa? Have you tried any of that yet? It is a genre hard to describe but incredibly fun. Here is a link to a good site about Bizarro;
http://bizarrocentral.com/

There are several writers there that I like. In fact I like at least something of nearly all of them! A sample of authors;

Steve Aylett
Steve Beard
Andre Duza
Jeremy Robert Johnson
Carlton Mellick III
Vincent W. Sakowski
Jeremy C. Shipp
D. Harlan Wilson

Jeremy is is my favorite right now, but Carlton is a close second.

A very good book to expose yourself to the genre is titled;
The Bizarro Starter Kit - ISBN# 1-933929-00-6.
I have no idea on the cost as it was a gift. It has a sampling of 10 writers and explains the genre fairly well. There is an Orange version of the book and a Blue version.

I can talk more about Bizarro if anyone is interested about it. Or I can just talk. I like to talk. -grin-

[Chris]

I've read 3-4 books by Moore and he is very very funny.

Rebecca wrote: "The movies i'm thinking of are from a company called "Mondo Bizarro". I saw ads for them awhile back from a netflix movie i had and i think i read about them in Rue Morgue.
Anyway, Brett, i put th..."

[Melissa]

Oy, Brett: I have a bunch of bizarro on my wishlist; haven't actually gotten around to buying any yet. But I'm especially interested in Carlton Mellick's work, specifically Apeshit and Ocean of Lard.

Hah, I have so many books on my list of books to buy/read it's sad...can't keep track of half of them...

[Elke]

I read both hardcover and paperbacks. With some authors/titles, I simply can't wait for a paperback edition, so I have to get the hardcover. Of course, mostly these are books by my favorite authors, which I want as hardcover anyway. But I also have a lot of paperbacks, as a lot of books are only published in that format.

Also, I like limited and/or signed editions. I already have a fair number of books from CD, OCP and other publishers specialized in special editions, and I also keep an eye out for signed second hand editions.

The greatest part of my book collection consists of vampire literature. I just wished I had a spare library room where I could store them adequately. As it is, I even had to start selling some of my books to make room for new purchases. That was the hardest thing to do for me, to give away some of my books, but now I'm glad I did it. I also think it's nice to know that a book will be read again by someone instead of collecting dust on a shelf or rotting away in a cellar. But of course I sell only those books I did not like too much and still keep my favorites.

[Brett]

I'm glad that more people are discovering Bizarro fiction. It's really worth reading. Another good writer is Jeremy Ship. He has some good work out yonder.

[Ravenskya]

I've only read one Jeremy Ship book, and I quite enjoyed it!

[Ravenskya]

As far as collecting books - the only collection I have is my "to be read" pile. I do hang on to books about the end of the world, and anything I think my kids might have to read for school... so if you look at my bookshelf you'd think I only read classics.

For a while I collected King, then I traded them all out for other books. At the moment I seem to be holding on to McCammon books and books by Christopher Moore and Terry Pratchett... but who knows how long that will last.

[Tressa]

What exactly is Bizarro fiction?

[Brett]

Tressa wrote: "What exactly is Bizarro fiction?
"

It's easier if you go here and look around.

http://bizarrocentral.com/

Also look at the definition on Wikipedia. It's pretty cool stuff really.

[Tressa]

That's sort of what I thought it was. I went to Bizarro Central and they're spotlighting Jeremy Shipp. I've got to read his book Vacation.

I read Tom Piccirilli's A Choir of Ill Children years ago and Bizarro would perfectly describe that one.

[Scott]

I love Tom Piccirilli's work. One of my favorite authors now.

[Tressa]

That's the only book of his I read. I didn't even know who he was but I was browsing in the library and the cover of that book captured my attention. It was different than other horror books and I think that's why I enjoyed it.

Just looked up his other books and I need to put those on my list. Has anyone read the novella Fuckin' Lie Down, Already?

[Ravenskya]

Tressa, that's got to be one of the greatest titles of a horror novel... if you come across it let me know if it's any good!

[Tressa]

Kristen, I know! I'm sure we don't have it at my library, but maybe it's available through ILL. I can just imagine the people who would be wanting us to take it off the shelves.

A few years ago the library placed graphic novels up in the teen dept. on a red shelf so they would be more accessible to teens. ONE parent complained and the library took down the shelf and gave the adult dept. the graphic novels, but we're not supposed to advertise them; they're sort of hidden away. Pathetic.