Well... one reason is that it's not my book. I live with another book hoarder, you see.
But, as I write this, I face one wall of bookshelves, filled with books, books stacked on books, in two rows and all that. I suppose most book hoarders know what I am talking about. Let's go through a couple of shelves, and I'll tell you why the books on those shelves are kept.
I got that book from my parents.
That I got from my brother.
That from my sisters.
That I bought myself, because it is a very beautiful and inspiring book. I feel good while reading it.
That I bought because I'm interested in the subject.
That I got as a Christmas present, because I'm interested in the subject. I wouldn't have bought it, but it was a gift, and you don't throw away gifts. Or give away or sell them.
I got that one.
That's Henric's.
Those were part of a book listing. I wanted one book in a set of four, and even as I don't want the others, they are good books, and one should never, ever throw away books - not even bad books - and no-one will buy them.
Those I bought because I thought I'd like them, but I hate them.
That's my Alexandre Dumas collection from 19th century. I doubt it's worth anything, but it makes me feel rich, and I love Dumas' adventure books.
That's my Jules Verne collection.
I might read that self-help book some day.
That one is on my to-read-list.
Those I enjoyed reading, and even though I doubt I'll ever read them again... books are friends, and you don't throw away, give away or sell your friends. Besides, no-one would want them either.
Besides. Books are beautiful. Books are not clutter. A hoard of books is a library, and that's a good thing.
1 comment:
I have so many books -- too many still unread -- that I could not buy another one for several years and I still don't think I'd catch up on my cache. But until I read them, I just like having them around.
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