I hoard books. I hardly ever give any of my own books away, and I never ever sell them. Even the bad ones. I am wondering whether the aversion to writing in books is tied up in some sort of transitory ownership-idea. I would have thought it would be the other way around, that those of us who cannot bear to part with the book as an object would be more protective of it, but now I am starting to wonder.
So: do you collect books?
Yes. It is becoming a problem.
do you purchase books specifically for collecting?
Hmm. Yes and no. I don't go hunting, and I do not really care about "collectibility" per se. But I am very sensitive to the aura of books. Relax. I do not mean shimmery lights. But the sense of history and age and closeness to the author (signatures, first editions, owned by particular people close to the author++). I recently raided a great aunt's cabinet and took away a gardening book from the 1700s, for example. I am thrilled. I will probably never read it. I suppose it is almost fetishistic (in the cult sense, not the sex sense).
do you sell books when you are done with them?
Never. Never ever. I did when I was a kid, because that is what someone told me to, but I haven't since I started buying books on my own. I did not even get rid of the Hannah Montana book Tom got me for Christmas a couple of years back.
do you borrow a lot of books in the library?
I did as a kid. I practically lived in the library. I still remember the summer the library was closed as one of the scarier of my life. But while I still visit the library to do research and for work purposes, I hardly ever take out novels. And I quite often end up buying the books I look at in the reading rooms. (That said: don't you dare close down the public libraries, Cameron.)
do you buy used books?
Yes. As I said, I prefer old books to new, and I like a book with some history behind it. Used book shops are what heaven would be like for me if I had one.
why/why not?
They smell so nice, and I like the feeling of holding something that connects to other periods. I like finding inscriptions, and I feel books are more "real", somehow, if they are older and have been thumbed through a lot. Glossy new books, especially of the paperback variety, are ... I don't know.
*MySmiley*
structured procrastinator
structured procrastinator
Addendum to previous survey: do you hoard books or pass them on/sell them when you are done?
26/06/2011 09:21:48 PM
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My answers
26/06/2011 09:38:40 PM
- 650 Views
I don't hoard books, they just have a tendency to end up in my presence.
26/06/2011 10:56:13 PM
- 625 Views
As of now, I still have room on my bookshelf so I don't need to get rid of anything.
27/06/2011 02:42:21 AM
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Re: Addendum to previous survey: do you hoard books or pass them on/sell them when you are done?
29/06/2011 11:53:42 AM
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Re: Addendum to previous survey: do you hoard books or pass them on/sell them when you are done?
29/06/2011 02:15:55 PM
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Re: Addendum to previous survey: do you hoard books or pass them on/sell them when you are done?
30/06/2011 11:37:46 AM
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Re: Addendum to previous survey: do you hoard books or pass them on/sell them when you are done?
30/06/2011 11:39:46 AM
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I wouldn't say I collect books for collection's sake, but I don't get rid of them either
29/06/2011 12:15:45 PM
- 770 Views