So Many Books, So Little Time!

I just ran across this quote by children's literature author Arnold Lobel, Books to the ceiling, Books to the sky, My pile of books are a mile high. How I love them! How I need them! I'll have a long beard by the time I read them. I know lots of people who have tons of books. Okay, I confess that I am one of them. Despite the fact that many of the books remain unread, more books are added to these collections with astonishing frequency without any books departing from the space. Consequences include bowed shelves, stacks of books all over, guilt over not reading enough, and less money to spend on other items.

The idea of going to a library to check out a free book is either a foreign notion or people claim that they don't remember to return the book. I would suggest that you check with your library to find out about their fees for late book returns. Many libraries have a maximum amount of money they charge for unreturned books and it is much less than the cost of purchasing your own book. If you claim that you will lose the book, my guess is that you didn't really want to read it. Decide to check out a library book, read it, and put it in the car for the next time you pass a library. A number of library systems only require that a book be returned to a library in the system, not necessarily the branch from which you originally got the book.

Non-library related strategies include the "requirement" to delete one book from your collection for each book you purchase. While your current collection won't decrease, it won't increase either! Determine to only purchase books from second-hand stores in which you can use the credit from books you are turning in so that no money exchanges hands. Decide to look at each shelf of books and keep a limited number of treasured volumes. For instance, if the shelf has 25 books, choose the ten that you absolutely love and donate the rest.

Finally, remember that deleting a book from your collection doesn't delete the knowledge from your mind. In most instances, you can find the information  elsewhere or you can borrow the book to reread it. Heaven forbid, you could even purchase it again if required. Perish the thought!