A well-tended bookshelf

I recent read a great and timely article in the NYT about managing a ever-expanding collection of books -- it made me laugh about my own problem! Anyone who has visited my home will tell you that I have books everywhere -- I convinced Tom to install floor-to-ceiling bookshelves in a particular useless corner of our living room; I have a basket of "to read" books in our bedroom; our home in Plymouth has at least 3 different sets of bookshelves throughout. To say nothing of the collection I left behind at my parents' house and have yet to ransom out.

Although not quite as bad as I am, Tom is an avid reader himself. We have pretty much every Stephen King and Henry Rollins, and he's building an impressive collection of both cookbooks and books about cooking.

Through our many moves, I've been whittling down the collection. Those that I read and didn't care for usually go to the local library or the MIT Furniture Exchange. A pretty significant stash is still down in Plymouth -- old textbooks from grad school classes, a random assortment on the top shelves that I didn't get to sorting.

I love looking at my collection, although I only just started re-reading some recently -- "From Beruit to Jerusalem" seems particularly relevant these days. I have an adversion to lending out anything other than those I disliked -- have you ever noticed how the favorite book you lent to a good friend never seems to get returned?

And yet I buy more! When I traveled out to the West Coast a lot, I had at least a half dozen independent bookstores I liked to visit and especially peruse the discount sections. There's nothing I like more than finding a book I wanted to read marked down to mere dollars! Tom keeps telling me I need to get a library card -- the Somerville Library is a reasonable walk from the house and probably a lot less expensive. But then I recently rediscovered one of my favorite places as a child: the New England Mobile Bookfair in Newton. Oh my lord - book heaven!

How do you manage your collection?