Books

[jack]

I've been cataloguing my books. I'm about half way through, and have shelved:

~100 very good books, on bookcase #1.
~150 good books, temporarily boxed while waiting for a final count.
~75 books I don't really care about, but found interesting enough to keep.
~25 books I haven't read.
3 books I don't want at all. (1 Jenny Colgan, blame Jane, 1 random horror, 1 random thriller.)
4 books I don't own. (Same Jenny Colgan, 1 Umberto Eco long-term loaned from Grandfather, Tristan Shandy from Katherine, Mathematics of Financial Derivatives from Justin.)
10 not fiction and poetry, not including textbooks which are packed with notes.

Doubling gives about 700 total, about 500 which it would be nice to display. I have just about that much space if I set up the new bookcase and empty the oldest one.

I've been sorting books into very good and good, in my opinion, and within that shelved by author. I've kept some authors together, when I've generally liked or not been too bothered about them, but split up some's books when some I've really liked and some I really haven't.

Fortunately, I've no co-authored books where I can't decide where to put it. I've never liked an Pournelle or Barnes, so all those go under Niven. Good Omens goes under Pratchett because I've only got Neverwhere of Gaimen's.

I'm slightly scared there's so many, though nothing to how many some friends have. And pleased by how few I don't want.

I should have done more cleaning instead, but I'm pleased I did this. Maybe next I'll sort through the drawers of useless tat and get everything labeled up! :)

How does everyone else sort?

Comments

[bouteillebleu.livejournal.com]

I have one bookcase of fiction, one of manga/DVDs/computer books/anything that needs a large shelf, and one for all the rest of my non-fiction. Also, a large box under the bed full of linguistics books I should try to sell at some point.

I like the idea of sorting fiction by whether you like it or not. Mine's sorted alphabetically and double-shelved, so I have a whole lot of Robin Hobb and Guy Gavriel Kay I'm probably never going to read just staring at me. And (oh, the shame), a whole half-shelf of Eddings hidden behind the rest of A-E. Which I've read before, and probably never will again.

The manga/DVD/computer/large book bookcase is vaguely sorted by series or genre. The other one is yet more vaguely sorted by subject and whether the book fits in the available space...

I'd get more bookcases, as these ones are all bowing under the weight, but there's no space - attic room, thus low ceilings. :)

I like the idea of sorting fiction by whether you like it or not.

[cartesiandaemon.livejournal.com]

Duh :)

Anything you're not actually likely to want needn't really be out, or at least *behind* on the double shelving! But inertia defeats any such efforts.

I'd get more bookcases, as these ones are all bowing under the weight, but there's no space - attic room, thus low ceilings. :)

Yeah :( My last house was great -- there were three bedrooms plus an attic than was way too low to fit a person in, but had mucho volume for storage!