Literary Quote of the Month

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies," said Jojen. "The man who never reads lives only one." - George R.R. Martin, A Dance With Dragons

Monday, June 1, 2009

To Shelf or Not to Shelf...That is the Question!

Le Bal Des Ardents

This is the entrance to the book store Le Bal Des Ardents (the dance of the burning ones) in Lyons, France! This archway is amazing and is typical of keystone arches popular in medieval architecture. The keystone is the actual piece at the crown of the arch that holds all the other pieces together. Can someone tell me if these books are actually stacked this perfect on their own?! I thought it was a great photo and it made me think of my own "stacks" of books....

I wish I could make an archway like this! But it raises the question, how do you 'store' your books? I love libraries & old bookstores and wish I had some of those beautiful wooden shelves I've seen in some of these places.

For now, I have shelves overflowing into stacks of books. Stacks of books in various rooms of the house! (OK... in all the rooms of the house!)I dream of built-in bookcases....

So, how do YOU store your books? Stacks, shelves, something else? I know you have a LOT of books! Where do you put them all? Share your strategies here! And if you know of any other beautiful bookish places, you can share those here too! Happy reading....

14 comments:

Ella Preuss said...

Shelves work fine to me... my book numbers are still growing, but I do have more books than any of my friends! ;)

Suzanne Yester said...

Hi Ella!
I have more books than any of my friends too! ;) My hubby thinks I have too many books period! Part of my problem is I hate to part with my books - they all represent a little bit of something from when I was reading them. Thanks for sharing!

Darlene said...

Ugggggh! I have no system and no strategy. There are books everywhere now-in every spare piece of space. lol.

Suzanne Yester said...

Hi Dar! Great readers stack alike! :D Books everywhere! At least if we become snow bound we won't be bored! Not sure if I could burn the books for heat though....

Anonymous said...

Wow, that looks awesome. If only I could do that. I have shelves, night stands, dressers, my desk all piled with books. Never enough room :(

Cathy said...

I have shelves - A three piece book case unit in the bedroom is shared between hubbie and me. Additionally, I have exclusive rights to both book case units downstairs. He throws the ones that don't fit on the shelves into a big bucket in the basement!

The arch looks great! Can you actually pull out a book without it tumbling down?

Mari - Escape In A Book said...

I loved that picture!!

I have my books in bookshelves.

Keri said...

If I could figure out how to do that and make it work safely, I would buy extra books just to create it.

Suzanne Yester said...

Hi Debbie! I think you and I have similar 'storage' styles! :D And you would think we would stop buying books because there's no where left to put them?! Nah!

Suzanne Yester said...

Hi Cathy! Now that I have hubby reading more he fights me for HIS bookcase and shelf space! ;) I think the arch would all come tumbling down if we removed one - but it's suppose to be a stable design... And I also read that the Heinz ketchup label is a shaped like a keystone! After I took a better look I saw that it really was!

Suzanne Yester said...

Hi Ladybug! It is such a great picture! Would love to see it in person! Maybe would should all plan a road trip... :D Any one speak french? Shelves seem to be the answer to our needs! Thanks for sharing!

Suzanne Yester said...

Hi Keri Bo Beari! I would love to have a book of arches too! If they did the 'old fashion' way by actually using the weight of the books to hold it all together - I wonder how many people it took to steady it all until the key book was placed?!

Anonymous said...

Just catching up on the blog and wanted to say Hi! Awesome photo. We have turned our small lounge room into a library with 7foot bookcases at the moment but with 3 bookaholics in the house the shelving is not adequate so as part of the renovations we are putting in floor to ceiling shelves with a ladder, (12 foot ceiling, an extravagance I never thought I would get to indulge. Piles of books seem to be everywhere, I try to stay out of my daughters room, as she makes me look tidy, which is saying something.

Suzanne Yester said...

I am soooo jealous! Floor to ceiling shelves!!! Hey- how about a photo when it's all done?! I'd love to see it! Thanks for stopping by! I know how busy we all get! Take Care!

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