BTT: Why Buy?
Nov. 13th, 2008 09:50 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fourzoasToday's Booking Through Thursday will probably get me a thump on the head from Steve. One of the main things that he learned about me the first time that I moved during our relationship (about 2 years in, I think) was that I own a lot of books.
I'm currently sitting in my office at work. There are 4 7-shelf bookcases in this room, each one pretty much filled. At home I have only filled one tall bookcase, but there are 5 more in the house that will be filled once I (decide to)finish unpacking all of the boxes of books. I like to own books that I have read, am reading, and will read. I'm a collector.
I do use the library, particularly for academic criticism and the like; those books can be a)very expensive and b) difficult to locate, so the library is a nice thing to have around. I've pretty much stopped purchasing anything in the "popular" or "pulp" category--I tend to get one time only reads as audiobooks, since I'm unlikely to actually read them in print anyway and they make for good driving companions.
Why buy? I like to have them available to me when I need them. I tend to simmer a lot and I need to have them accessible when the idea starts to boil. I'm also discovering that I'm very visual; sometimes I can't remember who said something, but I do remember what the book looked liked, and having my copy available makes locating sources that much easier.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Have a great Thursday. I've got a date with Dorian Gray--we're going to have a chat about a picture.
I’ve asked, in the past, about whether you more often buy your books, or get them from libraries. What I want to know today, is, WHY BUY?
Even if you are a die-hard fan of the public library system, I’m betting you have at least ONE permanent resident of your bookshelves in your house. I’m betting that no real book-lover can go through life without owning at least one book. So … why that one? What made you buy the books that you actually own, even though your usual preference is to borrow and return them?
If you usually buy your books, tell me why. Why buy instead of borrow? Why shell out your hard-earned dollars for something you could get for free?
I'm currently sitting in my office at work. There are 4 7-shelf bookcases in this room, each one pretty much filled. At home I have only filled one tall bookcase, but there are 5 more in the house that will be filled once I (decide to)finish unpacking all of the boxes of books. I like to own books that I have read, am reading, and will read. I'm a collector.
I do use the library, particularly for academic criticism and the like; those books can be a)very expensive and b) difficult to locate, so the library is a nice thing to have around. I've pretty much stopped purchasing anything in the "popular" or "pulp" category--I tend to get one time only reads as audiobooks, since I'm unlikely to actually read them in print anyway and they make for good driving companions.
Why buy? I like to have them available to me when I need them. I tend to simmer a lot and I need to have them accessible when the idea starts to boil. I'm also discovering that I'm very visual; sometimes I can't remember who said something, but I do remember what the book looked liked, and having my copy available makes locating sources that much easier.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Have a great Thursday. I've got a date with Dorian Gray--we're going to have a chat about a picture.