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I know a bookseller who has a rather lucrative sideline selling books to people who want to stock their libraries. He sells them by the foot or yard the finer the binding the more expensive they are. He also loans out books for film and TV shows. One recent request was for books on psychiatry, with clearly visible titles for a medical show. The people I suspect you dislike are the 'coffee table' folks who have the latest fashionable book visible for all to see. The trick is show interest and I will guarantee they will offer to lend it to you.

Oh.. Ive heard about this. People who will buy books based on color scheme or even display fake books, to enhance a room or make it more welcoming....

Eek!

One must differentiate, though, between the posers and those who have unread books on shelves that they are just dying to read. I know I have a bookshelf mainly full of books I haven't read yet (in addition to bookshelves full of read books). But, I fully intend on reading every one of them and love choosing amongst all of them when I move on to the next book. A stranger could easily start pointing out interesting books I have, learn that I haven't read them yet, and take me for a poser. That would be sad. They are indeed on display, but more for me than for others as I love looking at all the lovely books and thinking about which one I will read next.

Model Homes have books out posing with the decorated rooms that people walk through. I always go over to each book which is opened up and read the page - I am curious to see what the decorator opens a page to and leaves it "open on the bed or night stand".
I always go look what the book titles are in model homes -
Often I pick up a book & sit down in a cozy chair and read a few pages.
Something about me wants that book to have been paid attention to in that model home - where it is being ignored :)
I feel like the book wants to be read and not rejected and ignored - because it is alive with someones story - then I leave - and me and the book know the book's words have come to life a little and now the book can be happier posing there awhile longer in the model home.
:) Sharon

My aunt is big on the fake book thing. In her den she has quite a few stacked perfectly on her bookshelves. Titles like War & Peace, Moby Dick, A Tale of Two Cities and so on. She uses the ones that aren't even real books and you can't even open up! They're just made of wood(?) and painted to look like leather-bound copies with the title on the spines. It makes me sad.

I have stacks of books I haven't read yet because I buy them faster than I can read. Jessica, your aunt is weird!! Why would she bother ? I truley do not understand people was don't read. I am not talking about people who like to read but have too many commitments like school or kids... Although I always found a little time to read when I was in school or my kids were small. A woman at work recently told me she does not like to read a book that teaches her something... I learn something from every book I read. That is one of the joys of reading !!!

I think a good way to differentiate a "poser" (love that, Ronna) vs. a true reader is the way the books are displayed/kept in the home. I'm sure all of us have our books pretty much on shelves, and in some sort of order that we can figure out, but then we have others strewn about, right? On the floor next to a chair, on the bedside table, some stacked in a corner, etc. etc. And I think that adds much more charm and warmth to a home too, not having them perfectly displayed just for show.

Pointless instead. And unnecessarily ostentatious.

Weird - that would never occur to me. Of course that is probably because I am like most of you and have books on shelves, but also books sitting everywhere. And I have two or three backpacks/bookbags full of books to take when I go places.

Ronna wrote: "Ok, I have to clear some things up. When I mean displaying a book and not reading it, I meant those people in HGTV. Now I just love HGTV, but the book's-a-display-thing-that-they-didn't-even-have-b..."

I was clear on what you meant. I look at all my unreads and think that one day when I retire, I will read them all - LOL.

One day I was at my sister-in-laws and she was displaying several classics on her mantle. I asked if she had read any of them,as I thought we could discuss them. As it turns out they were strictly for show. I told her how sad, she was missing out on some great literature. She also had some magazines on her coffee table.ie Goodhousekeeping etc. She said it gives the impression that you are a learned person. LOL I said well you need Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker etc. Now that is a poser .

I have a bunch of books I never will read at my house. The jackets match my drapes, which match my Kinkaides, which match my carpet, which matches the dog.

The trick is to only have friends and relatives who read even less.

JK.

Thank goodness for media mail. I just shipped all our books across the Pacific for not too much. Now I have more books than I have shelves. Can't purge, though-- I have three kids and they are moving through different levels-- must keep everything.

I was at a friend's relative's house one day & she was totally showing off about how much money they had and she had one shelf about 12 feet high (the house had vaulted ceilings) with a slew of leather bound books artistically arranged. I couldn't read the titles because they were so out of reach but once I saw that her bragging didn't seem so bad. I just felt sorry for her sad little life - bragging to someone you don't even know, pretending to be a reader and not even having the sense to display books at an accessible level.

My husband still has his college textbooks from 35 years ago. Now that is sad. I tried to give some away. He loves those books LOL. He says they may become a classic. I said yes an antique like you and I.

Oh, man I hate that...I have separate shelves, read and to read!

I thought I'd share this because I actually got goosebumps when I saw this!

I want to live in one of those libraries!

Renata wrote: "I want to live in one of those libraries!"

Me too!

a to-read shelf. nice idea.

It helps me keep my very disorganized life a bit more organized.

I remember in Window 95 or earlier used to have a library scene as a background for the desktop. I always wished I could see the titles and find the books. I have an antiquarian taste, but I'm not really a collector.

I have one shelf for my books and then a stack on top of my wardrobe. Been giving out my books to the library and others since I have a dreadfully small room. Need to begin reconsidering my furniture choices and hope to get in another shelf to do a pretty side by side!

Monique wrote: "

I thought I'd share this because I actually got goosebumps when I saw this!"

Haha! I love that the blog title is Hot Library Smut!

Fiona wrote: "Urgh sick!

The best looking bookshelf are books that look like they've been read, an assortment of different colours and titles.

If you have books just for show, you can't really be that clever n..."
I so agree with you, Fi! All of my reads and to-reads are together, but I love being able to pick what I want to read next out of my own colection, and slowly acwuriing more.

Read Heavy in the Game by J. Love

I know! I have this friend who owns all the classics in leather bound editions and has them neatly stacked on his shelves in the den and he has never read them. If you open one of the books then that will be the first time is has ever been opened. I also knew this woman who owned Austen's works in hardback and she had all of the Bronte's sisters' works in hardback but she never read any of them - lucky for me I now own those Austen and the Bronte books! Anyhow, I think its lame to own books just because you think it makes you look well read. UGH!

I have two collections. The one of the greatest size is my well read, worn, paperback books. My wife tells me to get rid of them, but I can't because I love them. Then when I read a classic that I really enjoy I will go out and buy that book bound in leather. Never to read that copy. It is for display, showing my love for that book.

I went to an antiques store at the beginning of August, and found a bunch of classic titles in what looked like leather binding. I went to pick them up--and they weren't books!

Someone had picked some favored titles, and made a sculpture out of them. I'd much rather read Emily Dickinson than glance at a fake spine of her poetry!

I hate how leather bound books look. BUT, there's a lovely collection here, kind of like the Penguin classics but with many more titles and I love buying them because the spines have different colors and I love the way they look on the shelf- cute, homey, colorful and fun. I would never waste my money on a book I'm absolutely sure I'm never going to read, but I have a few dozen books from that collection that I don't intend to read any time soon, I have a long life full of books ahead of me.

But, honestly, better display books than hideous art. They're a worthwhile investment no matter what, there's still a chance that you or your kids or another resident of your house will eventually read them.

Andreea wrote: "But, honestly, better display books than hideous art. They're a worthwhile investment no matter what, there's still a chance that you or your kids or another resident of your house will eventually read them. "

Very good point.

Even if you hate those people*, at least they're contributing to the book industry. Although if they haven't read any of them, they're probably just buying classics or whatever is currently popular instead of books by some lesser known writers who could use the financial support more.

*And yes, I pretty much hate those people. Or at least the idea of those people. I can't say I know any--or at least I've never been to any of their homes. Most of the people I know don't read and don't bother with the pretense of being well-read either because it just isn't even socially valued in this backwards town.

Monique wrote: "

I thought I'd share this because I actually got goosebumps when I saw this!"

What a great post, Monique! Full frontal library - LOL!

I tried to pick my favorite, but just couldn't, although I loved glimpsing the Trinity College library.

Well, I do agree on most points here (i.e. dislike people who use books only for decorations and I do in fact have lots and lots of books in my shelves that haven't YET been read...) BUT I can say that a coffeeshop becomes much more interesting to me if they actually have books around ;)

Particularly if they are fictional and not 'fashion or latest bestsellers'. I can understand how some coffeeshops have books about certain themes. I remember one that was specialized in vegan food and coffee and most books were the typical coffee-table books but they were indeed about vegan food and coffee and so they got their aim there.

What do people display on their coffee tables. I have a Rembrandt art book. I am an art major ,so I have many art books all over my house. My daughter brought back books from the Louve for me, which I have perused.

When you are mature you don't have to pose as anything. Just be yourself. Some people have esteemed writers on their shelves to appear "intellent" when it would have been wise have books by authors "they" potentially would be interested in.

Possible senario: A lady notices a few books on a shelf at a mutal friends home. The lady asks "I've read most of these books on your shelf. What have you read so far?" The mutal friend replies "You know, I'm not much on reading but these seemed interesting judging buy the synopsis on the inside cover. Perhaps when I have some down time I'll read a few pages." See this person is not a poser but rather a potential book buying addict!!!

Poses suck! Mean people suck!

I am like Monique - I have a bookcase for the TBR books and when I buy new ones they go down on that case in the corner. That way, I am organized but I get to peruse and choose the next book. I love it!!!!

I have a tbr shelf in my house also. But some people have books strictly for show. They have not, will not or don't intend to read them. I just thought what a waste. To limit yourself to just showing the books and not enjoying them.

I read all the books I own. My bookshelf is my indoor garden. I love it and nurture it. I visit it and stare at it with delight and pride. I can't imagine someone wasting money on books just to show off, although..I don't doubt it.

If there's a book in my collection that I know I will never read (unless it was a special book that was gifted to me) I will remove it from my shelf and give it away, because I don't want anything on my shelf I haven't bonded with. My books are like my children.
I'd sooner save my books from a fire, than i would my wedding gown or clothes and accessories.

Rachel: my husband and i were discussing the same subject the other day. We live in an area where brush fires happen during this time of the year and we were discussing what to take if we were evacuated. I have an extensive collection of children's books, all read and all well-loved. My husband has hundreds of books and we are storing our daughter's books. Not sure what we would take in a fire or how we would do it. It's a problem I hope we never have to face.

Rosemary wrote: "Rachel: my husband and i were discussing the same subject the other day. We live in an area where brush fires happen during this time of the year and we were discussing what to take if we were eva..."

I hope you are never faced with that problem.

Bookworm wrote: "a to-read shelf. nice idea."

I'm not ashamed to admit that I have two matching Ikea bookshelves (ceiling height with 5 shelves each)...One is full of books that I've read, the other is full and overflowing with books I've picked up at thrift stores, library sales, yard sales, etc. that I haven't read yet. Whenever I finish a book, I just go down to my very own bookstore and choose another :)

you are a lucky one! A five shelf bookshelf with unread books, what a bonanza!

Rosemary wrote: "you are a lucky one! A five shelf bookshelf with unread books, what a bonanza!"

HAHA! My coworker's mom works at a thrift store called Life For Animals, and they always have 50-75% off sales on their books. I keep buying them faster than I can read them. I'm actually out of space :( My collection is my pride and joy...it makes me smile everytime I look at them :)

Cay wrote: "Bookworm wrote: "a to-read shelf. nice idea."

I'm not ashamed to admit that I have two matching Ikea bookshelves (ceiling height with 5 shelves each)...One is full of books that I've read, the o..."

but at least you have intentions of reading them. I do that too. I think they mean people who buy books strictly for show, with no intentions of ever reading them.

Rachel wrote: "Cay wrote: "Bookworm wrote: "a to-read shelf. nice idea."

I'm not ashamed to admit that I have two matching Ikea bookshelves (ceiling height with 5 shelves each)...One is full of books that I've r..."

If you read earlier posts ,that is exactly what we meant.

I did read all earlier posts, which is why I was trying to explain that this thread was directed at people who collect with no intention to read, as oppose to people who stock for a variety of choices to read :)

carol (akittykat) wrote: "Rachel wrote: "Cay wrote: "Bookworm wrote: "a to-read shelf. nice idea."

I'm not ashamed to admit that I have two matching Ikea bookshelves (ceiling height with 5 shelves each)...One is full of bo..."

sorry Rachel I meant that for
Cay. I clicked the wrong post. Please forgive me

That's quite alright.

I don't really see the problem. I have a friend who has a wall of books on Bruce Lee, Tupac, and some other subjects. He's never cracked open a single one, and they are purely for decoration, but they show his interests.

Actually, I have rows of bookshelves filled with law books designed to impress clients. Looks like a legal library and is, but nobody uses it. Quite frankly, I've no intention to ever do anything more than dust them.

C wrote: "Actually, I have rows of bookshelves filled with law books designed to impress clients. Looks like a legal library and is, but nobody uses it. Quite frankly, I've no intention to ever do anything more than dust them."

Isn't that deceitful?

Ken wrote: "I know a bookseller who has a rather lucrative sideline selling books to people who want to stock their libraries. He sells them by the foot or yard the finer the binding the more expensive they ar..."

Strand Books do this. Necessary interior decoration for films and plays. Optional for everyone else. I personally would rather see a wall of unread books as I am obviously there and it gives me something to peruse and because they represent possibility, rather than a wall of ornaments which represents more things to dust, but that's just my personal taste.

Before I had a bookshop, when I looked at the Strand Books books-by-the-foot page, I used to be tempted to buy 5' of bargain books just to have a surprise selection of books to read.