MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Silliness For those that love bookshelves

Exer · 01-13-2011, 08:11 PM

http://bookshelfporn.com/

Sorry for digging up such an old post, but I think the linked page from the OP deserves a little more love. It brought to mind one of the aspects of "reading" that I didn't realize how much I missed: just seeing a physical book sitting on a shelf.

When I finally switched to ebooks, I remember gleefully donating all my paper books to a local non-profit, thinking that I'd never need to hold a real book ever again. I took down all my shelves and painted the wall with satisfaction. I was happy that I had so much extra room, and would never again have to shift around hundreds of books when rearranging furniture.

But you know, I miss them.

I miss seeing that tangible aspect of my collection. I miss seeing the familiar, well-worn covers. I miss laughing at the books that were literally falling apart from having been read so often over the years. I miss seeing the ridiculous hardbacks that had dozens of little strips of tissue sticking out of the tops because I ran out of paper bookmarks during quote collecting or research projects. I miss just looking at them and feeling a sudden urge to read one simply based on the cover art.

Don't get me wrong, I love the convinience of ebooks -- but I wish I hadn't been so gung-ho in getting rid of the hard copies of them.

01-13-2011, 08:11 PM	#6
Exer I see Russia! Posts: 205 Karma: 234787 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Alaska Device: Etch-A-Sketch	http://bookshelfporn.com/ Sorry for digging up such an old post, but I think the linked page from the OP deserves a little more love. It brought to mind one of the aspects of "reading" that I didn't realize how much I missed: just seeing a physical book sitting on a shelf. When I finally switched to ebooks, I remember gleefully donating all my paper books to a local non-profit, thinking that I'd never need to hold a real book ever again. I took down all my shelves and painted the wall with satisfaction. I was happy that I had so much extra room, and would never again have to shift around hundreds of books when rearranging furniture. But you know, I miss them. I miss seeing that tangible aspect of my collection. I miss seeing the familiar, well-worn covers. I miss laughing at the books that were literally falling apart from having been read so often over the years. I miss seeing the ridiculous hardbacks that had dozens of little strips of tissue sticking out of the tops because I ran out of paper bookmarks during quote collecting or research projects. I miss just looking at them and feeling a sudden urge to read one simply based on the cover art. Don't get me wrong, I love the convinience of ebooks -- but I wish I hadn't been so gung-ho in getting rid of the hard copies of them.