Quote:
Originally Posted by DiapDealer
I must admit that I find the popular, " I already have enough books in my TBR pile to last me the rest of my life" sentiment a bit puzzling. I don't blame people for having available TBR "ePiles," but it does strike me as odd to worry about "sticking primarily to them" or to quantify the time it would take to work through them all. If it's strictly a financial concern, then sure ... limit yourself to books you already own until such time as your financial situation changes. Otherwise, buy what you want/read what you want/when you want. I never want to come close to the end of the list (real or virtual) of books I'd like to read in my lifetime. I hope to always be crippled with choice--acquired or un-. When I finish one book, I enjoy having every, single book in the world being in the running for my next. It's a sweet, sweet affliction I hope never to be cured of.  |
Resources are finite. As cheap as ebooks are, money spent on a book that's never read is money wasted, at least to the extent that you overpaid for the rush of buying it. It can be sobering to look at a list of books, or at any other indulgence, and realize that you never used it/will never use it. There's a trip to Italy lurking there, or however you want to label your running-away funds, even sweet charity.
This is why I think some strive to become more thoughtful, because of the sheer waste involved in the unused. There are other factors, also, even just being overwhelmed by the clutter, even eclutter, which is a time sink as well as a money sink. Opulence is fine up to a point, but then too much becomes just too much.