Book Collection

I spent part of my weekend rearranging some of the furniture in my house. In large part, I moved most of my bookshelves into a spare room turning it into a pseudo-library, though the cats aren't exactly happy that I've taken over what they have largely seen as their own private bedroom. One of the things that I've seen posted frequently on Facebook has been pictures of people's bookshelves and some of the favorite books that they own. I thought today, since I have nothing particularly important to ramble about, I would post some pictures of my bookshelves and my very beloved books.

First, I will introduce you to the Good Doctor. He is a little figure that broke off a Nightmare Before Christmas snowglobe that I own. I meant to go immediately out and get some superglue to put him back, but recently I've noticed that I've felt comforted by having him sitting on my desk near my monitor. He's been good company and gets in the way less frequently than my cat, Demona.

The first bookshelf is my collection of hardback copies. These are where you will find the bulk of my autographed copies. I look at them and I honestly don't remember buying so many hardback books. A lot of them were picked up when they were deeply discounted and I simply couldn't resist not owning them. You have to understand that I love books. No, that doesn't seem to be enough. I live and breathe books. I love the feel, the weight, the smell, and look of books -- especially hardbacks. They are beautiful and hold the most wonderful worlds in their pages. Sadly, the highest percentage of unread books is my hardback books. I don't know why. Maybe they feel too serious because they are hardback. Or maybe there's something in me that's afraid of damaging a hardback. I've replaced paperback books in the past but I don't think I've ever bought a particular hardback book a second time. Of all my books, I would have to say that Raymond Feist's books are the ones that I would love most to have all in hardback and I'm pretty close. I read a lot of things growing up that I loved, but his books were some of the stories that drove me to want to write.

My second shelf is my paperback books. There are some authors that I have in paper and hardback such as Kim Harrison, Raymond Feist, and Neil Gaiman. A part of me wants to have them all in one place, but the neat and orderly side demands to have them separated by hard and paper. (Am I insane? Yes, but that's for another day.) Looking at my paperback shelf has made me realize two things. 1.) I need another shelf because this one is full and 2.) It's time to seriously consider e-books, which I have done. There are a lot of books that I've gotten rid of due to a lack of space and now I would love to own them again so I can re-read them. For instance, I used to have a nice collection of historical romances but I went through a lengthy period where I wasn't reading any romances, so I got rid of the books to make room for others. Now, I'm reading romances again and wish I had those books. Will I re-buy them? Probably, but now they will be on my e-reader. I have read a good chunk of these paperback books, particularly if I have more than one by the same author. And, yes, those are my books on the bottom shelf, but I doubt they will be there much longer as I am planning another run to the bookstore today.

The third one is a small shelf for graphic novels and comics. My O.H. (other half) and I have decided to combine our collections. The bottom shelf is my contribution and consists almost entirely of Batman-related comics. I am still missing a number of the ones I want but I think I have a collection to be proud of. He's Marvel and I'm DC. Somehow, we make it work.

Finally, I do have one other small shelf in my office comprised of miscellaneous books. Just a hodgepodge of things that I've picked up over the years that I can't bring myself to get rid of. I also have two more boxes of books packed away that I can't get rid of as well as several research-related books on my desk. I have a serious weakness when it comes to books.

Before I go, I will admit that while I was re-organizing my books I discovered that I had a few doubles. I can't throw them out and I'm not sure what to do with them. Would you like them? Let's have a small contest. I am giving away unsigned copies of:
1. George R.R. Martin's "A Game of Thrones"
2. Vicki Pettersson's "City of Souls"
3. J.R. Ward's "Dark Lover"
4. a hardback copy of Raymond E. Feist's "Rides a Dread Legion"
and let's throw in for good measure, a signed copy of "Burn the Night" by me.

That's 5 books! Let me a comment with your name before Thursday, August 25 and I will pick one winner. The contest is open to US and international readers.