Some of the blogging community have been sharing pictures of their book shelves.
I don’t have “proper” book cases here. Books in this house live mainly in wardrobes, cupboards and boxes. Unless currently being read, in which case they’re probably on the kitchen counter, the dining table, a desk, a bed, a side table.
We had great shelving in our former house. The living room was lined in pine and when time came to put up shelves, we drove over the mountain to a lumber yard that had good deals on seconds.
I spent ages, scrambling up and down stacks looking for exactly the right pieces. I’ve long forgotten what the planks cost, but they were certainly not expensive!
You see, I had a length of shelving in my sewing room that still had rough bark along one edge and I wanted that look for the bookshelves.
So, no shelves to show you, but here are some of the books.
All showing years of love and use. I’ve left out the several large dictionaries and the thesaurus and most of the ENORMOUS art and garden books. And I didn’t even begin on the boxes!
And now i am going to stand under a cold shower. I know it’s worse for people in NSW, but I’m done with this heatwave. The Met Men mentioned a storm, but I don’t see anything on the horizon. Must fill the ice trays…
Moreidlethoughts Weblog 
Ooh, they are well thumbed! Thanks for taking part, Dinahmow.
My first-glance favourite has to be Jan Morris’s The Pleasures of a Tangerine. Although, I’m going to rethink that now I’ve had a proper look…
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Oh dear! So well-thumbed you missed the title It’s “Pleasures of a tangled Life.” And a good read. I also have(it might even be in this collection) her “Conundrum” which I highly recommend. I also highly recommend her wonderful novel “Last letters from Hav” So well-written, people were calling travel agents to book holidays there!I would happily read her shopping lists, she’s so bloody good!
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I must write a pamphlet for next Christmas…. it will be called ‘Pleasures of a Tangerine’ – it will be about tangerines and totally unrelated to anything else with an orangey hue.
Loved books, Dinah! I must join in the fun.
Sx
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Yes, please do. Some of my calligraphy books were just out of fame …maybe next time
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Oh, nice collection of loved books, with or without case!
Stay as comfortable as you can in the hot weather.
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It’s “wet T shirt time” 24/7, Mr Lux. One does one’s best.
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Pix please! I’m asking for “a friend.”
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Mr Lux I think you know I’m rubbish at selfies and there’s no one around to help me out.
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…..but you are very good at shelfies…. 🙂
Sx
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Hahaha! That’s a good ‘un,Scarlet. xx
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That’s the mark of a good book…well used.
We do have shelves – now – and I’m still emptying boxes to fill them. The poor chap who made them for us is aghast…’but what do you do with all those books?’ While sorely tempted to tell him that I use them to correct the wobble in the table he made I have so far resisted.
I’ve just looked at the table (non wobble) beside me…and the kitchen counter..and the edge of the bath…and the table (wobble) on the balcony..and in the car…and the bedside shelf…
Is that Joanne Harris book any good?
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OH, the wobblers! Here, it’s not the fault of the tables, but the floor! An overflow in the laundry runs under the skirting and into the kitchen forming a small lake under the stove.Apparently.
The Harris book has some glorious pictures and is an enjoyable read about French places and ways.Food features.
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I misread one of your books as Canning, Freezing & Drvina. I thought to myself who’s she? Then I cottoned on.
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You and Mr Device should get together. “The Tangerine Drvina” the latest hit set to knock Shades of Grey off the shelves! Pre-orders taken now.Send cash.
Or something.
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I love this meme. Interesting seeing what’s under the hood.
While you stand under a cold shower, I have to traverse mounds of dirty New York snow piled up on the street corners.
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Been there. Done that. Loved it!
You could show us some of the books I know you have.
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Be My Valentine!!! [MMMWWWAAAHHH]
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Aww, thank you.
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Verse and Worse! Mine is staring at me from its place on the old wooden trunk.
Worn out books are the best. Used. Thumbed. Flipped through, read. I’ve seen people go on about the heresy of writing in books, etc. But I love it. I like when I see the things other readers have underlined. I get the sense of someone sharing thoughts with me, that some other human being has read this same book, loved it.
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Hi, Neena! Yes, I like, sometimes, to see another’s “thoughts” in a book.But not on novels! Very distracting to be told, in chapter one, that “he’s only after her money”
But I scribble all over my own drafts. 🙂
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Annemeike Meins stitching is just divine. Her work has inspired me for many years…
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Another fan! She is amazing, isn’t she.
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Hurrah for books, and all these bookish posts. And now I know I must read Jan Morris, which of her books do you recommend for a Morris virgin?
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Yes, I’d be lost without books.And public libraries! Where to start with Jan Morris? If you know nothing of her life, perhaps “Conundrum” would be a good jumping-off place. Or one of her collections of shorter articles/stories, like “Pleasures of a Tangled Life.” Along with one of her sons, she wrote a great history of Wales, “The Matter of Wales” but it’s enormous and not an easy read. But Googling will probably give a better list.
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Here’s a Wiki link. And I might mention that, like most NZ kids at the time, I was mad on the Everest expedition and kept a scrapbook, including reportage by James Morris.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Morris
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Thanks, Dinah, I’ll see what the second hand bookshops turn up.
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Books, bah, who needs books ?!
Thank you for the peep Dinahmow.
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Knowing your extensive library, I’ll take that as a joke, ja? 🙂
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The insulation ? Useful, yes.
Of course it’s a joke, I should use something like italics or *cum grano salis: on ! * and *cgs : off !* to show it in text – seriously there should be a small graphic for “tongue in cheek” … btw “emojis” are not shown in my actual browser, Chrome, I have no idea why, so I do not use them.
I have not read something from Mr SAGAN, his name just caught my eye, I think I should. But as it is with these damn books, its starts easily with one after work … and then yer life is upside-down !
Don’t take me serious tonight, I am steineselsmüd’, which translates with “knackered” I think. I will crawl in the book cave now.
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