My books are all stacked in high piles on the floor, because I never got bookshelves in my "new" home, which I moved into eight years ago. I have to REALLY want to read a book that's near the bottom middle of this Jenga situation.
Your bookshelves are giving me anxiety. I’m sure mine would do the same for you. I’ve never put mine (color coordinated but not necessarily coded) on the gram though…redemption? I also did read them all!
Charlie I was about to go in on you and your snarky anti-color-coded bookshelves, but actually I agree with you. I used to be a purist, and was absolutely anal about it. But moving into my new place, I decided that it was time to just let some shit go. I would gladly peruse your eclectic bookshelves any time.
I remember hearing a story (maybe true) years ago about how Tom Hanks' interior designer bought books to fit the number of feet in his bookshelves, and that was told to me as an example of wealth and superficiality. But now it sounds practically scholarly.
Please enjoy this link to "Books by the Foot" from the iconic Strand bookstore, featuring a hero shot of the color-coded bookshelves that used to be in The Wing in Soho. Nightmare fuel for some? https://www.strandbooks.com/books-by-the-foot.html?page=1
Justice for eclectic, non-color coded bookshelves!!!!!!!! I have never and will never organize mine by color + would love to see the culture shift back in our direction, Charlie.
I used to organize by author. Now I use the Harold Lichtenstein method and group them by hypothetical absorption rate. Essentially, when said book is placed in a body of water, how long will it sit atop the still surface before it soaks up too much of the deep, joining it to rest upon the bottom. It’s a little more work than grouping them by taste but totally worth it from a buoyancy standpoint.
Alphabetized by author and separated by genre ever since high school because my home is my own personal bookstore and if I can’t find what I’m looking for easily I will LOSE IT.
OK, I'm obsessed with AJ Hawk's bookshelf! No thank you for that because I'm supposed to be doing my Latin homework while my kids are at soccer but this has taken over. Anyway there's a whole reddit chat about this and apparently they say he wrote in "Ayn Rand" on the spine of a book after it became a thing that Aaron Rogers had an Ayn Rand book on his shelf. They claim the book spine was blank in previous episodes! I don't even know who these people are but I'll spend the next hour googling it and report back. Sorry, Latin. Getting that homework started on time was too good to be true anyway.
Oh man, that's insane! I'm about to join you in that weird rabbit hole and find out every thing I can about AJ Hawk's custom copy of The Fountainhead, lol. And, for full disclosure, both Hawk and Rodgers are former Green Bay Packers, which means that I, a son of Chicago and fan of the Bears, am legally obligated to hate them, even if they shelved their books correctly.
I looked closer at that Reddit chat and they show this tiny blue book with a blank spine in the before shot, and it has Ayn Rand on the spine in the after shot. Ha! O would that the subjunctive was so entertaining!
I want to scream into the void whenever I see a color-blocked bookshelf situation. Its stupid AF.
You have way too much time on your hands and also, I no longer trust you; what other questionable decisions are you making in your life? Are you washing lights with darks? Scooping your bagels? Are you wearing Sneex??
Hahahaha. Hell yeah, my sentiments exactly. I can understand LIGHT organization (subject matter more than alphabetical) because it can help you find stuff. But when things are color coded you can never remove a book or put a new one in without recalibrating the whole damn thing. It's so so so so so so dumb! Scooped bagels infuriate me as well. I had a friend who would often ask me to get them a scooped bagel when I swung by our local, I always said I would but never ordered it scooped because I didn't want to lose face in front of my bagel guy. Somehow it never became an issue that I kept "forgetting" because free bagels are free bagels.
FWIW...I've been known to do the second thing on occasion (if I'm being honest), but anyone who is doing 2/3 of those things AND color-coding their books, needs to be arrested immediately.
My books are all stacked in high piles on the floor, because I never got bookshelves in my "new" home, which I moved into eight years ago. I have to REALLY want to read a book that's near the bottom middle of this Jenga situation.
Your bookshelves are giving me anxiety. I’m sure mine would do the same for you. I’ve never put mine (color coordinated but not necessarily coded) on the gram though…redemption? I also did read them all!
Charlie I was about to go in on you and your snarky anti-color-coded bookshelves, but actually I agree with you. I used to be a purist, and was absolutely anal about it. But moving into my new place, I decided that it was time to just let some shit go. I would gladly peruse your eclectic bookshelves any time.
I remember hearing a story (maybe true) years ago about how Tom Hanks' interior designer bought books to fit the number of feet in his bookshelves, and that was told to me as an example of wealth and superficiality. But now it sounds practically scholarly.
😳😳😳😳
Please enjoy this link to "Books by the Foot" from the iconic Strand bookstore, featuring a hero shot of the color-coded bookshelves that used to be in The Wing in Soho. Nightmare fuel for some? https://www.strandbooks.com/books-by-the-foot.html?page=1
I have so much to say but I will start with this: Charlie, you crack me up. Thank you!
Feeling even more superficial than ever, thank you!
Haha now I think I'm hallucinating. And there are walls of colors coded bookshelves swirling around me
That was in response to another comment that got taken down so now I feel EXTRA superficial. Oy.
Now I want to go in and delete the comment before this one, so it become even strangerrrrrrr (he ways in a spooky voice)
Ok...but can we also hate on those people who TURN THE BOOKS AROUND SO THE PAGE SIDE IS FACING OUT!? God damned monsters!
I thought that was what was happening in the last photo but nah e not?
“Maybe not” 🤦♀️
That is absolutely my biggest pet peeve, in addition to people who borrow your precious books then write their own notes in the margins. Cretins!!!
Death penalty. No trial, no appeals, straight to the electric chair.
Hahahah
Justice for eclectic, non-color coded bookshelves!!!!!!!! I have never and will never organize mine by color + would love to see the culture shift back in our direction, Charlie.
I used to organize by author. Now I use the Harold Lichtenstein method and group them by hypothetical absorption rate. Essentially, when said book is placed in a body of water, how long will it sit atop the still surface before it soaks up too much of the deep, joining it to rest upon the bottom. It’s a little more work than grouping them by taste but totally worth it from a buoyancy standpoint.
And with climate change it's helpful to know which books can be used as a flotation device when the rising tide comes for us all
Alphabetized by author and separated by genre ever since high school because my home is my own personal bookstore and if I can’t find what I’m looking for easily I will LOSE IT.
OK, I'm obsessed with AJ Hawk's bookshelf! No thank you for that because I'm supposed to be doing my Latin homework while my kids are at soccer but this has taken over. Anyway there's a whole reddit chat about this and apparently they say he wrote in "Ayn Rand" on the spine of a book after it became a thing that Aaron Rogers had an Ayn Rand book on his shelf. They claim the book spine was blank in previous episodes! I don't even know who these people are but I'll spend the next hour googling it and report back. Sorry, Latin. Getting that homework started on time was too good to be true anyway.
Oh man, that's insane! I'm about to join you in that weird rabbit hole and find out every thing I can about AJ Hawk's custom copy of The Fountainhead, lol. And, for full disclosure, both Hawk and Rodgers are former Green Bay Packers, which means that I, a son of Chicago and fan of the Bears, am legally obligated to hate them, even if they shelved their books correctly.
I looked closer at that Reddit chat and they show this tiny blue book with a blank spine in the before shot, and it has Ayn Rand on the spine in the after shot. Ha! O would that the subjunctive was so entertaining!
I want to scream into the void whenever I see a color-blocked bookshelf situation. Its stupid AF.
You have way too much time on your hands and also, I no longer trust you; what other questionable decisions are you making in your life? Are you washing lights with darks? Scooping your bagels? Are you wearing Sneex??
Hahahaha. Hell yeah, my sentiments exactly. I can understand LIGHT organization (subject matter more than alphabetical) because it can help you find stuff. But when things are color coded you can never remove a book or put a new one in without recalibrating the whole damn thing. It's so so so so so so dumb! Scooped bagels infuriate me as well. I had a friend who would often ask me to get them a scooped bagel when I swung by our local, I always said I would but never ordered it scooped because I didn't want to lose face in front of my bagel guy. Somehow it never became an issue that I kept "forgetting" because free bagels are free bagels.
AMEN. The last thing you want to do is lose face with your bagel guy. That is a sacred relationship, not to be messed with.
Hahah! Scooping your bagels and washing lights with darks are such telling character traits.
I do the second one but would never do the first one.
FWIW...I've been known to do the second thing on occasion (if I'm being honest), but anyone who is doing 2/3 of those things AND color-coding their books, needs to be arrested immediately.
IMHO
I mean.... :)
I am always intrigued by the color themed books sold by the foot. It seems like a fun gamble at getting something readable in the mix.
While I absolutely despise the concept, I'm with you on this. It's definitely an interesting way to get a blind grab bag of books.
You would love my book shelf charlie