Our new Reading Room is a happening thing, see?
It is so exciting. Currently this room contains only children's literature - world to the left; Australian books to the right, only it's not quite as rigid as that, which is okay because this is our family reading room and not a public library.
We arrange our books loosely according to topic - Christian books, poetry, books on books, visual arts, travel writing, history, cookery books, reference, art tomes , picture books, Japanese literature, and grown-up literature all have their own sections elsewhere.
In these shelves they're sort of ordered according to whether we've read them already or not. There are a couple of boxes of future AO years' titles, and a box of Newberys. There are a few boxes of 'you can read these anytime' books. Two boxes are full of our NYRB Children's Collection. They're the mostly except for one red ones you can see below. Have I told you I collect this beautiful series?
So far we're only half way through packing the shelves, but Susan's been sharing the repacking of her bookshelves on Facebook this weekend, so I thought I'd share mine as well. Mutual Apreciation and all that.
How do you arrange your books? Colour? Size? Alphabetically? The Dewey System? School year? Can you find a book when you're looking for it? I mostly can, but I'm going to love it when they're all arranged neatly on their shelves.
I'd love to see some of your bookshelves. Why don't you post some pics as well?
Oh, if you click on the photos you'll be able to read the titles. I love doing that - it's as if I'm visiting with you in your home! Yay. Gotta love books!
(Shakes her head.) Tragic, tragic!
ReplyDeleteOoh, very nice! Are they Ikea shelving units? Sometimes we've had the room to have a whole room or separate area as our designated BookNook/Library. Sadly not so in this house but it is a blessing to be able to do so.
ReplyDeleteWill you have seating/lounging in the library? Is this also your school room or do you mainly work at the table?
And yeah, your photos are so much better than my dull, faded, quick camera photo for facebook. But it's still all fun, eh?
Oh, and contrary to the impression I may have given, I do not catalogue my books :-) What goes on in the Library stays in the Library. We have loose organisation by topic but as we have been culling for a few years our book number are going down, unlike most true book tragics, eh?!
ReplyDeletevery nice , drool, drool
ReplyDeleteOh, who can not appreciate such beauties. I think I'll go and read. :)
ReplyDeleteSusan, this room was our spare room, but since we lost all the furniture in the flood, we decided to make it a reading room instead. We will purchase a sofa bed so that we can still accommodate family and friends, but that is down the track a bit. The shelves are IKEA Expedit units. Reasonably priced and solid.
ReplyDeleteWe usually do school on the sofa in the kitchen and at the table there when necessary. Or outside on the deck.
The rest of the reading room is still stacked full of boxes, but at least you can see that things are happening!! Yay!
You should be collecting for the grandies, Ruby.
ReplyDeleteTracey, I swoon over your shelves as well?
ReplyDeleteOooo...this fills me with delight. Sadly, our books are all over the house right now! On little shelves, in stacks, etc...I dream of BIG shelves filled with books!!! :)
ReplyDeleteLOVELY, lovely, lovely--as always, Jeanne!!! Our local school doesn't have anything like this for the little ones--what an awesome job you've done at collection development and rare book acquisition. Truly, you should have gone to library school--you'd make real contributions both in "practice" and in theory by writing about different topics. You should consider a Ph.d. You inspire me professionally and I MEAN that!
ReplyDeleteI just might clean up our messy shelves and photograph them for YOU.
I love them!
ReplyDeleteI organize our books by subjects. History/Geography, Science/Health, Theology/Church History, Teaching Aids, etc.
Fiction is done a bit oddly. Much of the literature is by genre but each child has their own book shelves, which really just comes out to reading level & interest for each child.
Jeanne,
ReplyDeleteThis is wonderful!! I envy the lovely condition these books are in. So many of ours need replacing. :)
We've often tried to double a spare room/guest room as the library. Not only practical but it makes the best part of the library- settling down with a good book.
ReplyDeleteDoes Miss J get just as excited as you when she sees all those delicious books going into their new home?
Looks great Jeanne! What a pleasure it is to see and hear about your reading room. Having seen your previous reading room pre flood I still have that vision in my memory. Praise God for His goodness! xxx
ReplyDeleteWhat a thrill, got goosebumps when this popped up in my google reader, had to wait till I had time to come back and savour. Ahhh!:):)
ReplyDeleteNow I was clicking on the photos to look, do you have Son of Billabong? one we don't have, and another too never been able to find, those dust jackets sure are familiar:)
Ohh and I saw Spotty the Bower Bird there. Have you ever been able to get into the Magic Pudding? I must give it another go.
Well to answer your questions I group by subject and then sub subject if shelving size allows.
also within subjects authors too.
example, I have an Australian book case (actually one and a half) within that I have some sorted by sub-subjects ie aust nature and some with authors together.
You've probably seen pics before I think?
http://sevenlittleaustralians.blogspot.com.au/search/label/Library
Looks wonderful Jeanne!
ReplyDeleteRenovation work has started this week on our own home library. You are way ahead of us in that respect ..... but I can't wait for the day when I can share our piccies of our new room. My husband thinks I am unwell ...... hmmm.
I love to see your books in your reading room! I'd like to spend some time looking at them and holding them in real life, but a photo on the internet is working for me, too. :)
ReplyDeleteI am in the process TODAY (it's a holiday here) of re-arranging our bookshelves. I change my organization every year or so. Today's main task is to declutter MY books. But, first, another cup of coffee.
I enjoyed looking at your various books. I had never heard of "The Wombles."
ReplyDeleteThat looks like a nice big copy of The Wombles! Ours is just a little paperback.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the book "visit"!