I like this sentiment from author Richard Brookhiser.
We love them, they seem like our thoughts. https://t.co/0NBbmwu8p2
— Richard Brookhiser (@RBrookhiser) April 26, 2023
I also worry that my books will have no home when I am gone. I could not articulate why I felt that way until seeing Brookhiser's comment and realized I felt the same. The books that I still have physical copies of are connected to my thoughts and worldview. Whether fiction or non-fiction, whether or not I agree with everything in them, they all have something important to say. Sometimes it is the substance, sometimes it is simply the beauty of the writing and, sometimes, both.
Over the years I've probably donated more than 1,000 books in various culling processes, particularly when we moved from Connecticut to Arizona. And over the past 15 years much of my reading has been on Kindle so the physical book never comes into my possession. I still prefer reading the physical book over the Kindle, but with travel ease and the need to discipline myself to limit further accumulation, I've had to make some accommodations.
Our home here is also less suitable for large scale book display. Most of my books in the house are in this cabinet you see pictured below, with a few others, primarily on the history of the Southwest, on a cabinet nearby. I also have probably three times as many books in our storage unit, all shelved and organized. After going through the stored books several times and making donations, I've reached the point where it is difficult to do any more culling. It's because they do seem like my thoughts and represent something of value to me.
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