I need to throw some of my mother's things and make more room for my precious books. >.>

So for those of you who do collect books, what's your reason? What makes you decide to "keep/buy" one for the bookshelf?

Because I love books.
And I'm weird in a way that I must own them so I hold them, flip through them and just look at them.
I admit to have bought some less than interesting books on impulse, but there aren't many...

Needless to say, it costs me big buck to get all those books.
Especially since I buy many in Hebrew (I live in Israel, so they're the most common, but also the most expensive).
Books in Russian cost less, even the hardcovers (!).
It's rather hard to find decent English books (which cost less than Hebrew ones, too) in the city I live, so I have to travel further out.

If you ask why don't I just subscribe to a library... Well, I used to.
But I must have them. <.<

>.>



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Hrodulf and Bjornolfr, you will not be forgotten.

And if the world were black and white,
you would be my rainbow in shades of grey.

Click 'n Play!

If I had a fantasy self, it'd be a tentacle monster.

Yeah, I'm about to get a third bookshelf since my other two are overflowing. I usually buy them if I can't find them on the library and if they seem interesting, and I keep them if I really like them or if they're useful (Dictionaries, reference books, etc.).

YES i do not hundreds like some people more like 80 something. But is someone pointed out it's an expensive hobby/habit so i've cut down on acquiring books for now and just borrow although most libraries' collections suck.

As to why easy though i tend to remember books for years those that i truly like or truly inspired me are bound to be read again and i want to be able to pass them on to people (family, friends etc) by not only telling them about them but also be able to lent them if they are interested (trustworthy) of my treasures


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Words to live by: "Let sleeping dogs lie"
[CENTER][/CENTER]

You know 3 languages well enough to read regular books? Dang! You're skilled. I only know English well enough to read Regular books, although I can read Picture books in Spanish.

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i do collect books, but my collection's not that big compared to the ones posted before me. i mostly buy books that are given great reviews or are highly recommended by my fellow book lovers, since it would severely empty my pocket money to just buy whatever that catches my eye the books i buy i reread though. Books like Graceling, The Hunger Games, and Artemis Fowl are some of those i read again. My aunt owns a lot of books, so i just drop by her place to say hi (and then proceed to raid her book collection )

i also love books by the authors: James Patterson, Dan Brown, J. K. Rowling & Eoin Colfer. the books i read nowadays are mostly of the fantasy type, but i do enjoy a good romance novel once in a while. i also read books that have the genre: horror, psychological thriller, classics, and adventure.



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Go go picture books! XD
I would really like to add French to the list,
but I know so little I can't even read a picture book.

Haha, that's not really a skill.
My native tongue is Russian, I moved to Israel when I was young
and I got interested in English at an early age.
Hence the triple ability. : D.


________________
Hrodulf and Bjornolfr, you will not be forgotten.

And if the world were black and white,
you would be my rainbow in shades of grey.

Click 'n Play!

If I had a fantasy self, it'd be a tentacle monster.

Yes, I have a book collection. I like to keep track of my books, and I currently own upwards of 130 'normal' books (So, no manga included). {I say "upwards of 130 because thats how many I have in my room. The rest are hidden across my house}

Why? Because I love books. It is an obsession of sorts, I guess. But its an obsession that's been going on for my entire life so far

Out of those 130 books, there are exactly 12 that I dislike, and either didn't finish or would never read again-- because of spelling errors, crappy storylines, etc. Pretty much all of the rest I have reread at least once.

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Reading is just a part of my life. It always has been.

I must have well over 1000 books; my walls are all lined with bookshelves; my place looks like a used bookstore.
(very few have been read only once. I like re-reading things)
Normally I buy books used because it is much cheaper. I only buy more than one copy if
I want a certain edition/cover/translation.
I don't care if I'm broke. I must have my story-fix every few weeks.

...I'm scared of e-books because it seems wrong
not to hold the book in my hands... very wrong...

i got a fair amount of books myself but not quite as extravagant as some of the other collectors, i am mainly a reader though so you will find that all of my books have been read many times especially the older ones. i collect authors i like as well so i try and track down their earlier works cos i enjoy it

needless to say that once i am older and have a full time job with my own place that collection is gonna grow a tonne

I just love owning books. Not any book of course, but classics that have a good reputation for sure.
Yeah, I'm somewhat of a collector, bordering on nasty exhibitionist Sometimes it is just the cover that does it for me, and I'm waaay past feeling shame :3

Thing is, that I never buy an author's work unless I've read at least one thing by them, or have been otherwise exposed to them in one way or another: a movie adaptation, a trustworthy recommendation, or one of the many literary courses that I take for my studies. But if I have to touch on what actually read, it's mostly comical stuff like Woody Allen, Salinger (King of Comedy, I know! But he has that amusing tone sometimes), Woodhouse, Wilde. Generally, anything that sounds a bit drole.
Other than the Potters, I doubt if I've read anything written past the seventies. Loss of hope, as Blob said.




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<a href="http://www.tonecartoons.co.uk/Shop?affiliates=4">you know you want it</a>

Yup, because I get random urges to read specific parts of specific books right before I go to bed, and if I haven't got the book it annoys me.
Generally though, I only buy books - sorry, I only get my parents to buy books - that I particularly enjoy, like The Name of the Wind which is an incredible book and needs to be read by everyone. Or if I like the author, eg. Eva Ibotson; I think I've got nearly all the books written by her.

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I am the master of my fate;
I am the captin of my soul.
William Ernest Henely

I rate manga with 5 being the average score.

Yes, I have a book collection. I'm currently on my 5th bookshelf and working on filling it up.

The majority of my books are fiction and i have a couple of shelves filled with manga. (I'm currently in the process of filling a couple of series before I start buying others.) Right now I currently have
Volumes 1-15 of Fruits Basket
Volumes 1&2 of Chrono Crusade (Next to impossible to find the others)
Volumes 1-9 of Vampire Knight (Haven't gotten around to buying the others)

And I'm prolly about to start buying Bleach. (Haven't decided yet)

Other books are every single one of Scott Westerfeld's books. He's my favorite author.

I'm also in the process of collecting old history textbooks. I currently have around 15. They range from late 1800's to 1940's. With one or two from the 60's. I'm currently a history major in college so I figured I better start my collection. Plus I just love to read them.

Reason for my book collection is because I just love to read books and I have no problem re-reading em. Especially if I find them good enough.

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What does snow become when it melts?

Not really.
Don't get me wrong - I adore books. Reading has been my primary past-time ever since I was about four.
But I just don't have the money. My family's poor; and where I live, books are terribly expensive... not to mention the limited collection.
I only ever read English books. I find most of the novels written in my own language to be very dull. Especially up recently; the quality of our national literature has been declining rapidly
So I'll only buy the books that I am absolutely sure I will one day want to re-read - because if I want a book, I'll have to buy it from Amazon, since it'll most likely not be available in any bookstore in my country.
Mostly, I use libraries. They actually have a better selection than the stores!

My favourite authors would have to be Agatha Christie, J.K. Rowling and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
As for Dan Brown - the only work of his that I liked was Da Vinci Code. The others aren't really all that, IMO.

Last edited by calstine at 6:42 am, Jul 26 2010

no at all, I would rather write my own book, because I can imagine things better than if I read some other people imagination.

Thats why I prefer manga.

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"we are people because of other people"
"I am who I am because of who we all are"

Although I need to update my inventory, last count after my fiancee and I moved in together (combining our collections,) was about 2100 unique titles. I have several bookshelves full, sometimes 2/3 books deep, and boxes piled next to them waiting on the time/money to finish the library room project at home.

Reading has always been one of my favorite leisure activities, and while I'd had a small collection growing up, (only maybe 100 or so,) when my stepmother finally made my dad get rid of all his books, he sent them on to me (probably another 200-300.) This became the core of my collection - a bunch of the old 40's-60's sci-fi and fantasy paperbacks.

I can't say I've read absolutely every single one, especially the ones my fiancee brought with her, but I have read the vast majority, and most of them multiple times. But, like a few have said before me, I've not found too much lately that's whetted my appetite as I did in my late teens/early 20's, so the library has been my friend as much, if not moreso, than the bookstore lately. But I must admit, I love the smell of the used bookstore... I guess I'm wierd!