When I worked at the evil bookstore we would get 40% off on one day a couple weeks before Christmas, and I lack all impulse control when it comes to book buying anyway.

Oh, does that sound familiar! I worked for Waldenbooks (who were not evil, except for their insistance on selling that damn Preferred Readers card) for eight years, and they and Borders (where my discount worked as well) had that 40% off day twice a year, which drained my checking account. Also, I had no resistance to interesting bargain books, which I seemed to find on a weekly basis.

Since I quit working there, I've only bought about 25 books for myself in 3 1/2 years. I'm still working on the to-be-read bookshelf, though.

ETA: It might also make you feel better to learn that this does not include cookbooks. In fact a large portion of them are books about books. I am a sick girl.

Three of my 19 boxes are cookbooks, and I don't even cook that much! I also have a collection of books about books and words, including a few history of the English language books and my favorites, Bill Bryson's Mother Tongue and Made in America.

Borders

Mine was evil. Could just be the branch I worked for though.

Also, I had no resistance to interesting bargain books, which I seemed to find on a weekly basis.

I still can't resist bargain books.

I've only bought about 25 books for myself in 3 1/2 years. I'm still working on the to-be-read bookshelf, though.

I wish I could say that, but used bookstores an Amazon are my downfall.

buying books only part of the problem. we often seem to be home to orphaned books. One of DH's co-workers had 4 large paper grocery bags he need to get rid of - so some how they ended up at our house. Two did go to half pric ebooks, but that's another bunch o'books. and a couple of weeks ago some one brought a bunch in to the coffee shop I only took a third, some one else ended up with the rest. Honestly, they just follow us home.

Books about books are the best books there are.

When I worked PT at B&N, they just paid me in merchandise: books, of course. And blank journals, and cards, and bookmarks, and stationery. I didn't work enough hours (second job) to have benefits, so essentially, I saved the money I was spending on gas and shoeleather when I quit working there.

Hi again... I first delurked somewhere else (well, the first "first" would be two years ago), it just hit me you guys actually subscribe to different sets of threads (not an option in my "home" forum on WX), so I hope I don't seem too abrupt to people who haven't seen me around before. My ambition is to read everything! :)

I was very interested in the SF discussion you had going on in here, I haven't read contemporary SF and fantasy since the early nineties, so I feel sorta updated on the trends...

I still can't resist bargain books.

*sighs heavily in complete understanding*

Hey, I found the first 3 books in the P.N. Elrod Vampire Files series in one volume at Half-Price Books (wooo, cheap books!). I'd never read it, and I didn't realize till I actually opened the first page that they are set in the 1930's! I thought they were modern setting, and had never worked up an interest (how many vampire/slayer/zombie queen/werewolf/ghosthunting private dicks running around 1990's/2000 America do we really NEED, anyway?)

They were pretty good. I was happily engrossed, and entertained. And the anthology only included the first three, so I have some potential light reading still out there, all ready for me to just buy it! Woo and hoo.

Hi Lola! C'mon by and stay awhile, the reading around here is always fine. I keep learning about books I never would have picked up.

I once saw one of those home makeover shelves and one of the big points the hosts made was the homeowners needed to divest themselves of all their superfluous books. This turned out to be a short shelf with maybe 20 best-sellers on it, and I laughed evilly when I thought about the way those fashionable metrosexuals would have blanched in terror faced with just my Wall of Books #1.

I once saw a great home decorating book all about decorating with books! It had wonderful photos of houses with walls lined with books and framed art/photos hanging from the shelf edges (if you needed to get to a book behind the framed item, you just took it off the nail, retrieved your book, and replaced it on the nail), big art books being used as the base for a glass-topped coffee table, and other brilliant suggestions for dealing with big book collections.

My favorite home decor story comes from the old TT Book Sluts thread--the poster was a carpenter who had worked on the installation of a beautifully done home library, with cherry shelves and all the bells and whistles possible. About a month later, he came back to the house for another job, and decided to peek into the library to see how they decked it out. He was shocked and disappointed to see that they were using the shelves for knickknacks and some obviously color-coordinated books, probably picked out by the decorator. What a waste!

One episode of Designer Guys showed the hosts going to an antique book dealer to find out the best way to choose, handle, and display books. They had a book-oriented client, so they decided to embrace book-love and do it up right.

And that's when they became my one true Cutiehead Design Team.

ETA: And they have a book of their own. [link]