Jul

16

BTT: TBR (Or, What I Do With Unread Books)

2009 at 10am     Posted by Rebecca Joines Schinsky

btt2This week’s topic: Do you keep all your unread books together, like books in a waiting room? Or are they scattered throughout your shelves, mingling like party-goers waiting for the host to come along?

The short answer to this is yes, I try to keep my unread books together, and I do not let them mix with books I’ve already read.

Now here’s the whole story:

There was a time not so long ago when I didn’t really have a TBR pile (that’s “To Be Read” for those of you who are new to the party). I bought several books each month, read them, and then returned to the bookstore to buy several more when I started reading the last one on the pile. Lather, rinse, repeat. It was a simple system, and I liked it.

And then I started working at a bookstore.

Employee discounts combined with an ample supply of ARCs—and the confounding but delightful fact that no one else in my store really reads what I read, so I didn’t have competition for my coveted ARCs—led to the creation of a small TBR pile, which I stored in the cubby hole at the bottom of my nighstand. We’re talking maybe 10 books, people. That’s about a one month supply. I never had to endure the anxiety of finishing a book and not having another waiting for me, and I had more options.  I could try to plan ahead, arranging the books by alternating fiction with nonfiction or heavy with light, and it was nice. It wasn’t quite as simple as the old system, but I still liked it.

And then I started blogging, and any semblance of organization or order on my TBR pile got all shot to hell.

At first, I requested and accepted way too many ARCs. The thrill of having access to so many books was just too much for me, and I was so flattered when authors asked me to review their books that I agreed even when I wasn’t all that interested. (I understand now that this is a pretty normal phase for new bloggers, and I’m happy to report that I have gotten control of it. Admitting you have a problem is the first step, right?)

I was having such a good time reviewing books and hearing others’ feedback that my reading pace picked up, so even though I had a growing pile (probably 20-30) books waiting to be read, I could always find a way to justify buying new ones. (I haven’t broken this habit yet, but I’m not sure I really want to.)

Now, just one year into my blogging experience, my TBR pile sits at around 85 books (and that’s after a purge I did last month when I gave away a bunch of ARCs I realized I was never going to read). It fills the cubby hole in my nightstand, the shelves on three lamps, and it has spilled onto the credenza table in our entryway. Hubby and I agree that unread books should not mingle with already-been-read books, so we keep the TBRs confined to the front room and our bedroom, and books we’ve finished go on display in the bookshelves in our living room and office.

I try not to feel bad for the TBRs that are stuck waiting in line outside the party because really, there are so many of them that it’s like they’ve decided to have their own party until the cool kids are willing to let them in.

What do you do with unread books? How do you store them?  Visit Booking Through Thursday to share your answer and join the fun.

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  1. Melanie on July 16th, 2009 1:55 pm

    I do a little of both. When books first come into the house I keep them segregated. But if a book has been in the TBR pile for a very long time and I do plan to read it someday then I mix it in with the rest of my books. If it’s something I’ve decided I won’t read then I pass it around my book club.

  2. Care on July 16th, 2009 2:18 pm

    I never even had a pile of unread or already read books until I started blogging. Interestingly enough, I just very recently re-stacked all my books into various piles: one for done-read, one for hope-to-read-soon, and the someday pile.

  3. kristen on July 16th, 2009 2:50 pm

    thanks for the book club suggestion. i have a B&N gift card from my birthday that i just may use to splurge on a hardback.

    i see that you are reading “the crying tree.” i read the ARC a bit ago. i am interested to read your review. also, if you need a depository for your TBR overflows, you can always send them my way. ;)

  4. JoAnn on July 16th, 2009 3:51 pm

    This was a fun post to read! I keep my tbr’s mostly separate, too.

  5. Jeane on July 16th, 2009 4:47 pm

    I think all of us bloggers have an uncontrollable TBR stack somewhere- mine’s teetering next to the bed. I’m trying hard to read more and bring less books into the house, but it’s hard!

  6. Susan on July 16th, 2009 6:47 pm

    I basically feel the same way you feel. You feel flattered when a publicist sends you books. How do you say no. It is hard for me unless it is a sci/fi or self help that I have no interest. I had a few books but a few books became a stack, from a stack comes a pile, a pile becomes a book case and so on and so on.

    I don’t keep books separated usually. I have books that I keep that are books that I loved. But books that I have read I usually give it to friends, are in my book club or given to the local library. They are grateful when I come in. I usually have a couple shovel fulls.

  7. Staci on July 16th, 2009 10:39 pm

    I take them back to the library!!! :) As I check out way too many books I’ve had a hard time getting to the ones that I own…I hope I didn’t buy any that I don’t want to finish!!

  8. Lorin on July 17th, 2009 6:50 pm

    I kind of feel bad for your ARC’s. Its like they’re in limbo, just hoping you’ll let them inside to play with the already-been-read books. =)

  9. Meghan on July 18th, 2009 7:09 am

    Your system before blogging sounds like a very sane way to organize things! I have far more TBRs than you, but I still have them separated out.

  10. Becca on July 18th, 2009 10:41 pm

    I do keep my unread books in a separate stack on the floor of my reading room. I’ve been trying to make a dent in the pile, but somehow it keeps growing!

  11. Biblibio on July 19th, 2009 9:51 am

    I have a new (and so far efficient) method. I purchase books, some for the long run, others for immediate reading. Long run books join the general library, immediate reading go to a special shelf. The books on the shelf are organized in order of when they’ll be read. Every once in a while, long-run books are transferred to the shelf and enter the ever-flowing system as more books are read and more books purchased. Surprisingly enough, this method is working. I have a good buffer zone of books to read but I don’t have too many…

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