Thursday 9 October 2008

A smallish hole in the shelves

You can never tell how many books you have until you begin getting rid of some. I've been pulling things off the shelves in a ruthless manner. If I've not read it, and I look at it and think I never will read it, then it's coming off.

The problem with this is what to do with my spreadsheet. Some I have actually read, and I don't want to lose track, so I can't just delete them. Therefore there is now a new page devoted to 'books discarded.

Surprisingly, there are less sacrifices than I thought .... and although I promised I wouldn't, five have gone back on my shelves and I'm trying to make up my mind about that biography of Lucrezia Borgia ...

And now, although I said I would not do this, I am going to post what I'm getting rid of. I don't intend on doing a pick and choose, but if anyone sees something and has been desperately looking for it for years etc. then please comment before Saturday morning, when I will be taking them to Blackwell's second hand department, where I will be trying to sell them ....

Napoli, Donna Jo Daughter of Venice
Newbury, Linda Flightsend
Drabble, Margaret The Seven Sisters
Menzies, Gavin 1421: The Year China Discovered the World
Sperber, A. N. & Lax, Eric Bogart
Scott, Sir Walter The Bride of Lammermoor
Plutarch Roman Lives
Garfield, Simon Mauve
Maclaine, Shirley Out on a Limb
Tannahill, Reay Fatal Majesty
Wells, H.G. A Short History of the World
Bogdanovich, Peter This is Orson Wells
Callow, Simon Charles Laughton
Holinghurst, Alan The Line of Beauty
Orwell, George Nineteen Eighty-four
Baker, Nicholson U & I
Kapuscinski, Ryszard The Soccer war
Ondaatje, Michael The English Patient
Wolff, Tobias In Pharoah's Army
Harris, Robert Archangel/Fatherland
Haggard, H. Rider King Solomon's Mines
Breslin, Theresa Rememberance
Tyler, Anne The Amateur Marriage
Sandford, Christopher McQueen
Pennington, Kate Tread Softly
O'Connor, Joseph Star of the Sea
Barnes, Julian Flaubert's Parrot
Mailer, Norman An American Dream
Kundera, Milan Slowness
Rathbone, Julian Kings of Albion
Fowles, John The French Lieutentant's Woman
Falk, Quentin Anthony Hopkins
Thakeray, William Vanity Fair
Scott, Sir Walter Ivanhoe
Bosworth, Patricia Marlon Brando
Tiffany, Grace My Father had a daughter
Molony, Rowland After the death of Alice Bennet
Rushdie, Salman Midnight's Children
Brown, Peter Harry Howard Hughes
Ibbotsen, Eva A song for summer
Christie, Agathe A Murder is Announced
Kerouac, Jack The Dharma Bums
Penman, Sharon When Christ and his Saints Slept
Marshall, Dorothy Victoria
Sorenson, Theodore C. Kennedy
Farmer, Francis Will there really be a morning?
Bunyan, John Pilgrim's Progress
Frieda, Leonie Catherine de Medici
Hawkes, Howard Bringing up Baby
Lerner, Alan Jay The Street Where I Live
Bronte, Emily Wuthering Heights
Davies, Martin The Conjuror's Bird

4 comments:

Peta said...

If only I had your self-discipline! I can see several books in your list that I own and know that I will never read again but just can't get rid of them! So sad...

GlassCurls said...

It doesn't really make a difference. I still have more books than I know what to do with! I think if it's been on a shelf for more than four years, and you can't think of a time when you will ever need to read it, then it should go. Not that that works every time of course!

Gloria said...

Huh, I have already a first, signed edition of Simon Callow's seminal book on laughton, but I re-visit it so often, I guess "I'd need another copy to mistreat", LOL

If you aren't lucky trying to sell thses ones, drop me a line (i might be interested if postage to Spain isn't too expensive):

Kapuscinski, Ryszard/The Soccer war
Kerouac, Jack/The Dharma Bums
Bogdanovich, Peter/This is Orson Wells

GlassCurls said...

I am actually vaugely wondering if I should keep the Laughton .... I'll let you know Gloria if I don't sell any of the ones mentioned!