What happened to you oldroser is completely unconcionable. It's really appalling that a gift, and one from a primary benefactor, could be so misused. I'm so sorry it happened. Rosefolly, I'm sorry your noble quest to donate a worthy title has become so convoluted. As Bellegallica said - just because it may be accepted, doesn't mean you'll see it in the stacks. And I think Oldroser hit the mark by talking about selling books, whether a rose book collection or even a new rose book. I know it may bring up a sore spot, but getting these great books into the hands of people who really want to read them is the first priority, right? So is a library really the right place to do so? I guess I'm being influenced by a review I read recently in the New York Times about Larry McMurtry's "Books: A Memoir" where he talks about his obsessive book collecting. My husband is one such kind of guy who relishes his "finds" on dusty shelves. I have some lovely old rose books due to his "hobby" and I secretly wait for the next one, even as I try to subdue his obsession. Anyone who loves books will cherish this volume and perhaps keep a copy, or sell it, or share it with those who will appreciate it. The ability to see quality in a book is foresight into its intrinsic value, now, or in the future. Even though public libraries may not see it now, there are many more venues to appreciate its value.

Another thought - I don't know the regulations for your utility Right of Way where you live, but here, the various power companies' RoW extends for 15' on all sides of the wires, so they have the right to trim off/cut anything that encroaches into that space, or that has the potential to. This usually means that they do a hatchet job on a tree, but sometimes means that they take one down altogether. For that reason, if yours is the same, you might think about growing/planting only fairly small trees or shrubs, that can either NOT grow into the RoW or not mind getting cut back hard once in a while. One of the Serviceberry/Amelanchier species comes to mind, as does one of the med.-small crape myrtles. Paperbark maple might do, as might a viburnum or similar tall shrub that could be limbed up into a tree-form. Other thoughts are Redbud, Dogwoods, Hawthorn if there aren't the disfiguring prevalent diseases around (fireblight and the rusts), one of the smaller magnolias, or any SMALL, dwarf specimen of a taller tree - elm, ginkgo, etc. (I emphasize small, because dwarf can be applied to a cultivar even if it grows only a few feet shorter than the species!) Possibly, if well sited, a columnar, deciduous tree wouldn't get into the RoW, such as a fastigate sweetgum, ginkgo (again), oak, etc., or else a tall, narrow conifer - Arborvitae 'Emerald Green' or 'de Groot's Spire', a Hinoki cypress, one of the smaller conical junipers, etc., etc. There are any number of possibilities, you just have to narrow it down to what you would like, as well as what you can afford and what you can FIND! Good luck.

I went to Butchart Gardens, and yes the Pacific Northwest is a lush green beautiful place and the gardens will be beautiful if you have never been to the Northwest before, but I found Butchart Gardens paled in comparison to some of the rest of the natural scenery in the Northwest, it felt kind of "artificial" by comparison. The gardens are also overpriced. The weather in that area tends to be gloomily overcast much of the time, so for the best experience you might prefer to go in the summer, and allow yourself enough time in the area to be able to see the gardens on a good day.

loribee and Connie, thank you for the kind words. Connie, I just spent some lovely time on your blog, totally captivated by your new kittens and your roses. (I'm a new native gardening.) I love seeing what people have done with customizing other pieces but we're just not DIY folks at all. Hubby has ZERO interest and my abilities are limited. So mostly we either have to buy ready to go or pay someone to do things. One other reason to replace these is that I can then move some of them into my office which has shorter shelves and into hubby's office which also has shorter shelves. We need a lot of bookspace. les - no, the store won't come out here and it's not custom as in them building various sizes. Plus the store is an hour away. The fitting is pretty basic - I have 67" on one side of the fireplace and 73" on the other. All bookcases are 12" deep and there is 33" and 46" wide one to be used. So 12" + 46" = 58 with 9" left on one side and 15" left on the other because of course the fireplace isn't in the middle of the wall. :) Those gaps are too wide on either side of the fireplace to look decent and if I use these cases, I can't really make something to fit the small space and match. If I use the pine ones I have more widths to choose from, 24, 30, 36, 48 so I could do a 24 and 30 on one side and 30 and 30 on the other side which, when I add in the 12" depth for the cases from the other wall, gives me an inch to spare. But I need to figure out the heat registers and look at the case bottoms better today to see if we can cut the fronts for registers or mount them on bases of some kind. I tell you, I'm exhausted by all of this. Watching them demo the ceramic tile for the wood floor is going to be a piece of cake after this. :) The other think you might consider, and I dont know for sure what would be cheaper, would be to have the bookcases made of stain-grade plywood, or paint grade that you do in a deep black brown, or a white to match the fireplace. I spent another couple of hours looking at the various manufacturers on the stores website and found a couple of entertainment units that should work. I'll ask about them when we go today. Hubby is picky. We need something for the TV, no problem, but then the 4 components (DVD, TiVo, subwoofer and CD player) need a space that is open on both the front and the back. He won't use glass or cloth doors and wants an open back. (We'll just cut what we need from the back if it doesn't come open.) But like I said, I think there are a few pieces that would work and the handyman came by last night and said that he could do the bridge stuff I wanted. It's the heat registers to solve now. And can I just say again, thank you to all of you who read and comment and hold hands through this process? I don't have anyone local here to bounce this stuff around with so I really, really appreciate it.