Skibby, well done. I smiled at you, buying a bookcase for the bargains! I wish I had room for another as my books are in piles all over my small home and the two bookcases I have are stuffed full, mostly with OOP books, old favourites I can't give up.

Always go vertical for book (and other) storage! I have a Parsons table (remember those? from 45 years ago) in my bedroom, under which are art supplies. Wasted space above, so I bought a kindergarten-style storage shelf, put it on top of the table, and have BOOK STORAGE!! Filled it fast, even on top. It's a good thing. =)

Every room in my house has bookcases, multiples, even and very tall. Well, except for the bathrooms. lol

Roxanna, I bet your place looks almost exactly like mine. Despite downsizing 9 years ago and getting rid of a huge library, I kept old favorites and keep adding more books. It seems to be a weakness of mine to find bargain books everywhere. I have book shelves in every single room, even added a bookshelf on top of my refrigerator!

Is anyone interested in seeing the list of books? I'd be happy to provide it, or perhaps it's too long. It's 38 books and a few comments. Whatever folks want, I'm OK with.

Skibby, if you have the time, I'd love to see your book list. =)

Woodnymph, I will never be able to downsize my book collection! And I doubt I will refrain from buying more as the mood strikes. You have me beat, with your fridge bookshelf! Tho I do have all hallways with bookcases as well as all rooms.

When we moved into this house in January 2010, my husband built floor-to-ceiling bookcases on each side of the fireplace in the den and wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling bookcases across the end of the living room. He was quite talented and did a lovely job on them. The ones in the LR are the first thing people comment on when they first come in. I also have a small two-shelf case in a guest room, a four-shelf one in my bedroom, and two shelves of cookbooks in my new pushed-out kitchen window. I also have some short stacks on coffee tables and upright on other pieces of furniture.

Alas, with the books I already had and the ones I've added, I am almost out of space; and I cannot bear to part with any of them. Well, I did get rid of a number of cookbooks, but then I never liked to cook anyway. I fear I will join you all in the stacks of books piled everywhere pretty soon. I have told my heirs that I don't care what they do with my stuff when I'm gone but to please have someone look at the books and the old dishes (another weakness) before they put them in a yard sale.

I did see a picture in a magazine where someone had taken the doors off the cabinets above the refrigerator and filled the shelves with cookbooks. That would be a last desperate measure for me because I can't reach those shelves without dragging out the tallest stool I have.

Speaking of heirs, I've told mine not to toss out my books willy-nilly, because (as in one "Twilight Zone" episode) I will have tucked some folding money in some of them.... hee hee!

Roxanna - Oh, you are crafty!

Skibby - I too would like to see the list of books you bought.

My late husband was quite a squirrel with money. I didn't find any in his books but hidden in a number of other places. When he had his wallet stolen once, he said he hoped the thief had found the banknote in a secret pocket as he didn't want it to go to waste!

Here is the list of my purchases. A good investment of $32 (the price of one new book) for a long time of enjoyable (I hope) reading. I set it up this way to save space. Harder to read (sorry!) but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Bridge to Terabithia – Katherine Paterson [YA]; A Newbery Halloween – selected by
Martin Greenberg and Charles Waugh [ various Halloween short stories]; Peace
Like a River – Leif Enger [I wanted to make sure I had a copy because I
couldn’t remember if I did]; Telling the Bees – Peggy Hesketh; Duet
– contains: The Flight of the Falcon & The Scapegoat – Daphne
du Maurier[to add to my collection of her that I’ve begun]; Joe Hill –
Wallace Stegner; The Ride of Our Lives –Mike Leonard [with a DVD in the
back of the book]; A Prayer for the Dying – Stewart O’Nan; The Flight
of the Maidens – Jane Gardam; Back When We Were Grownups – Anne
Tyler; Great Short Stories (Ghost stories) – Ed. By William Patten; The
Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis; The Little Paris Bookshop
– Nina George; Suite Francais – Irene Nemirovsky [which will always be
‘The French Suitcase’ for me ever since Astrokath posted that very funny story
about an encounter at her bookshop. I hope I enjoy reading it as much as I
enjoyed that story];The Girl in Hyacinth Blue – Susan Vreeland; The
Luminaries – Eleanor Catton; The Hot and Cold Summer – Johanna
Hurwitz [YA]; The Down East Murders – J.S. Borthwick; Necessary as
Blood – Deborah Crombie; The Cage Keeper – Andre Dubus III; [these
last two were accidental pick-ups I think. While I recognize the author’s names
I don’t know the books. No matter – what if they are the best two out of the
lot?] Wolf Hollow – Lauren Wolk [YA]; The Christmas Letters
– Lee Smith; A Red Herring Without Mustard – Alan Bradley [a Flava de
Luce that I picked up to see what all the fuss was about. If I like it, I’ll start
from the beginning of the series]; Black House – Stephen King &
Peter Straub [I’m collecting a stash of books for October for Halloween
reading]; A Walk in the Woods & The Lost Continent – Bill
Bryson [ another two to see what the great appeal is. Not looking forward in
happy anticipation but that’s probably because I’m stubborn and can be a jerk.
I hope I am pleasantly surprised]; The Day the Falls Stood Still – Cathy
Marie Buchanon; Broken for You – Stephanie Kallos; Classic Ghost
Stories – Wilke Collins, M.R. James, Charles Dickens and others – Ed. by
John Grafton; The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend – Katarina
Bivald; Skellig – David Almond [YA]; The Outlaws of Sherwood
– Robin McKinley [I’m collecting different editions of Robin Hood – all fun and
all very different style-wise]; The Weekend – Peter Cameron; Summer
Rain – Marguerite Duras; The Light at Tern Rock – Julia Sauer [YA]; Mystery
on October Road – Alison Herzig & Jane Mali [YA]. Then on
the way to the car I spied one more I wanted so DH ran it back to the cashier
desk where they were still recovering from tallying and bagging my books, threw
up their hands and said “just take it!” That one is a graphic novel – The
Hound of the Baskerville – Conan Doyle. Of all the books listed I’ve
only read one (Peace Like a River). All the others were either on my list or
simply looked good. Any feedback will be hungrily read.

Wow, what a great day I had.

Fantastic!! Thank you for taking time to post the titles. Cannot go wrong with Hound of the Baskerville. Two other that I know you will enjoy: Girl in...Blue, Paris Bookshop I volunteer in our library bookstore, so I enjoyed hearing about your spree and what you got. Is the YA for yourself? Maybe you are YA!

I particularly like Deborah Crombie, but this book is part of her detective series and they do build from one to the next. If you like this one, you are set for lots of good reading. Check her out on the stopyou'rekillingme.com site.

Socks - yes, the YA is for me but I'm far from one myself! I spent the next couple of days in happy-land just looking at the book stacks, reading the jackets, author info. Thanks for the Crombie info Carolyn, and the link. This is the way I typically discover a new (to me) series - smack, dab in the middle. Then I'm all happy that I have a whole stack just waiting TBR.

Skibby - that's quite a list! I think you will like Skellig, and would be interested in hearing what you think of it. I read it about 20 years ago, and have never forgotten it.

I enjoyed reading your list, Skibby. The annotations make it very enjoyable. I recently started reading The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend, but set it aside when a different book called out more loudly to me. I liked the premise a lot, and was enjoying it, but it just wouldn't move along fast enough to maintain my interest. I'll be interested to hear what you have to say about it.

Great list, Skibby. You can't go wrong with Du Maurier or Stegner or Vreeland. I, too, collect differing versions of the Robin Hood tales, as well as those of King Arthur. And I am a fan, as well, of certain YA works. I was just given a copy of Nemirovsky's "Suite Francaise" but have not started it yet.