Culling books

[richardfinegold]

I'm in the fortunate (or unfortunate, whichever way you look at it) position of having neither spouse nor partner so have no one to tell me what do with my own things!

When my wife and I discuss downsizing living space, she glances at my CDs, I look at her sewing machines and fabrics piles, and we both laugh. And we are equal offenders when it comes to saving books. We do bring a few boxes of books every year to donate to our library for their resale, but we usually buy an equal if not greater amount back

[MickyD]

Many thanks for both suggestions, I'll look into it. The Montolieu place sounds fascinating and indeed is nearer to me.

[vinteuil]

... and, perhaps nearer to MickyD, the English bookshop in the book village of Montolieu -

https://englishbookshop.org/

.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/travel/article/20240226-montolieu-the-french-village-dedicated-to-books

.

[Alain Maréchal]

And even if I wanted to cull my books, I'd have a devil of a job to get rid of them here in Arles as they are all in English!

You could, should you need to, and I suggest you should not and need not, contact Boukie's Bookshop in Périgueux. They deal in books in English, selling them to the hordes of Anglo-Saxons who visit the area each summer.

https://www.boukiesbookshop.com/

[Petrushka]

Oh dear, this touches a nerve with me, as my French husband often passes by the stacked shelves of books and thousands of CDs, often uttering the words "Will you ever read/listen to these again?" to which I always reply "I don't know, but there is always the possibility I might!"

He cannot understand the collecting bug and in a year or two we are intending to move house. That is usually an ideal occasion in which to chuck out unwanted stuff but I know I will fiercely guarding my books and CDs. And even if I wanted to cull my books, I'd have a devil of a job to get rid of them here in Arles as they are all in English!

I'm in the fortunate (or unfortunate, whichever way you look at it) position of having neither spouse nor partner so have no one to tell me what do with my own things!

[MickyD]

.

... the reply I tend to use is "what we have here is a library - the books/CDs are a resource available for us to use when the need arises... "

You would probably get a similarly unimpressed response...

Yes, something along the lines of "n'importe quoi!"

[vinteuil]

... the stacked shelves of books and thousands of CDs, often uttering the words "Will you ever read/listen to these again?" to which I always reply "I don't know, but there is always the possibility I might!"

.

... the reply I tend to use is "what we have here is a library - the books/CDs are a resource available for us to use when the need arises... "

You would probably get a similarly unimpressed response...

[MickyD]

.
... I am told by mme v that our loft is now impossible to negotiate, and a grand cull is to be implemented this winter. I am dreading it. I have not yet got any clever ideas as to the way forward...

Oh dear, this touches a nerve with me, as my French husband often passes by the stacked shelves of books and thousands of CDs, often uttering the words "Will you ever read/listen to these again?" to which I always reply "I don't know, but there is always the possibility I might!"

He cannot understand the collecting bug and in a year or two we are intending to move house. That is usually an ideal occasion in which to chuck out unwanted stuff but I know I will fiercely guarding my books and CDs. And even if I wanted to cull my books, I'd have a devil of a job to get rid of them here in Arles as they are all in English!

[Alain Maréchal]

.
... I am told by mme v that our loft is now impossible to negotiate, and a grand cull is to be implemented this winter. I am dreading it. I have not yet got any clever ideas as to the way forward...

May I suggest, M. Vinteuil, a solution?
Earlier this year we removed from 03 to 87, and it was necessary, as part of the process, to store all our books and all LPs, CDs and furniture, for some months. They were carefully packed and just as carefully delivered, and on unpacking I found that everything was in excellent condition. I remember a similar process in my previous migrations.
The solution that suggests itself is to arrange for surplus books (not an adjective I use lightly*) to be packed into boxes, and to hire a storage unit. You would be able to visit as you wish and return some volumes to your home.

* there are some Simenons i expect never to read again, but, one never knows...

[Ein Heldenleben]

Yes, I don't think they have obstruction sensors like lift doors do...
The archive team at my former place of work had a small rank of these installed last year, but given the noise they make(they are not new by a long way) when being cranked open or shut I think the risk of getting squished is probably not too great. Also the room they are in has very high ceilings so I suppose an ascent of Mount Shelf would provide an escape route if completed fast enough.

The irony of being crushed to death by my own rushes and those of my colleagues was not lost on me . In many ways a glorious end. Serve us right for shooting too much and overrating the value of the raw material .The racks were completely silent when moving.

[oddoneout]

There is just such an arragement in the new* Birmingham city library, with, as I recall, prominent notices warning users not to crush unwitting readers.

------------------------------------

* I say 'new ' but it is probably ten to twenty years old now. I still think of the old , ill-fated and now demolished, 1970s Birmingham Library as the 'new' one. How time flies.

Yes, I don't think they have obstruction sensors like lift doors do...
The archive team at my former place of work had a small rank of these installed last year, but given the noise they make(they are not new by a long way) when being cranked open or shut I think the risk of getting squished is probably not too great. Also the room they are in has very high ceilings so I suppose an ascent of Mount Shelf would provide an escape route if completed fast enough.

[smittims]

There is just such an arragement in the new* Birmingham city library, with, as I recall, prominent notices warning users not to crush unwitting readers.

------------------------------------

* I say 'new ' but it is probably ten to twenty years old now. I still think of the old , ill-fated and now demolished, 1970s Birmingham Library as the 'new' one. How time flies.

[Ein Heldenleben]

[QUOTE=AuntDaisy;n1353158]
Amazing what mice can climb, including stone walls.

Why not suggest this to Madame V as an alternative to keeping or culling? In the Yes Minister Card Trick vein...

[/QUOTE

Used to have a tape store like that at work. I always wondered whether it would be possible to be crushed by a moving rack in some bizarre Alkan like death.

[Cockney Sparrow]

I have to say, that my thoughts did once - briefly, turn to the mobile/movable (professional archive/storage) racking - I wondered if anywhere in the world, it was sold in a form for storage in houses. Probably not the UK, but where large houses and ancillary buildings are more common and presumably more affordable.
It occurred to me after the question was raised in my mind - the cost per sq metre in our houses and flats as against current house prices, and the cost of the storage rooms in "storage units" ( a friend needed temporary storage in between house moves ). Those storage units must be licences to print money......

[LMcD]

Amazing what mice can climb, including stone walls.

Why not suggest this to Madame V as an alternative to keeping or culling? In the Yes Minister Card Trick vein...

Anybody who's listened to The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy knows precisely how intelligent and resourceful mice are.