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| Hearsay: |
A bizarre set of instructions for how and when to display your books in your own home has gotten some people up in arms. I follow only one principle for the display of my books. I call it “Area Maximization Principle” (AMP). According to AMP, however I can jam more paper onto the wood is what wins in the end. I stack them two rows deep and then pile horizontally on top. I use dust as a buffer layer. Eventually, when I lose a pet or elderly relative to the crashing bookcase, I buy another set of shelves.
“Bookshelves are not for displaying books you’ve read,” says Klein; “those books go in your office, or near your bed, or on your Facebook profile. Rather, the books on your shelves are there to convey the type of person you would like to be. I am the type of person who would read long biographies of Lyndon Johnson, despite not being the type of person who has read any long biographies of Lyndon Johnson. I am the type of person who is very interested in a history of the Reformation, but am not, as it happens, the type of person with the time to read 900 pages on the subject. More importantly, I am the type of person who amasses many books, on all sorts of subjects. I’m pretty sure that’s what a bookshelf is there to prove. The reading of those books is entirely incidental. The question becomes how we’ll project all of this when Kindles takes off and all our books are digital.”
There is bravery in such candor. The word “poseur” is still around, after all, even if the people who study consumer behavior, and try to channel it, have coined the kinder and gentler term “aspirational taste” for this sort of thing. David Brooks could probably get a best-selling analysis of the American middle class out of the contrast between Seligman’s moralistic injunction and Klein’s jaunty expression of dandyism. Just throw in some references to the difference between Blue and Red states, and the thing writes itself.
That all said, I tend to store my most beloved tomes and the books of my friends in a kinder manner. And I’ve recently come, by the Grace of a Minor God named Matthew, into a few early Geoffrey Hill first editions that complete my collection and need some extra care. Can I just store these with my others or do they need some sort of antiquarian humidor for books?
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February 28th, 2008 at 10:27 am
Humidity control is a two way street I’ve never seen in practice by a private collector.
Arrangement by like size is the easy answer, but this must extend to the cover’s width as well to avoid dreaded deformation. Keeping them tightly packed on the shelf will aid their endurance.
Or you could beat the crap out of them, ignore them for long stretches and break every rule until they reflect an honest friendship.
February 28th, 2008 at 10:45 am
George, for godsakes, get a special glass case for those books.
February 28th, 2008 at 10:47 am
It’s not a zoo, K!
February 28th, 2008 at 11:13 am
I wouldn’t recommend glass for a zoo; it doesn’t breathe well.
February 28th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
You don’t need any special equiptment. Just keep attention to where you put them. Away from drafts, direct sunlight and dust them. Sunlight will fade the papers and weaken the fibers. It can reak havok over a long period of time. Dust is worse for books than most people think. If these are books you won’t read very often , occassionally take them books off the shelf and dust them. Nothing fancy, just dust them and the shelves. Do not use dusting products as they will transfer to the books. Don’t stack these books, if you do it with other books. I stack books because it looks pretty and creates interest, but it’s not good for their spines and it warps them.
“How do you properly care for a rare book?
Rare books must be treated with respect as their condition greatly influences their value. Never pull a rare book from the shelf by the top of the spine. Instead, push the two neighboring books back and grasp the one you want in the middle of the spine. Do not open a rare book any farther than it wants to go and always hold it in both hands. If the volume is heavy, take it to a table before opening it.
Most books do not need museum quality care or extreme temperature control. When caring for books in your own home, keep in mind the following rule of thumb: books like to live where people live. The attic is too hot and dry, and the basement too cold and damp. Keep rare volumes upright or lying flat so that the spines remain straight. Leather books actually benefit from being gently handled since the oils from your skin keep them supple.”