'm a collector and I can't stop buying books. I'm an addict. A freak. In the last 2 months, I've acquired over 40 books. That's plain sick. Lots of it has to do with all the author signings taking place in town (I go buy as many first editions I can get my hands on before they get here).

Any other collectors out there? How do you limit your buying? How do you determine what you buy and what you pass on? With the Internet, almost everything is at your fingertips...so how does one say NO?

I can't stop buying, and what's worse, I hardly read at all. I hit numerous second hand stores weekly, and buy all these clearance paperbacks, old horror, sci-fi, literature and general fiction. I don't know when I'll ever get around to reading them. I'm averaging maybe one book per 2 weeks, yet I still buy them by the armload. Wacky.

I love books. Buy all the time. As for collecting, meaning having a HC FE (signed or not), it's only my favorite authors or friends. Anything I have signed is a FE.

I "collect" Graham Greene, Mike Connelly, Flannery O'Connor, Anne Lamott, Barbara Hall, some Hemingway (expensive!), and James Lee Burke.

Just curious to see if anyone else has been on another buying rampage. Despite telling myself I'd catch up this year on all the books I already own, I just went out and bought 6 books in the last 10 days. Add that 10 to the 30-40 books I still haven't read in my collection, and you see that maybe it's time to read instead of buy.

I've purchased about 15 books in the past month and read exactly three of those. I thought I'd have much more time over the holidays, but I read a total of about a page while family was visiting. I'm going to stop buying now and catch up.

Riiiiiight.

I probably bought 8 - and read 4 of them so far.

Uhhh, I have no clue. Maybe 20 or 30?

Hyde

I think about 20. Two of them new (as in unread -- not just published) and the rest used. My local library has a great used book store in their basement.

Just 4 or 5 for me.

The problem is that I only have time to read 1-2 per month.

Don't feel bad GC. I'm doing good if I read 2 per month. While I may buy 20-30 in a month, that doesn't mean I read them.

I read an interview with cartoonist Gahan Wilson once who when asked if he had read all of the thousands of books he had stored in his house answered "Good Lord no; why would anybody want a library full of books one has already read??"

I see waht he's saying, and think he has a point, but I still hoard everything.

I too am on a buying rampage. After receiving 27 books for christmas, I had to go out and buy more.

Since the beginning of January I have purchased 26 more.

Unofortunately my bookshelves are beginning to no longer suffice for my buying habits. I am afraid that I might have to hold back a little. Though, admittedly, 9 of the books are for my college classes this quarter. Two German literature classes and a Latin/Greek class.

Zero.

Not a threadcrap, is it?

Just 5 regular and 5 audio books from Audible, but I still have several to catch up on from earlier buys.

I'm currently reading A Year at the Movies by Kevin Murphy.

Not if you can't read.



I have bought about 8 and have read 4 1/2.

I had just picked up a half dozen from Mystery Guild a while back and have a couple left to finish from that group. Once I have fulfilled my contract I will hit the used book store and start a couple of new authors and their series. This should keep me busy until my current authors release new books and they come out in paperback. Think I will start with Michael Connelly and his stuff and then proceed to the Alex Delaware novels by Jonathan Kellerman. I've also got some Patrick Robinson submarine books for a change of pace.

I average buying about 4-6 books a month.

So far in January, I've purchased 4.

I use the library exclusively.
I can request any material (books, cds, dvds) via the internet, and if my local library doesn't have it on the shelf they get it from another local one.

Saves me $$ to spend on other stuff...........

Only bought a couple, but probably received 50 or so in total.

Wish there were more time in the day...

I am wayyy to addicted to books.

My latest binge:

Rich Man's Table
The Hunt: Laws of the Blood
The Disposable Man
The Marble Mask
Occam's Razor
Idoru
All Tomorrow's Parties
The Harry Bosch Novels
Dangerous Beauty

A lot of the books were bought based on DVD Talker's suggestions

Anyone else go book shoppin' lately

I got a Jimmy Buffett biography:

A Pirate Looks at Fifty.

I have read it, but wanted one of my own.

Great read.

From Amazon UK yesterday I ordered Gene Wolfe's:

• "On Blue's Waters"
• "In Green's Jungles"
• "Return to the Whorl"
• "Latro in the Mist"

I have already read the two novels from which the the last of these has been put together: I just hope he rounds it off with one or two more. The guy is now getting on in years but he is such a great writer.

You waited for these to reach clearance price? I bought 'em as soon as they were available! (I bought Pattern Recognition BEFORE it was avilable by getting a review copy off of Half.com for like 8 bucks).

Let us know how you like the Harry Bosch novels. I love Connelly's work. [shameless plug] My review of his latest should run in USA Today this week. [/shameless plug]

It's certainly better for my finances that I get all my books for free, but I do miss the pleasure of a good book buying binge.

Will do... It was DEFINATELY one of the books I bought because of strong recommendations from DVD Talk members here in the forum.

Haddn't read a lot of Gibson's books between Neuromancer and
Pattern Recognition, but I liked PR so well I thought I'd catch up

The new novel is Lost Light and its out April first. I can't wait for more Bosch. I just finished Chasing the Dime and I'm ready for more Connelly.

As far as being addicted to books, I don't think there is a better addiction to have.