It's not just me, right?

When I began this blog, it was so I could look back at all the books I've read over the years and decide what I wanted to do with them. I've made some headway now, managing to give away a few books, swap, or occasionally sell them. I've been enjoying re-reading them and writing about them here a great deal.

Tonight, I found myself wrapping up two books from the Angelic Layer series, three Rave Master books, the .hack manga that came out in the early 2000s, and Me Before You. Tomorrow, I'll be mailing them out to their new homes.

I'll be glad to cut down some of the clutter, but when I was wrapping up Angelic Layer and Rave Master, I found myself unexpectedly sad. They were the first manga I ever owned, and even though I hadn't picked them up in years, I was still attached to the books themselves. I can't say that it's the end of an era--my manga phase ended long ago--or that I'm nostalgic for a better time. No one ever gets nostalgic about junior high, I can promise you that.

Because I anthropomorphize everything, I feel a little guilty that the books I've owned in each series are getting split up and sent to different owners. But mostly, I think I just liked having them around. But as I was packing everything up, I really wanted to flip through the pages one more time, re-read them just once more. And wonder, just for a second, if maybe I shouldn't send them out at all.
But then I remind myself that they'll have new owners that will (hopefully) love these books as much as I did.

Does anyone else have trouble getting rid of books? Have you ever felt emotionally attached to a physical copy of a book, even if you haven't picked it up in years?

Watch this Space!

Between applying for grad school and the holidays, this blog has had to go on a longer hiatus than I expected. The good news is that things have calmed down for now, and I've been busy reading and writing. On March 4, I'll be starting back up with Snow Drop by Choi Kyung-ah. It's a dark, romantic Korean Comic about two star-crossed lovers and the extremely poor life choices they make. 

After Snow Drop, I'll be reading The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis, the (chronologically) first book in the Chronicles of Narnia, and one of my favorites as a child. I can't wait to see how well these have aged.

Stay tuned!

Prologue: What is this nonsense?

A couple months ago, I embarked on a new adventure: cleaning my bedroom. This is a feat that has been undertaken many times, but is rarely ever completed. Now, the project has started again with new gusto, but has hit an unexpected road block.

The books.

It has become clear to me that I am a book hoarder. As I struggle to find my bedroom floor, I keep finding more and more books, some dating as far back as elementary school. The biggest problem, the real detriment to completing this feat of cleanliness, is figuring out what to do with the multitude of books.

From the full bookcase...

The overflowing shelves...

The cluttered cupboards...

And my library is beginning to make its way into the rest of the house...

Oh, and in case you've ever wondered, here's what 83 pounds of books look like:

It's become clear to me: something must be done.

If you're a reader like me, I think you'll agree that getting ride of books isn't a task that can be undertaken lightly. From the books you've read once and never touched again, the ones you seem to re-read every year, or the ones you keep around purely for sentimental value, it's not easy to decide which should stay and which should go. That's where this blog come in.

I'll be reading through this nonsense - indeed, re-reading my childhood and adolescence - to help determine the fate of all the books that I loved so much growing up. A few times a week, I'll be reviewing a chapter or two here, to help determine what should stay and what should go.

So fasten your seatbelts kids, it's gonna be a verbose ride.