I love that you have a Minecraft themed bathroom. People should have fun with their houses, rather than ignoring their desires for bland “tastefulness”.

I just bagged up 20 shopping bags of books that I’m dropping off at my local used bookseller. Some will end up on his shelves. Some will end up donated to the library.

Or as we say in my house: pressing Q on a dirt block.

Thought this was cool and showed this to my son and he says, “I want to poop in there.”

I occasionally reread books, but that’s the rare exception, not the rule. I imagine that’s the same for most people. Even if I really love a book, time is a finite resource, and a book is a relatively big time commitment. I’d generally rather use that time to try and find another great book. I have a few that I’m…

We stopped hoarding them after our last move, when we realized how MANY we had. Over 3500. We slowly started picking through and selling them off, and replacing ones we knew we’d re-read with ebooks.

I used to be a veracious reader and would buy a handful of books every month. Now I embraced my local library and check out most of my books (I can check out ebooks too). I also broke down and bought a 1st gen paperwhite ereader from a friend who had upgraded to the newest and greatest ereader and went to the project…

Yeah, I mean the whole “does this spark joy” is a little iffy, but it’s a great idea when applied with some common sense. Why are you keeping this book around that you read once 20 years ago? Sure, if ou actively want to display it, that’s fine, but at least ask yourself if you’re keeping it for a reason or if you…

I find I prefer seeing a bookshelf with literally anything other than books in it. Movies, games, action figures, whatever. 

I decorate for me, not Instagram or anyone that visits.  This is even more true after the last 2 years of increasing isolation. 

I’ve totally read those copies of Infinite Jest, The Elegant Universe and Don Quixote on my bookshelf. I read them right after reading A Brief History of Time. They only look untouched because a chiropractor fixed their spines.

I’m going to disagree and say that a lack of displayed books isn’t cheap and tacky, certainly not anymore than a lack of displayed films or music. If you enjoy reading from physical books and want to display your favorites, go for it. Same goes for an album or film collection. Like other media, a lot of us have gone…

Well, and the article isn’t even about books as conversation starters or the superiority of physical vs. e-books - it’s about ways to keep your apartment from appearing “cheap and tacky”, and classes not having prominently-displayed bookshelves right up there with dirty carpet or taped-up posters.

Right, a person can be smart and interesting and good without reading books. They can be cultured without reading books. There is nothing wrong with not having books. And past that, maybe you do have books but you just don’t have them displayed - why should you feel the need to show them off? Why should you be judged…

The “lack of books” is actually very relevant to a dilemma I’m having. I’ve used a Kindle for at least 10 years, and while I’m an avid reader, all the books currently on my shelves are those I enjoyed 10-20 years ago, but aren’t necessarily my taste now. I feel weird about giving them away and having a bookshelf of…

I used to hoard every book I ever purchased, and then realized that all they were doing was taking up valuable space in my house. I then purged any book that didn’t have an obvious reason I might refer to it again, or sentimental value to me. I was a holdout with e-books for a long time, but eventually became a…

Some of this I agree on, I guess. The lack of books? Eyeroll. Overly themed rooms? Do they have kids? Extension cords... blah blah. People this judgey are welcome to not step foot in my home.

The “seem” is really the giveaway in the article. As this (and the trophy quote) highlight - it’s not about whether the person reads or values books, it’s about whether they are willing to openly signal that they are One Of Us, part of the great intelligenstia who values books as a thing to spend money on and display.

These seem like personal preferences. Besides the dirty and cluttered part, which isn’t cheap and tacky but just dirty and cluttered, none of these are what I’d consider cheap or tacky.

When people hang up signs in their home that read “This is a home of love” or “Live, Pray, Laugh, Live, Laugh, Love, Pray, Laugh, Live, Eat” who are they talking to?