Too many books?

You can have too many cats. I knew a man, a former police officer, who had at least 17 cats in his small apartment. His landlord didn't permit any.

You can have too many spouses at the same time or too many tattoos or too many cars in your driveway. But can you have too many books? I doubt it.

David Quammen

I came upon this quote from science writer David Quammen: "Of course, anyone who truly loves books buys more of them than he or she can hope to read in one fleeting lifetime. A good book resting unopened in its slot on a shelf, full of majestic potentiality, is the most comforting sort of intellectual wallpaper." I love that. Let me break it down into pieces.

Anyone who truly loves books. Loving reading is one thing, but loving books is something else. A love of reading can be satisfied at the public library. If a book is purchased, it can then be read and discarded. Those who love books also love reading, but they also love the books as objects — the sight of them, the smell of them, the thought of them.

In one fleeting lifetime. Two years ago I was forced to part with about half of my books when I sold my house and moved into a Florida condo. Even so, I have more books than I can possibly read in the years I have left, and I continue to acquire more. I am now more likely to part with books I have read, knowing I will never read them again and wanting to lessen the burden on my son when I am gone. Even so, I own thousands of books.

A good book resting unopened. I take this to mean "a good book resting never opened." The "good book" is an assumption, but in my experience most of the books I open turn out to be good. Those that I never finish reading are rare.

Full of majestic potentiality. An unread book is something like a newborn baby. It is full of potential. One never knows how it will turn out, but it could be great.

Most comforting sort of intellectual wallpaper. Because of space limitations, the books I read, if I choose to keep them, must go into boxes in my storage unit. My bookcases mostly contain unread books, which I find a somewhat less comforting sort of intellectual wallpaper than books I've read. Simply glancing at books I've read while walking by can trigger memories of what they contain and, more likely, what I felt when I read them. But if unread books don't quite make as good a wallpaper, they do instill a greater will to keep living and keep reading. And tdhey hold so much exciting potential.