Barnes and Noble has been busy of late adding video interviews to their website. Something else they have added is a feature called Book Obsessed. It’s a short video featuring a book obsessed person, like Joe Perlman in Long Island, New York for instance who has 35,000 books and counting. Watch the video and tell me what you think of his collection. Did you, like me, have a sharp intake of breath and think, “OMG, I could never have a house that looked like that?” And then did you look around and realize that you were well on the way to having a house that looked like that? And then did you vacillate between glee and horror at thought of it?
The video (sorry I had to link it, but WordPress refused to embed it or accept java script for a pop-up window)
Well, my house is pretty far from looking like that! His place is pretty amazing — what a collection! That will help me get over my guilt for owning so many books …
Heh. I’m not so far along that my books aren’t all upright with spines out. Well, except for a couple piles… But I can stop any time I want!!!
All right, after seeing this, contrary to what I wrote in my last post, perhaps I’m not a book slut after all. Perhaps I’m not even book obsessed (but somehow I doubt that).
Wow! I would love to roam through all those books – the buried treasures he must have! I live in an apartment – second floor – and have about twenty bookcases spaced throughout but things are pretty organized. I think there’s a fine line between order and chaos, and perhaps one day that line is crossed and I wouldn’t realize it until I tripped over a stack of books that “appeared” out of nowhere. Actually, Perlman’s house reminds me of a great used bookstore that I used to frequent in Michigan – basically a house where each room was a different genre. Sadly, it no longer seems to be open, though whenever I drive by it I always check.
Amazing! What a treasure trove. I saw he has ‘Who Wrote What’, but maybe that was one book he didn’t need to buy?
I would like to move in, please. I’m concerned that some of those books in the ‘overflow’ were looking very unloved and in need of personal attention. From me.
Wow! What a house! I try to be strict with the number of books (tiny apartment and my belief that a book should live in a home with someone who loves it, so if I don’t love it it’ll be taken to the charity shop) but I have fantasties about a book-filled house…I hope his cataloging system is equally impressive!
If I go at the pace I am right now, in ten years I might turn my house like this. However, will need to earn enough to buy big enough house for that, I guess! And with all that reading, time to earn seems difficult.
Wow. 35,000 books? Amazing.
I routinely pass on books so I am in no danger of amassing 35,000. I liked his pantheon. If I had a large collection, I would want a library like something out of a Victorian mansion. I always love watching movies where the main character has the ladder with wheels to slide around the stacks and get at the books up on the second level.
I love this man! I want to take over his house!
Wow! I feel better about my crazy shelves. And I liked his shelf where he houses what he calls “the pantheon”–very nice, and something I would have in my house if I could! Thanks for sharing!
He claims he is not, but he is book-obsessed – no offence, please. He says that he started collecting books in 1975 if I’m not mistaken, and now he has 35,000 books. It’s been 33 years since then, and it means he bought about 1,060 books a year at the rate of 3 books a day. If that’s not obsession, I don’t know what is. I spend two to three hundred dollars a month on books, and think it’s rather too much sometimes, especially when many of them gather dust unread and when I think there is a good public library just 3 miles away. And I thought I was ‘book-happy’ (and gadget-happy)! But he is the quintessential ‘book-happy’ man. Boy, to imagine all those books in the house . . . and the money he spent . . . !
That’s quite impressive! Do you think he’s read them all? (the computer I’m using doesn’t have sound, so maybe he said). As bad as I am about accumulating books I can see there is someone who is far, far worse than I’ll ever be!
I only wish they would have panned a bit more slowly over those shelves, so I could catch more titles!
On one hand, I admire the guy for actually reading the books and being interested in them, as opposed to just collecting them as items. I say this because a bookstore here in the DC area recently purchased the library of Rolland Comstock, who had amassed a collection of over 50,000 books, and who was written up in Nick Brasbane’s “Patience & Fortitude.” Sadly, the guy was murdered, by his son apparently, and that’s why his collection is up for sale now. The bookstore–a huge warehouse already–had to open up an entirely separate annex just to house the collection.
Anyway, wandering through the collection, it was clear that the guy was a totally indiscriminate collector, other than the fact he tried to amass mainly modern first editions. But in terms of the contents of the books, there was no rhyme or reason to what he collected. I talked to the owner of the bookstore about this, and he agreed.
I have to say, walking through the collection—it is impressive that one guy could collect all that. But the overwhelming and surprising feeling I got most of all was one of sadness. Sad that he spent all this time collecting all these books, and now there they go, to hundreds of different buyers, spread out around the country (since many people flew into DC just to buy from the collection). For that reason alone–the sadness–I didn’t buy any that day, though I will likely return again in the future. He did have some excellent books, and it will take years for the bookstore to sell all of them.
If you’re interested in reading more about the collection:
http://realitystudio.org/bibliographic-bunker/the-comstock-collection/
It does sort of look like my house. But his is neater.
I posted to your blog on my site, for this entry – it’s too irresistible for all of us who love books! I had to write about it on my blog too…….one book slut (thanks Emily Barton for that!) to another…..not that I am indiscriminate in my choice of books! On the contrary, I pick everything for a reason. But I can’t resist books, and I always want more to read, more to have waiting for me,and I love, some days, just looking through the books I own, organizing them again, picking up ones waiting to be read and ones that I have read, and re-reading. Basically I love books, and in Joe P I recognize a kindred spirit!!! What my house will eventually look like, except I can’t hide them away in the basement. I want them to be admired and loved (although when people I barely know pick them up, it’s awful, I hold my breath until they put them down again!) Just a little bit possessive and jealous, I think….anyway, yes, he would qualify as obsessed. As to your other question, I don’t have enough shelf space, so books are piling up. I have lots of space left for shelves, though! so it’s getting enough money together to buy more…..
I’m just going toput a roof on my books, and move my family in….sleep between the pages.
Peace,
Oh, I can never resist a book…but my house isn’t too bad yet. The thing is, if I read a great book, I lend it out. At least once a year, I send out an email “calling all my books home”. Hoping that I get back all the books I’ve lent out.
See, now I don’t feel so bad for having so many unread book piles! ha,ha… I do think it’s pretty cool that they are going around the country finding book obsessed peeps. Maybe we’ll see someone from our book blog community one of these days!
I envy this man his ability to fill every nook and cranny with books! My family would never let me do that. I don’t feel like such a book-aholic after seeing his walls. I would, in that house, be very very terrified of fire. He must have good insurance.
That last comment reminded me about a story in NYC several years ago. A man in a one-room, who loved his stacks of books, got pinned when a book shelf tipped over. He almost died because he was injured and buried. When someone came to check up on him a few days later, they initially couldn’t open the door because of the mess. Realizing something was wrong, they decided to damage some books by forcing the door open. He was severely dehydrated.
Moral of the story. Keep fewer books? Nah. Build better bookcases with wall anchors? Nah. Always carry a water bottle? Yeah. If he kept hydrated down there, he would have been able to peruse the titles.
He’s very lucky to have such a large house to put all his books in. He should definitely be encouraged to join Bookmooch, if we can find a way of doing that!