My dad has a serious problem: book collecting.

Same here. I used to have two bookstores in Denver and my spouse was a university professor - we're both addicts. There's not a room in our house that does not contain book cases. The culling doesn't keep up with purchasing. Depending on the book, we might sell in on Ebay or Amazon. Others we donate to our library and animal shelter thrift store.

I'm really grateful for Kindle.
 
I watched a hoarders episode about book addicts. It was a couple...they had to literally climb over stacks of book, barely had a place to sleep.
Kindle would be a smart to use. lol
 
You've heard about alcoholics, drug addicts, and gamblers.

But, what about book collectors?

He will spend major amounts of money sometimes 100's of bucks at a time, to fill up half the house with books, until you nearly trip on them.

I have books like wallpaper throughout the house - wall to wall, floor to ceiling. Many are investments as well as good reading.

No, I don't have piles of books on the floor. I'm a professional.
 
can he afford it? if he's a senior- you may want to question if he can or should keep it up. donate some for a library's book sale maybe to keep culling it? use the $ for him.
 
You could look at it this way....some day, when or if our grid gets struck by a massive solar flare and we all lose electricity and our Amazon and internet access, people will be lining up outside of your house down to city hall, begging to pay your father for his books or for a loan of his books....

:D
 
You could look at it this way....some day, when or if our grid gets struck by a massive solar flare and we all lose electricity and our Amazon and internet access, people will be lining up outside of your house down to city hall, begging to pay your father for his books or for a loan of his books....

:D

Either that, or the Commies will finally take over here and he'll find Montag and the Firemen at his front door ...
 
Sounds like it is time for the family to give your father an in home library, with shelves from floor to ceiling, to store all of his books, as a gift...

You could consider it as a gift to yourselves as well.... ;)

Also, giving him a Library, would keep him so busy organizing it with all the books he has on hand, that he may stay away from buying more, until he is finished with the library organizing project.... :p
 
can he afford it? if he's a senior- you may want to question if he can or should keep it up. donate some for a library's book sale maybe to keep culling it? use the $ for him.

I'm far more concerned at this time, about cluttering up the house with his books.

if it becomes a,ny kind of hazard then you need to step in. can it be organized & not be a hindrance to pathways etc?
 
can he afford it? if he's a senior- you may want to question if he can or should keep it up. donate some for a library's book sale maybe to keep culling it? use the $ for him.

I'm far more concerned at this time, about cluttering up the house with his books.

if it becomes a,ny kind of hazard then you need to step in. can it be organized & not be a hindrance to pathways etc?

Well, in our Putnam Lake, New York home he probably has 10,000 books, we're in the process of moving to Pawling, New York home, and there's a bookstore in Pawling, he's supposed to be giving up old books, for the new home, but instead he's been buying new books in the Pawling book store.
 
can he afford it? if he's a senior- you may want to question if he can or should keep it up. donate some for a library's book sale maybe to keep culling it? use the $ for him.

I'm far more concerned at this time, about cluttering up the house with his books.

if it becomes a,ny kind of hazard then you need to step in. can it be organized & not be a hindrance to pathways etc?

Well, in our Putnam Lake, New York home he probably has 10,000 books, we're in the process of moving to Pawling, New York home, and there's a bookstore in Pawling, he's supposed to be giving up old books, for the new home, but instead he's been buying new books in the Pawling book store.

keep an eye on that....
 
I know a woman who hoards books. She says every home should have a good library (try Project Gutenberg). She also buys controversial books to do her part to fight "censorship" (if you can buy it in the mall, it's not anything close to censored).

She's stupid and self-righteous.
 
You could look at it this way....some day, when or if our grid gets struck by a massive solar flare and we all lose electricity and our Amazon and internet access, people will be lining up outside of your house down to city hall, begging to pay your father for his books or for a loan of his books....

:D
------------------------------------------------------------------ with all those books and a possible solar flare or with the electric grid going down or 'kims' possible 'emp' attack on the USA and with winter coming those books might be good for heating a small room in a house or a small leanto or shack , shelter and for cooking a neighborhood cat or rat if you kin catch one . :afro:
 
You've heard about alcoholics, drug addicts, and gamblers.

But, what about book collectors?

He will spend major amounts of money sometimes 100's of bucks at a time, to fill up half the house with books, until you nearly trip on them.

My grandfather was the same way.

He passed back in February of this year. When we were going through his house trying to get stuff together for a garage sale we realized just how many books he had. He spent tons of money on books, most of which he never even opened. We were selling these books ten for a dollar at a garage sale. One guy came through and said I feel bad, some of these books are really worth a lot of money, I can't buy them for ten cents each, let me give you 5 dollars for 10.

Why did he do this? He thought he would win publishers clearing house. What's funny is a couple of weeks ago he got something in the mail from PCH, he won like 27 dollars!! But he's dead! He missed it by a few months!!
 
Sounds more like obsessive behavior than just collecting. Tell him you are coming by with some boxes and you want him to pick 100 books he doesn't care about. See what he does.
 
Sounds more like obsessive behavior than just collecting. Tell him you are coming by with some boxes and you want him to pick 100 books he doesn't care about. See what he does.

Nope, won't give up any books. "I'm going to read that book..." Yeah, right.

Nope, won't give up any books. "I want to keep that book because there's something really good in it, I don't remember exactly..."

Nope, won't give up any books. "If you like that book, I'll buy a copy for you..."
 
Maybe you should get him to try a neat thing I've seen book lovers do. They build a little shed out by the road and fill it with books, and they put a sign that says "Take a book, leave a book."
 
You've heard about alcoholics, drug addicts, and gamblers.

But, what about book collectors?

He will spend major amounts of money sometimes 100's of bucks at a time, to fill up half the house with books, until you nearly trip on them.


i do that too i have several amazing oldies
 

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