My Eclectic Never-Ending To-Be-Read Pile

I have books, and lots of them.

I have books I save because they have been signed by the author specifically to me.

I have books I love beyond words and they reside on a keeper shelf to save forever.

I have books that are reference books, mostly for writing and inspiration, that I refer back to time and again; they have their own shelf.

Then there are the books I have won, bought and been given as gifts. Those gems are in my to-be-read pile.

Or more like shelf.

Or to be honest - shelves, closets, cupboards and drawers.

Yes, many readers have to-be-read piles - like an actual PILE of books - but I have shelves of to-be-read books, and any place I can store them. The 'to-be-read pile' is a general concept, I know. Many people DO have books waiting to be read on shelves and not in actual piles, but if I kept them in piles, I'd have nowhere to walk on my living room floor.

Some of the books waiting in line to be read are new books (new-releases or used/new to me) and some are cherished copies I have pulled off my keeper-shelf waiting to be re-read.

And no sooner do I make a pact with myself to a/don't buy anymore books until b/I have systematically gone through my to-be-read shelves - and I DO make a barely-there dent in my to-be-read pile - when I 'accidentally' come home with 'a' book or a 'few' books...

It's not that I don't want to read the books I have waiting in the wings, it's just that I'm like a crow - I pick up any shiny new thing I see along the way. I can't help it.

Here are just a few of my books in my to-be-read pile. Some are re-reads I have pulled off my keeper-shelf to re-read, some are new-to-me books. No book is more important than the other - some books in my to-be-read pile are based off mood. I hope this eclectic list of my books waiting to be read (or re-read) inspires you to branch out and get reading!

It's Kind of Funny Story - Ned Vizzini (April 2007)

I saw the movie first, got the book second. But then is - and it's kind of a funny story - I didn't even KNOW about this movie until it happened upon it on Netflix one night AND THEN I didn't even know it was a book first! So what did I do? After loving the movie I raced out to get the book. This has been patiently waiting on my to-be-read pile...must get to it!

Blurb:

Like many ambitious New York City teenagers, Craig Gilner sees entry into Manhattan's Executive Pre-Professional High School as the ticket to his future. Determined to succeed at life-which means getting into the right high school to get into the right college to get the right job-Craig studies night and day to ace the entrance exam, and does. That's when things start to get crazy.

At his new school, Craig realizes that he isn't brilliant compared to the other kids; he's just average, and maybe not even that. He soon sees his once-perfect future crumbling away. The stress becomes unbearable and Craig stops eating and sleeping-until, one night, he nearly kills himself.

Craig's suicidal episode gets him checked into a mental hospital, where his new neighbors include a transsexual sex addict, a girl who has scarred her own face with scissors, and the self-elected President Armelio. There, isolated from the crushing pressures of school and friends, Craig is finally able to confront the sources of his anxiety.

Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte (October 16, 1847)
A classic I was introduced to in English class in high school, I instantly fell in love with everything about it. The era, the style of writing , the characters, the story - all of it. I have read this book countless times over the decades (gasp!) and have many reprinted versions sporting various covers. This classic will always be my fave (I once met a real-life 'rake' whose dog was named Pilot - I swooned. I really did).

Blurb:

Having grown up an orphan in the home of her cruel aunt and at a harsh charity school, Jane Eyre becomes an independent and spirited survivor-qualities that serve her well as governess at Thornfield Hall. But when she finds love with her sardonic employer, Rochester, the discovery of his terrible secret forces her to make a choice. Should she stay with him whatever the consequences or follow her convictions, even if it means leaving her beloved?

The Outsiders - S E Hinton (April 24, 1967)
A classic I read in school, got a crush on Dallas and Ponyboy but on the page and on the big screen, this timeless story has me coming back time and again, always on the keeper shelf and never far from my heart.

Blurb:

No one ever said life was easy. But Ponyboy is pretty sure that he's got things figured out. He knows that he can count on his brothers, Darry and Sodapop. And he knows that he can count on his friends—true friends who would do anything for him, like Johnny and Two-Bit. But not on much else besides trouble with the Socs, a vicious gang of rich kids whose idea of a good time is beating up on “greasers” like Ponyboy. At least he knows what to expect—until the night someone takes things too far.

Fearless Writing - William Kenower (May 2017)

I love a good writing reference book, and I know from the blurb this one will help keep me going in my own writing. I just gotten myself out of a writing slump, and I know this will help keep me on track - fearlessly. Writer's get hit with lack of confidence, doubt, insecurity and fear with their writing. I know from the blurb this will help me get on track...

Blurb:

Find the courage to create your best writing life.

Whether you're a fledgling writer or a veteran with years of experience, fearlessness--that elusive blend of self-acceptance, confidence, and curiosity--is the defining quality of those who find fulfillment and success. Truly fearless authors banish writer's blocks with ease, receive critiques gracefully, and infuse their passion for the craft into every word they write.

Filled with insightful wisdom and practical advice, Fearless Writing teaches you how to thrive as a writer, no matter your genre or career path. You'll learn how to:
Find and enter a Flow state in which writing is a natural, deeply satisfying process.
Quiet both internal and external critics and embrace the inherent value in your work.
Use love, emotional engagement, and curiosity as the guiding principles for what you write and how you share it with others.
Overcome rejection, procrastination, and other obstacles that stifle your creativity.

Searching for Beautiful - Nyrae Dawn (March 2014)

I haven't read this before, and I'm very much looking forward to it. I'm a fan of young adult fiction, and I love following rich characters on their journey's of self-discovery, coming of age, and enlightenment. I know from the blurb this will be a good one!

Blurb:

Before it happened…

Brynn had a group of best friends, a boyfriend who loved her, a growing talent for pottery. She had a life. And then…she had none.

After it happened…

Everything was lost. The boy she now knew never loved her. The friends who felt she betrayed their trust. The new life just beginning to grow inside her.

Brynn believes her future is as empty as her body until Christian, the boy next door, starts coming around. Playing his guitar and pushing her to create art once more. She meets some new friends at the local community center, plus even gets her dad to look her in the eye again…sort of. But letting someone in isn't as easy as it seems.

Now…

Can Brynn open up her heart to truly find her life's own beauty, when living for the after means letting go of the before?

***

My collection of books keeps growing, which only proves frustrating as it makes me wish I had more time to read!

And of course, partway through writing this, I made a trip to the bookstore and got some more....

Guilt and the Keeper Shelf

I have yet to meet an avid reader who doesn’t have a keeper shelf.

What’s a keeper shelf?

To bibliophiles – lovers of books – a keeper shelf is a shelf (or in my case ‘shelves’) bearing the most favored, treasured, and adored books. They are books that may or may not ever be re-read, but are books that simply canNOT be parted with.

Every reader has his or her reasons for what books get shelved on this most sacred of shelves. It could be one that made the reader laugh, cry, or sigh in happy satisfaction. Or maybe the words between the covers transformed the reader, helping him or her through a difficult time by giving clarity and answers when it felt like none would ever be found. Maybe the book is a reference book – an often-read, much jotted-in, dog-eared book of information. Or better yet maybe it’s a rare or signed edition in which the reader spent hours in the rain waiting at a book signing.

The keeper shelf is often the most sacred and cherished place in the house. Messy linen shelves? Who cares. Messy keeper shelf? Call in sick from work to straighten it out, PRONTO!

Whatever the reason – and there ARE no right or wrong reasons – the books on a reader’s keeper shelf are personal and ever-changing. Sometimes, and sadly at that, the collection needs to be thinned out – books are always being added, but there is (unfortunately) only so much space a person can have. It’s a hard task, purging books, a task often put-off for weeks, months and years.

As for my keeper shelf?

I have three – well, four.

My main bookcase is a compilation of keepers, reference books and my ever-growing TBR pile (To Be Read pile – another commonly known collection of books among readers). It’s a huge bookshelf, two and a half rows deep, and it’s one of my most prized possessions. I remember all the books stored there (well, most of the time – my memory is finicky), but when I do a little rearranging/digging around the shelves it’s often like Christmas morning when I find forgotten treasures! I try to keep my ‘keepers’ on their own shelf – space is always an issue - but I know I must be diligent and grant them the honour of allowing them their own rightful spot on the designated keeper shelf.

Then in my bedroom I have two keeper shelves (two small bookcases) designated ONLY to books I simply CANNOT part with, as well as a shelf in the closet. Sure I have clothes like any ‘normal’ person in there, but my keeper books on the shelves above my non-fashionable clothes? Worth more to me than any design on a fashion runway.

And every so often things get out of control and I have to get brave and summon the courage to do the dreaded GREAT PURGE. I have to pare down, thin out, and minimize what’s on my shelves – not out of anger or revenge, but out of necessity. I hate doing it – guilt gnaws at me like a dog on a bone – but sometimes ya just gotta take a deep breath and do it. Reading tastes change – there’s no doubt about it – and as a writer my reading tastes change a lot. What I read affects my writing, and vice versa. That’s not to say I’m as flighty, fickle and easily swayed to trends, but despite my resistance and denial of my own aging (read: I’m getting older but I don’t have to like it), what I read is always evolving

As I write this I’m gearing up to do a Great Purge. I’ve been building-up for it for two weeks – the excuse of ‘no time’ is perfect for avoiding the inevitable. I know I must do it – I want to, I need to, I must. There are some books I have noted SAVE FOREVER in the front cover – those will stay. But there are some that must go – they were a trend for me at the time (maybe I AM fickle), but not everything can be saved for all time.

In prepping for the Great Purge I did a quick review of my treasured books and they were like a time capsule – a timeline of my life. Where some books were relevant at different times of my life, now they are not. They served their purpose. That’s not to say I ‘used them’ and now I’m tossing them aside without thought – they ended up on my keeper shelf for a reason, didn’t they? And I honoured the author who wrote them – I bought the book and I finished reading it. Even books that don’t end-up on the keeper shelf are not to be forgotten – all books matter and have something to offer, even if only one spirit-changing, uplifting, mood-shifting sentence. Keeper shelf or not, I hate having to purge my books – but at least I’m passing them on to another reader to love (used book stores, libraries, and lunchrooms are the recipients). But still the guilt eats away at me.

My keeper shelves have books like classics – Jane Eyre is my favorite – a few favorites I read in my teens that I found in used book stores, a series or two I love, favorite authors who inspire my writing, a few historical biographies that make me think, a Danielle Steel translated to French, signed copies of books by authors I have met or know personally, and books that just simply made me sit back and sigh at THE END. I have books I love just for the sake of loving them, and books that were relevant in my life BACK THEN. It’s hard, but holding on to something for the sake of holding on to them – especially out of guilt – can weigh a person down.

So as I continue to mentally prepare for this great task of the Great Purge, I will work through my guilt. I know that I am doing it for the greater good – making room for more books, honouring past and present author’s and their work by reading the books, loving them, then passing them on. that I’m making room for more book, I’m honouring past and present authors and their work by reading them then passing them on, and will always be adding to my Keeper Shelf – and know I will have to go through all the guilt again.