When I was a little girl, I dreamed of having . . . A Library of My Own.
It’s not that I lacked reading materials as a child. We were a Library Family, after all. My mom took my sister and I to the library once a week, and I always came home with a big stack of books to read. I also made good use of the library at my elementary school. But I didn’t have very many books that were really-and-truly MINE . . . to own forever and ever and put on the little bookshelf in my room. I used to receive a book every year for Christmas, and I treasured those gifts. And I had a few books that had been my mom’s when she was a little girl. I saved my allowance to buy books from the quarterly classroom Scholastic book offerings and the annual PTA Book Fair. But there were no book stores around for me to visit. And, truthfully, no extra money to buy books anyway.
So I dreamed of . . . having my own library someday, full of my own books. Preferably a library like the ones I saw in movies or pictured from the books I read . . . a big, warm room full of floor-to-ceiling shelves just packed with books! Oooo . . . and with maybe one of those moveable ladders for accessing the books on high-up shelves. And a charming little spiral staircase to an upper level! Maybe stars on the ceiling or some other whimsial décor . And comfy chairs to sit in while I read . . . all day long. (Because I would never leave it.) (And I had a big imagination.)
And now . . . I’m lucky to have one — my own little library right in my house! A little den of a room with floor-to-ceiling book shelves. No ladder. No spiral staircase. No stars on the ceiling. But comfy chairs, for sure. It’s wonderful — and as close to my childhood dream as I’ll get!
And what’s on my shelves? Well. It’s mostly filled with my poetry collection, art books, gardening reference books, and novels that I really love and will re-read — those novels that are especially meaningful to me in some way. I also have a selection of my kids’ favorite books from their childhoods, a section of books from my grad school days, and several knitting and stitching books and guides. Tom keeps his favorite books in the library, too – old chemistry texts, maps and atlases, fishing books, and the complete works of Tom Robbins and Kurt Vonnegut.
Mostly, I still read books from the library. Or on my Kindle. I rarely buy books – unless they’re special to me somehow. But my personal library . . . the library of my own . . . is still one my favorite places to read and think and dream!
How about you?
- Did you have – or dream of having – a library of your own when you were a child? What did it look like? Share your dream-library with us here in the LOUNGE.
- And . . . did you grow up to have your own personal library? What does it look like? Where is it? What’s on your shelves? And how do you decide what to keep in your library?
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The Read With Us LOUNGE is now open for the summer!
Grab a book. Find a comfy spot to read with us for awhile.
No rules!
Just fun!
And be sure to visit Bonny and Carole today to see what they’re talking about in the LOUNGE.
I wanted the same sort of library when I was a kid! I was very lucky to have a great children’s bookstore nearby when I was growing up, and I often got books as gifts for my birthday and Chanukah — I even still have some in my personal library! I joke about it, but it’s really partly true that one of the things that sold me on our house was the fact that an entire wall of the family room is made up of built-in bookshelves. They’re pretty full, and I have stacks in front of and top of the books that are on the shelves (I don’t buy that many these days, but I get a lot from my parents after they read them and pick up others at Little Free Libraries).
I also wanted a library when I was a little girl, but what I really wanted was one big enough to have one of those ladders. When I watched Beauty and the Beast with the kids, we always rewatched the part where Belle sings on it. I pictured myself doing that. But alas, that didn’t happen. My parents “cleaned out” all of my childhood book and I’m still trying to replace a few of them. I have one bookcase with two shelves that houses my rather small library but I still manage to get plenty of books from the library. I made sure my kids had book shelves in their rooms and I haven’t gotten rid of their books.
Oh your Fantasy Library sounds awesome Kym! And yes I also had My Own Library Dreams as a child. Mine involved a beautiful cushioned window seat… the window framing some sort of big tree. The walls on either side of the window would house books… and the room would smell so good! You know… that incredible book-y smell! And no…I never had such a place (although I did live in a house with window seats for a brief time when I was a child… not cushioned, nor with trees) I do have a bit of a library today that is housed in two IKEA book shelves. I have poetry books (so many poetry books!) and, like you, some books on making… knitting and sewing and spinning. I also have some books from my kids childhood (although many of them have been passed on to said children for them to share with their children) But, like you most of the books I read are from the library… I am so incredibly thankful that libraries exist!