Odd Collections 6: Books, Books And More Books

One of my real passions are books. I have between 1500 and 2000 books, I think, maybe more! It is therefore impossible to put them in a single blip so I've gone for a representative collage as you can see. I've always been an avid reader since young and I guess also going to university and a little later becoming an academic has meant that books have surrounded my life as long as I can remember.

My collection has grown I think so exponentially because I do not let go of any books but also I buy books in a variety of genre, not just academic books. So to the nine boxes and some explanation.

Starting top left: this is part of my bookshelves in my office which you will see in the course of the next few weeks. I have begun to unpack my many academic books. I work as a criminologist and have in excess of 1000 books, journals and pamphlets etc. I am a hoarder and I'm reluctant, no very reluctant, to allow anything to be thrown away. This is difficult now as bizarrely the university does not encourage bookshelves for its academics!

Top Middle: these are books simply dumped in the corner of my study. I no longer have enough bookshelf space to put all my books and no space to erect new shelves. This has brought a little moratorium on buying more books, to the relief of my children, as I will discuss more below.

Top right: this is a collage in itself off 35 books. It illustrates my passion for the novel. In 2010-11 I had a seven months sabbatical at a university in Hong Kong. During this time I had very little access to TV. Whilst I was writing during the day, in the evenings I had plenty of time to read. In the end I read 35 books and when returning to the UK I had a complete suitcase full of these books. This began my thinking about whether I could keep on buying so many?

Middle left: I am proud of this book more than anything that I have written as an academic. At my cricket club we discovered in 2010 that it would be our 150th anniversary. I had become the unofficial historian of the club and was collecting a whole range of material. I received a telephone call from someone in York who said they had a box that had been in their attic over 30 years it seems to relate to Tickhill Cricket Club, they said! Did we want it? Yes I said and immediately drove over to York to pick it up. It was an absolute treasure trove of information including minutes books that went back into the 19th century. The book was published and launched in June 2010, is 218 pages long and sold well at least in the village.

Middle middle: this paper represents my kindle. This is how the books are displayed on the kindle app on my iPad. After returning from Hong Kong dragging the suitcase with books behind me, my children bought me a kindle for Christmas and reluctantly, very reluctantly, I started to use it. I found that when travelling it was an absolute joy and now it's on the iPad even better. Takes all the weight out of my suitcases and allows me to pick up books easily and quickly. I follow the Man Booker prize long list and the women's prize for fiction shortlist and these I now download and read on my kindle. I already have 56 books in there alone. I do miss real books though and still love it when I get an academic book in my hands. The feel and smell of books I have missed with the kindle.

Middle right: these are a representative sample of novels of which there are many such shelves around the house. It includes a couple of Barbara Vine (aka Ruth Rendell) books which are some of my favourites.

Bottom left: this is a bookshelf which contains in the excerpt shown many of the books that I purchased when I was a student way back in 1970. Yes I do hold onto my books for ever. It also gives a hint of a future collection but I'll let your mind ponder on that? Out of shot but in the bottom shelves of the same bookcase are upto two rows of quiz books. I spent some time as quizmaster at my local club and became an avid collector of quiz books.

Bottom middle: another selection of criminology books, enough said!

Bottom right: finally an excerpt from my books in the kitchen on cooking. I have loads and loads of cookery books which I simply enjoy looking at and thinking what can I create for dinner.

So there you have it some insight into my book collection in all its variety. Next week will be a slightly unusual collection but I think the story will be interesting. I must then warn you that the following two Fridays will be collection free as I will be in New York (someone has to do it) and will not have access to what will be much smaller 'niche' collections in the following few weeks. Believe it or not I am beginning to exhaust my collectables. Enjoy the weekend!