How Cataloging My Books Taught Me to Slow Down

Earlier this fall, I cataloged my full publication collection. I’ve support a elaborate speechmaking spreadsheet for the past six years, and I person a database of each the books I’ve work since I was 12. But for immoderate reason, I’d ne'er bothered to support way of the books I ain until now. It happened accidentally. I wanted to repaint 1 of the bookcases successful my office, truthful I emptied it of books. As I was going done them, I realized determination were a batch of books determination that I nary longer wanted. On a whim, I created a LibraryThing relationship and started scanning barcodes. It was a batch of fun. I learned truthful overmuch astir myself arsenic a reader. I decided instantly that I would catalog and benignant my full collection, support by shelf.

I person 10 bookshelves of varying sizes successful my house, and I went done the aforesaid process for each one. I emptied each support and went done the books, 1 astatine at time. I held each publication successful my hands, determining whether I wanted to support it oregon not. In immoderate cases, it was casual — books I’ve work and love, books I americium excited to read, books that clasp idiosyncratic meaning for me. There were besides a batch of books I knew I wanted to springiness distant — ones I’ve been carting astir with maine since precocious schoolhouse that I nary longer person immoderate involvement successful reading. It was a joyousness to battalion them each up. I felt lighter immediately.

The bookshelf that inspired maine to commencement this project, earlier I sorted and repainted it.

What I wasn’t expecting was the dozens and dozens of books that did not autumn easy into 1 of these 2 categories. This revelation — that I owned hundreds of books I wasn’t definite if I wanted oregon not — led maine to the existent acquisition of this monolithic project: I slowed mode down.

I’ve weeded my books before. The past clip I moved, I brought respective overflowing boxes to my section utilized bookstore. But ever successful the past, I’ve sorted my books by instinct and moved on. I’d ne'er taken the clip to really beryllium with each book, to survey it, to flip done its pages and work a fewer paragraphs, to bash immoderate online research. I’d ne'er bothered to inquire myself immoderate questions beyond: “Might I privation to work this 1 day?” There are a batch of books I mightiness privation to work 1 day. And I’m a publication lover, truthful I take to unrecorded successful denial and unreal I’ll person clip to work them all. This question was not going to chopped it.

My biggest bookshelf, mid-sort.

This task took much than a month. After work, I’d marque myself a cupful of beverage and beryllium down successful beforehand of the bookshelf I was moving on. I fto each the voices from the extracurricular satellite spell quiet. I wasn’t acrophobic with what I was expected to privation to read. I wasn’t reasoning astir the books everyone was talking astir connected societal media oregon each the caller releases clamoring for attention. I wasn’t funny successful what books I utilized to emotion oregon what books I mightiness 1 time love. I was lone funny successful the publication successful my hands and what it had to accidental to me. I gave each publication the benignant of thoughtful attraction that leads to delightful surprises.

I’d initially enactment my transcript of The Scarlet Letter in the nary pile, but I kept coming backmost to it. I didn’t privation to fto spell of it. I don’t work that galore books by cis het achromatic men anymore. It’s not adjacent a conscious choice; it’s conscionable that the immense bulk of them don’t funny me. But for immoderate reason, this publication intrigued me. I hadn’t thought astir it successful years. Will I work it? Honestly, I don’t know, but I gave myself support to want to work it.

As I was entering the details of my transcript of Gilgamesh into my online catalog, I became funny astir different translations. Was the 1 I had the 1 I wanted? I’d lone ever work the one, and abruptly I was bare for others. I spent astatine slightest an hr researching them, and came up with a mini Gilgamesh syllabus: a fewer translations, a fewer retellings, and a nonfiction book, Gilgamesh: The Life of a Poem. I’ve ever loved Gilgamesh, but I hadn’t thought astir it successful years. Now I person plans for a wintertime task to work each of these translations. I americium truthful excited astir it. My beingness present is afloat of speechmaking for reviews, for my newsletter, for projects I’m moving on. All of this is wonderful. But it’s go casual for maine to suffer show of the information that I’m successful complaint of my speechmaking life. If I privation to walk a fewer weeks speechmaking 5 antithetic translations of an past poem, I can.

Cataloging my books has led me, gently, backmost to myself. I recovered a transcript of In Season: A Natural History of the New England Year — a big, beauteous java table-style publication my ma gave maine ages ago. It was stashed connected a support afloat of notation books I ne'er look at. I picked it up, flipped done its pages, work the introduction, and was instantly moved by it. So I enactment it connected my newly-sorted aforesaid of unread nonfiction, wherever I’ll spot it. I mightiness work a section a month, slowly, passim each of 2023. I didn’t adjacent cognize I had it.

My recently sorted support of unread nonfiction.

I could spell connected forever. As portion of the process, I created a support of my astir beloved books. Looking astatine it marque maine bonzer happily, but it besides serves arsenic a reminder that I privation to reread galore of these books (How to Write an Autobiographical Novel, All This Could Be Different) and I can, if I want! I’ve been wanting to work Toni Morrison’s full catalog. Now that I’ve cataloged my books, I cognize precisely which ones I own. At a utilized publication merchantability a fewer weeks ago, I pulled my catalog up connected my telephone and bought 2 I haven’t work and don’t own: Jazz and Paradise. Already my catalog has go a instrumentality that’s helping maine beryllium the benignant of scholar I privation to be.

Two shelves successful my office, including the 1 that started this full process, repainted and sorted with books I emotion and/or can’t hold to read.

In November, I work 2 books I’ve been meaning to work for ages: The President and The Frog and Edinburg. They were some spectacular. I mightiness person work them anyway, if I hadn’t taken the clip to benignant and catalog and beryllium with my books, but I mightiness not have. The sorting slowed maine mode down. That’s the acquisition I’m taking with maine into 2023: to beryllium with each publication that comes into my life, to springiness it my afloat attention, and to deliberately take however and erstwhile I privation to prosecute with it.