Is he a loser or a lover? What his books reveal
You can learn a ton about a person by collection of books. What does your date's reading far reveal about him?
Personal libraries reflect intellectual interests, literary learnings, religious and political dispositions and a sense of self. Even the way the publications are stacked tells a story about a personality.
If he has a combination of fiction and non-fiction books...
Readers of fictional books tend to claim that that there is more truth, beauty, and understanding about the world and human psyche can be derived from make-beliefs. Those who are fans of non-fiction feel that learning through stories cannot be compared to the straigh-forwardness of plain fact and details. It's fair to say that both are right to some extent. What matters is what you believe.
If he's collected a number of book by the same poet or author..
It shows premeditated purchasing and a prefence for a certain style of writing - this is also a hint of a seasoned reader.
If he has a room full of books..
Don't be intimidated by a room full of books, floor to ceiling. Anyone can snatch trunk with poorly written paperbacks from a garage sale and call it a library. Even though he boasts that besides he has books as one of his biggest collections, operative word, quality over quantity.
If his books have doodles or written comments..
This can mean a few things, It's possible your date may have bought second-hand books (which bodes well for the environmentally friendly and money conscious out there) or perhaps, your guy used his books as a form of note-taking while at school (sacrilege or academically thorough?) If all volumes have bookmarks in them and appear unfinished, you may wonder about his ability to follow through.
If he has coffee table books..
These kind of books often come us as gifts. A coffee table book purchased by your lover has a purpose: to suggest to guests that he has a fascinating hobbyor interest he wants you to know about.
If he has reference books..
You name it, thesaurus, dictionary, atlas, style guide, how-to books - there's no any way that this is a negative sign. It's safe to assume that the more reference books someone has, the more interested they are in language, writing, reading and learning.
Not trying to label anyone here, but it will not hurt to see for signs, right? In this day and age, it is rare to find a guy who is stimulating in ALL areas.
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Comments
This is interesting, unfortunely it's me who owns all the books...LOL... Thanks for the insight....
Congrats on being featured! E-high five to you!
@soup - Thanks for digging my post, I'm glad it gave you a little inspiration for another post, I'll look forward to that!
Congratulations on being featured. I really enjoyed this post and like Soup, it has given me ideas.
I always look to learn about people (I'm married since the Ice Age so not lovers, but all people) through their libraries. If they read, it is a sign we may be good friends. If a person has no books in his/her home then I may like the person but we'll never be friends on the deep/literary level. My closest friends are always the ones who read and love language and learning. They tend to be deeper and more philosophical. Be well, Matriarch
I agree with Matriarch's observation on non-readers; in my personal experience, my friends who do not read, not even the newspaper, are not on the same plane as I. I don't want to say they're shallow, but there is something missing with them, like we can only have superficial conversations.
So swinging lhianne, what if I have a bookcase full of biographies of dictators and works on various aspects of the Second World War? Does that make me morbid/creepy? ;-)
Thanks for a great blog.
Best,
Burl Barer
author and host of TRUE CRIME AND....
Hi Matriarch! Your last post was cut off, but I get what you're saying. I'll be completely honest and say when I look at my library of non-trashy fiction and historical non-fiction, I feel a bit snobby. I like it too. ;-) I don't understand how some people can NOT READ and still believe they are informed.
Here's a question: my husband only reads hockey and DJ books and magazines. He could never make his way through, say, my biography of Che Guevara. Does this make him less intelligent? Sometimes I think yes, but then he is reading what interests him - sports and DJing (he does weddings). The DJ ones especially help him improve his business. Is it enough that he reads, or does content matter?
Good question and it may be that I need my first cuppa joe to really formulate a response, but here goes. I think as long as he reads something that is of interest to him that improves his life it's a good thing. Although I wouldn't want to be judgmental about it.
I also know someone who cannot read, (my beloved mother- in- law from Egypt who grew up in a village where few got an education. All her children have at least a BA; but that's another story) who is one of the smartest and certainly the wisest person I know. So I don't know.
I know the vast majority of my friends are readers of all sorts and that gives us something to talk about. My favorite thing is to recommend books to people I meet. It's a major point of connection for me.
Hmmm.. my s/o has shelves of books in every room. Most of them are somehow related to either the military, warfare, or history in general as it pertains to military or warfare. He's also got a huge-honkin' collection of DC and Marvel comics.
Do this mean I've found myself a genuine card-carrying looney? :D
Great blog post.
You been to the New York City Public Library??
Guarded by the lions, up front.??
It is an amazing thing to see so many people, learning.
May the place last a long time, as it is as good a cathedral for learning, as a church is, for those looking for God.
Yep, books are good, for those who love them.!
And I have a suspicion, you like them, books.
Zotta, If a person has NO books visible and a big honkin' wide screen tv, it's a huge turn off. Chances are good I will never have a decent conversation with this person.
I fall sadly into the latter category. I have books in every room including the kitchen, bathrooms, dining room, sun porch, basement and garage. It does get to be a problem. For me,owning books is a sort of backup power cell. As in knowledge is power, and I have extra just in case I want to look up the history of the Vikings at 12 midnight, or find the perfect pasta sauce on Sunday afternoon when the library is closed. As a homeschooler it's worse, as I have four different levels to prepare and have materials for. Recently I got a little ruthless and cleared off some shelves. It was hard but they all went to a good home.I had to for fear I'd end up like the Collier brothers or the old lady across the street.