From Our Readers: What Does Your Book Collection Mean To You

We asked our readers to share what their book collections really mean to them, and how they came to be. Here's some of our favourite responses.

"I've been collecting on a small scale since my teenage years and still have my original copies of the Chronicles of Narnia, for example.

But the real bug for collecting special books - first editions, special editions, signed copies, etc - in my forties. And probably took it way too far during Covid as I wanted to support local independent bookshops.

I haven't done the maths, but I'm pretty sure I have more books than I'll be able to read before I die! But, even so, I like thinking of each of them as a piece of art that I own and keep on the shelf. Each is often unique or, at the very least, special in some way.

My family don't really understand what it is about signed editions in particular, but for me there's just something about knowing the person who created the story has actually touched the book, or at least the page on which they have made their mark. Even better if it's inscribed to me, personally, and I can look at it and remember meeting them or, at least, know that they knew my name and wrote it down...and probably forgot it again, of course.

I do like a good crime thriller, and try to collect a complete series of Michael Connolly's Bosch or Peter James' Grace, for example...but usually from a second hand shop or eBay, and not always signed. So when the Goldsboro Crime Collective launched, I didn't think twice about signing up, and I look forward to receiving a special crime novel each month. Through this I've discovered new authors and had the pleasure of reading stories I probably wouldn't have chosen myself. And, of course, have some beautiful signed (and very special) first editions."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I blame Billy Bunter. The Bunter stories started it and then other school stories which then seemed to naturally lead on to Wodehouse.

My father's interest in Dennis Wheatley took me to espionage (Maclean, John D. Macdonald, Le Carre, Helen MacInnes) and historical fiction (Harry Sidebottom, Ben Kane, Anthony Riches, Bernard Cornwell).

Travel made me want to read books set in those places - so Nigel Tranter in Scotland, Arthur Upfield in Australia, Elly Griffiths in Norfolk and so on.

Bookstore browsing played a part - finding something that looks of interest, appreciating it and the searching for others by the author

And then sheer desperation when you have read your own books and you pick up something that might be interesting and discover new authors such as Ian Rankin, Stuart Mcbride. And, of course, if it is enjoyed then it can be re-read - multiple times,"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My book collection is all about escaping from the outside world.

...I treat it as a precious and special thing that I am excited to share with others who share my love of traveling through pages and into the imaginations of authors. I don't collect genre specific but I have a love of horror and sci-fi. "

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My book collection means a great deal to me because it represents who I am as a reader and how my reading life has grown over time. It is not just about owning books, but about memories, moments, and the comfort that books have always given me. Each one marks a period of curiosity, escape, or connection, whether that is discovering a new author, revisiting a favourite, or finding a book that arrived at exactly the right moment.

I started collecting books as a way to hold onto stories that mattered to me. What began as a love of reading slowly turned into a deeper appreciation for beautiful editions, thoughtful publishing, and books as objects to treasure as well as read. Over time, my collection became a reflection of my personal taste and my desire to support authors and publishers whose work resonates with me.

I do not limit myself to just one genre, but I am particularly drawn to striking special editions, literary fiction, contemporary voices, and books with emotional depth. I also love discovering new and emerging authors and giving them space on my shelves alongside established favourites. My collection continues to evolve as my reading does, and that sense of growth and discovery is what makes it so meaningful to me."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My book collection makes me incredibly happy. It may not be very big at the moment but it's a work in progress and I love what's already in it. I started it when my partner and I bought our first home together a year ago because it was the first time I had the space and freedom to store physical copies of books at home. I used to only read on the kindle but now I also have lots of paperbacks and hard cover books. My favourite genres are fantasy, romance and thrillers, so most of my collection is made up of those kinds of books."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I collect signed crime/thrillers and non-fiction history and political science. Even though I'm in the Western US, I focus on UK editions because I think they almost always look better than their US counterparts. I bought my first UK books on my first trip to London in 1999. From then on, I was hooked.

I've always wanted a library, and finally built one in my living room with the help of a friend. When my mom saw it before she passed, she said "You're going to be single forever! No woman is going to want a library in their living room!" I told her it's actually the ultimate litmus test, that the *right* woman will not only love it, she'll fight for shelf space!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My book collection brings me an abundance of joy. I feel surrounded by stories and worlds and wonder. I’ve always been a reader and started my collection many years ago. It’s now 2000+ books strong. I like to collect beautiful books but also have an affinity for a banged up classic! "

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My collection energises me after a long day at work. These books have rescued me from challenging times and have instilled in me strength and curiosity. The need to read is a must for me! They are my home and I have moved everywhere with them. I would say 30 years ago I decided to get serious about my collecting verses my reading. I have some lovely decorative arts books about the 18th century but my heart is my mystery collection. The mystery collection then led me to travel and opened my collection to books that I found in my travels that I needed to bring home as a reminder of a wonderful trip. I, like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle , have my Magic Door."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"At first my goal was buying the cheapest books when I started collecting in High school. Then I started buying second-hand books to buy more for cheaper. After graduating from my master in french literature I started collecting contemporary special editions such as Goldsboro with my first salary. I loved it so much I became a library curator this year. Books are my life and I'm beaming to make this my job for life : collecting, and preserving our heritage and the great books yet to be published and read by most. "

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I have an ever growing book collection. Over 2,100 books now of various genres and age, ranging from crime first additions to second hand purchases on hidden London with personal updates from the original owner.

I am a big crime books fan, but if truth be told I am just a big fan of books, nothing can beat the feel and even the smell of a book.

When young I was never a reader, being forced to read Janet and John books at school and then one wet day staying at my uncles, a book seller, he told me to choose a book to read, I picked The Day of the Triffids, which I read cover to cover that day, the start of my book collection, which I still have.

I do have a very understanding wife and more book cases that I really should but live is to be enjoyed and there is nothing better in life that sitting down with a good book"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"To borrow a quote from a Nero Wolfe novel, "I like to surround myself with works that merit periodic revisiting." Several years ago, I began collecting signed first editions of books by authors whose writing I admire, many of which have come from Goldsboro Books."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Books, and book collecting, are what makes me the me I am. I've been an avid reader since I learned to read. I always wanted books for holidays and spent all of my berry picking money and babysitting money on books. I think I liked the permanence of books. Also, Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, freaked me out, and still does. I have at least two books with me at all times. Because I'm a fast reader, I take at least 6 books on any flight, and buy more when I'm in an English speaking country (with Kindle books as backup). The Westing Game, by Ellin Raskin, got me started on WWII spy novels, fiction and non-fiction. Helen McInnes, Dale Brown, Ken Follet. The Destroyer series was popular when I worked on a fishing boat in Alaska. The first one of that series was very hard to find. I grew up in the suburbs, so you read what was available. Or, you snuck out and took the bus to a larger city. I read everything. Science Fiction, Fantasy, Cozy Mysteries, Cookbooks, Biographies. Today, I still read everything I buy.

We moved during COVID, so I am storing my books, but still buying. I have over 10,000 books.

Thank you for supplying such a varied inventory!."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"My parents got me into reading before I started school and growing up my Mum would always tell me that she had lots of books but when they married they didn’t have enough room for them and she gave them to the local library. She always regretted that and I think that made me want to have a copy of every book I read; if I borrowed one from the library, I would buy a copy just for my shelf, even if I didn’t read it again. 

When I started work and commuted to London I would read on the journey, Ellis Peters and Le Carre were my favourites but gradually I would pick books at random. I never read the blurb (after all why read to page 75 and discover something that you were told in the blurb before you even opened it! ) I have discovered some great books that way! I have a fairly large TBR pile (not helped by a certain company beginning with G sending me three every month!!) and my reading ambitions are to read all the Maigrets (I have 19 left), all of the Bedside Guardians (I have the first ten plus twenty others) and Gilbert’s biography of Churchill (I’m on page 362 of volume 7 out of 8!) During Covid, I worked in my loft, surrounded by boxes of books. My daughters suggested I put up bookshelves and so the attached picture shows some of the 2000 or so books I have put up shelves for. They also told me I should have an instagram page and so, as I have quite a few records as well, each day I put up pictures of books and records of people whose birthday it is or who we lost on that day in years past. I had a number of drawers from old bits of furniture and beds and have turned these on their side and put wheels on and shelves in up in the loft but I am fast running out of space. Each New Years Day I clear my bedside cabinet and then throughout the year I pile up every book as I read them. Then the following New Years Day I sort them into signed, firsts and others piles, take a photo and put them in the loft. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I actually have four book collections. I have a large modern fiction collection - mostly first editions (and many signed); a smaller collection of 18th and 19th century first editions (Austen, Swift, Elliott, Fielding, Trollope and Dickens); a considerable art history library; and over 120 private press books in very limited or unique (commissioned) bindings.

The highlight of the private press books is a complete set of the books issued by the Gwasg Gregynog Press between 1922 and 1940 and previously owned by Margaret Davies who founded the press with her sister Gwendoline.

I suppose I read five works of fiction for every factual (mostly history) book I read. I intended to not read or collect any works by authors whose first book appeared after 2000. However, there is such a wealth of new talent - with Ireland seemingly a very rich source - that for now that plan has been cancelled.

It’s difficult to decide on favourite authors (a bit like deciding on favourite golf courses) not least as one’s tastes tend to evolve. I remember hating “Cider With Rosie” and “Huckleberry Finn” as a schoolboy but loving them when read in middle age. Some authors write a book which is so good - for example “Lonesome Dove” and “Vanity Fair” - that it can be difficult to read their other books. But authors I have read consistently - but maybe at different periods - would include Dickens, Austen, Trollope, George Elliott, Edith Wharton, Patrick O’Brien, Anthony Powell, William Trevor, Kent Haruf, Elizabeth Strout, Colm Toibin, Roddy Doyle, Mick Herron, P D James, Pat Barker, Julian Barnes, William Boyd, Peter Carey, Edith Wharton, George Mackay Brown, Rose Tremain, Penelope Fitzgerald, Kazuo Ishiguro, Graham Greene, Claire Keegan, Wendy Erskine, Ellis Peters, Sebastian Barry, Elizabeth Taylor and Peter Ackroyd."