A year of reading from home.

[crystal_owl]

A while ago I bought a book on a whim called 'Howard's Way is on the landing - A year of reading from home.' It's basically a short autobiographical book by Susan Hill, a self-confessed bookworm, who upon realising just how many books she had in her house that she had either not yet read or hadn't read for years decided that for an entire year she would not buy or borrow any new books, but only read those already in her house. It's an interesting little read but it got me thinking, 'could I do that?' I do have some books I haven't read yet, and plenty I haven't read for a long while, but I am incapable of going into a bookshop and not spotting at least five books that I want to buy - if it weren't for libraries I would be bankrupt by now!
Do you think you could go a year only on your existing books?

[Dave_Wise]

probably, given all the ones I've compulsively acquired and then not read. Seriously, I'm the worst...

[crystal_owl]

Part of me really wants to try it, but the thought of not being able to buy a book that's calling to me fills me with tremors.

[Jorpho]

Several years. Easily. And if I got bored, there's more than enough to keep me occupied on the Internet.

Getting away from the Internet would probably be an excellent way to get more reading done, in fact.

It gets substantially easier to resist the temptation to buy books once you've had to move several times all those heavy, bulky books you've bought and haven't read yet, y'know.

[PAstrychef]

No. I own a lot of books but I've read just about all of them, and re-reads take me significantly less time than reading new books. Also I would never catch up on the authors whose works I support if I skipped them for a year. The last time I was working in Antarctica I was on the Ice for 8 months. When I got back I checked out 34 books my first two weeks home. And I read them all before they were overdue.
I might open a used book shop if I ever do any weeding.

[folkhero]

Part of me really wants to try it, but the thought of not being able to buy a book that's calling to me fills me with tremors.

Maybe you could buy new books, but set them aside until the year is up.

[crystal_owl]

I'd basically have to have someone hold them hostage for me. I just don't think I have the willpower/incentive to keep it up for an entire year. Someone else do it and report back!

[Jesse]

I could do it. Just reading the Baroque Cycle would take me half the damn year, and I used to own a bookshop, so I have absolutely shitloads of books, I'm sure I could find enough decent re-reads in that time. I'm just not sure why I wouldn't buy more sexy, sexy books.