Daydreams of Books

We all have our daydreams and fantasies...one of mine happens to be having a miniature library in my own house.

I got to thinking about this when I was complaining on Facebook that I seem to have more books than I have space for, and that one upside to eBooks is that they don't take up much space. So someone pretty much told me that life isn't about taking up less space and that of course I need more books. So, I got to thinking about exactly what kind of library I'd like. Since, I've got to agree that, yes, I totally need more books

Forgetting for a moment about the rest of the house, I'd like one room to be large enough to fit a number of bookshelves in it, with a door that closes. It would be large enough that I can cover the walls with shelves (except for one corner, which I'll get to in a minute, and where there's a window), and then get two or three rows of shelves just standing in the room. The shelves would have enough space to walk (or skip) comfortably between them, but be close enough to be cozy. Or, I don't know, why stop at having three rows of bookshelves? I'm not sure how many shelves I'd like to have though... But they would be wooden and stained dark, then again I don't want the room to be dark so I'm not sure how that would work. Maybe the carpet can be a lighter color? Or lights at the top of each bookshelf? I definitely want the lights at the top of each shelf.

There would also be a large window looking out on a forest. That way I could get some nice natural light during the day, and at any time of year I could look outside and enjoy a bit of nature's beauty while I'm with my books. The window would also open so that I could enjoy a breeze (if there's also a window open elsewhere in the house) and nature's sounds and smells. The window would also have a heavy curtain, perhaps maroon. I like dark reds. Though again, I'm not sure if that would make the room too dark...

There would be a brick fireplace in one corner. A fireplace to make things cozier, and brick because it looks nice. It would be in a corner next to the window, so that I could watch the snow fall in winter, or watch birds at the bird feeders (bird feeders!) throughout the year. There would be two large leather chairs, the kind that you can lean back in and get comfortable with, with matching foot stools. Because, hey, sometimes you need to put your feet up to get comfortable. There would be maroon pillows for extra comfort, a couple of matching blankets to drape over one's legs when it's cold, and a small table by each chair where someone could place their coffee or tea mug. And, of course, I've got two of each because I might want to read with a friend in my library sometime.

Just getting comfortable in my library, sipping hot chocolate while a fire is cackling, quietly enjoying time with a close friend as we're both exploring worlds inside the pages of novels...

And yet, with as much bookshelf space as would come with this room, I'm sure that eventually I could still come up against the problem of having more books than I have space for.

Book Tunnel