everywhere there's books

 First of all, I want to thank everyone who left such gracious comments on my last blog post and said they were sending thoughts and prayers our way. Very much appreciated. There's been a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel, so we're all feeling better.

Those who have been following my blog for awhile know that I'm an avid reader and love books. I have books in every room in the house except for the bathrooms! And if those rooms were bigger, there'd probably be books in there, too. ;-)

I thought I'd take you on a little book tour in my home, starting with the kitchen. All the books in this room are cookbooks, but this isn't the entire collection. There's more cookbooks in my office/Phil's old room.

Cookbooks in the china cabinet...

A few more cookbooks on the kitchen cart...

And another small stack on top of the refrigerator.

Moving into the living room, I have stacks of books on tables...

and in the bottom part of the secretary desk.

Stacks of books give the perfect height for displays. This one is on top of the buffet.

Poetry books are on the ladder bookshelf. Mary Oliver is my #1 favorite poet. If you're not familiar with her work, she's an American poet whose poems are primarily grounded in the natural world. Her words draw me in with their imaginative simpleness and beauty.

Billy Collins is another favorite poet, as is Robert Bly...but I don't have any of his books (yet).

My favorite classic poet...Robert Frost. (Side note: bird figurine is Goebel, Germany.) Hmm...seems I have a thing for American poets! I remember when Phil was about six years old, he would lie on the couch with his feet in my lap and I'd read Robert Frost poetry to him. My mom used to read Frost to him, too. We were surprised such a young child would like this poetry, but I think he found the rhythm of the words soothing and peaceful. 

I have a small collection of vintage books, also on the ladder bookshelf. 

My current reading stack on the coffee table. Isn't that pottery pinch pot beautiful, by the way? It was made by a friend of mine and gifted to me recently.

 Walking down the hallway into the bedrooms, there's a vintage cabinet at the end of the hallway and it's stacked with...surprise! Books.

Bookcase in my office/Phil's old room...

 The rest of my cookbooks, and yes, I do use them...

A few more cookbooks on a side table...

I love the charm of miniature books, especially the old ones.

Some of Brian's books are in Tim's room for now - in an IKEA cube...

and in the TV cabinet. We have books in our bedroom, too but I didn't photograph them as our bedroom is still a work-in-progess.

Heading downstairs into the basement family room, this is where my main "library" is. Three bookcases line one of the walls.

A smaller bookcase holds my writing books and some overflow novels, Phil's Stephen King books, and more of Brian's books.

We recently added another small bookcase on the other side of the basement to hold Phil and Tim's favorite childhood books. As usual, I take over any available flat surface, so more of my books are on top of the bookcase.

Books are even stacked in a basket and suitcase underneath the console table.

Believe it or not, one of the projects I worked on these past couple of weeks was going through a lot of my books and weeding them out. I have nine bags of books going to Half-Price Books and another couple of bags going to a thrift store. 

Happy reading!
 I am just finishing up Pat Conroy's, The Great Santini. How about you, what are you reading right now?