Read What You Own Rules of Engagement! A Response Video!

[@abookolive]

If it's insane to have a ton of unread books, then I'm happy to be insane 😂

[@omnipotentpoobah60]

He who dies with the most books wins. Amen.

[@DavidWiley7]

I just went through last weekend and culled 4 shelves of books from my collection! On this past Saturday I was in a bookstore with my wife, and she told me I should get a book for myself. I walked out with nothing, in spite of holding The Big Book of Science Fiction in my hands on two separate occasions. It was hard to pass on, but I figured I need to chip through what I have before getting something like that onto my shelf.

[@Yesica1993]

Well done for exercising self control!

[@HannahsBooks]

And get rid of all the books you’ve already read that you don’t think you’re going to ever open again (with the possible exception of one or two books where the actual physical copy has enormous personal significance). If you enjoyed them enough to keep them, you’ll know you want to read (or “read in”) them again in the future.

[@marciajohansson769]

Since I am 65 years old and a firm believer in the Swedish Death cleaning method, I have started giving books to people who have expressed interest in a particular book I have, placed books in Little Free Libraries and plan to do what you have suggested to get rid of those I have read. I must admit there is some internal resistance but I will do this as I may as well keep the joy of reading going by passing them on instead of getting dusty on my shelves never to be read again.

[@HannahsBooks]

@@marciajohansson769 Yes indeed! Sharing the joy while lightening our own load. ♥️

[@jenniferr.9528]

I just buy books faster than I can read them even though I fully intend to read them. Yes, I’m doing the Read What You Own challenge.

[@AzleapyChannel]

Last time I counted my unread books it was about 300. I don't think that number has gone down - I should definetely do this

[@GinaStanyerBooks]

Oh dear… I’m in trouble.

[@jamiebbooks]

It's amusing for me watching all the videos from established booktubers in this community on this challenge. It really highlights all the different ways people approach being a reader. I am sure you'd experience lots of cognitive dissonance with respect to my home library. For my lifestyle (I'm VERY poor and disabled) I intentionally keep a lot of unread books in my home. I do read 200-300 books a year, and as I read a book I decide whether I need to keep it, almost all the books I fiinish get donated, so my collection of read books is maybe up to 200 now after almost 4 decades of reading, and many of those are back in rotatin this year so I can reread them and decide if I still want to keep them. I am not really doing the official read what you own challenge, since I don't want to lose the opportunities to acquire particular books when I can, but I am limiting my book acquisition almost completely each month til I finish 20 of the books already in my possession (so borrowed books do count for me, since they are on my shelves now). I am going to try to stick to this game variation for the next 14 months.

[@Yesica1993]

That's a cool system!

[@FiReadsBooks]

My name is Fi and I am a book hoarder

[@DanielsBibliophagy]

I have incorporated one major loophole into my challenge because I know my weasely nature and if I don't give myself one big pass I would give up entirely. "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." - Steve

[@booksimnotreading]

I have to always make sure I have enough to read in case of a blizzard! I could unhaul a lot of books if I had sole control of the library! 💛

[@anotherbibliophilereads]

If I were to follow your advice, my library would be much smaller, and my basement would be way to large to justify. I would need to sell my home and downsize. Then move. Yikes.

[@ReadbyFred]

Hah! My social media influencer - I should have consulted you first :) Lol, I am so not reading my entire Brock Biology of Microorganisms textbook - I just needed it for the immunology (and maybe genetics) portion. Temporarily forestall the fiery scorn of Steve - love it 😄 For work, my company would pay for books I request but it gets added to their library which means I _shouldn't_ write in it. For the ones I really want and know I'm going to markup, I buy my own (granted, it's not often). I know, the sacrilege of defacing a book, I will burn forever 🔥😃

[@dhurd4099]

I’m not a book collector, however, I have 200-300 books almost all unread. I only buy at library sales or trade at little free libraries. Whatever doesn’t fit in/on my newly divided cabinets gets read or dnf’d the next few months. 🤞🏻it may equal 20%. If the current New England weather pattern remains unchanged it may be closer to 40%

[@stephenwalker2924]

The Read What You Own Challenge has only resulted in the book-buying addicts amongst us buying...MORE BOOKS! Not less books...MORE! People ran around just before the challenge started binge-/panic-buying MORE BOOKS. Ri-dic-u-lous.

[@wburris2007]

most of us don't have your superpower

[@MysteryandMayhem-gr7nn]

As a Canadian, I resemble your remarks. 🇨🇦 😕

[@dmoo2498]

My loophole is that I have saved up, I'm in Boston, I'm going to the Brattle and I'm not Michael K Vaughan! 😂

[@gtm604]

In terms of book buying getting out of hand. Well, Booktube plays a big part in that blame soooo basically it’s your fault Steve ! 😂 I do agree though people will make all these crazy exceptions, caveats and silly rules to by pass the whole point of the actual event lol. I did a count of my books after watching this video. I have about 150 physical books unread and about 25 digital books unread. 40% of that would be 70 books. I’m a slow reader though. That would be about 3 years of reading.

[@saintdonoghue]

Hah! NOOOOO! If there's blame to be assessed for all the BookTube-inspired buying, I insist on sharing the blame with Michael K Vaughan and Criminolly! It isn't only me!

[@geocraftsman]

I feel as if the disagreements about this challenge can go on forever... however, I definitely agree that it's a sad to take a short version of this challenge and then buy a lot of books immediately afterwards. That feels more like a drug addict deciding to go cold turkey for a few weeks just so it feels really good when they go back to taking drugs.

[@GentleReader01]

Yeah, that’s the one wrinkle that rankles me, pardon the assonance. It seems directly contrary to what I understand the whole point to be.

[@geocraftsman]

@@GentleReader01 exactly. But on the other hand, what else would one do? No doubt during this whole challenge you've been discovering new books you want to read, or new ones have been coming out. It goes to show, for me, that you simply can't win with bookbuying vs. bookreading. You can learn to keep a slightly healthier balance, but you'll always have a surplus.

[@GentleReader01]

@@geocraftsman I make notes of promising books. If it doesn’t still feel interesting a few years from now, that’ll be a good sign in itself :)

[@geocraftsman]

@@GentleReader01 You say years, but me personally, I still couldn't imagine dedicating myself to a years-long challenge. Myself, for example, I only have been into reading for 4 years or something, and I have a hefty pile of unread books. But almost all of them are genre fiction, like sci-fi, fantasy, adventure, etc. Recently though I had an odd feeling like I'd like to read Yekl by Abraham Cahan which is about a Jewish immigrant in turn-of-century New York. So I bought it, read it next, and loved it. And I also bought another book of his I probably wont read for a few years. I couldnt do that in the read what you own challenge. It feels wrong to commit myself to a years-long challenge where I might deny myself the possibility of opening up to new genres.

[@GentleReader01]

@@geocraftsman Sure. Not everyone can or should structure their reading any particular way. In my case, I’ve been buying and reading ebooks since 2002, and I’m both disabled and often heavily depressed. That means binge shopping for a quick mood rush, with limited space and money, making cheap ebooks excellent mood rush per dollar and per megabyte. :) Hence, a four-figure not-yet-read pile and my response to it. Thank goodness most people aren’t me or with my needs.

[@stretmediq]

I bought my granddaughter a chess book but ended up reading it myself before giving it to her. Im not on the read what you own challenge but if i were would reading a book you just bought for someone else be a violation of the challenge? Would it count toward the challenge? Would it affect the challenge at all? 🤔 Btw before everything was moved online there were some protocol books that weren't officially required and thus not supplied by the paramedic service i work for but strongly encouraged by them to get yourself

[@JessBookgirlTV]

I buy a lot of books or go to Little Free Libraries. I wouldn’t do well on this challenge. I would fail miserably.

[@morningdewacademic]

Like Fred, I love reading textbooks, or I should say I enjoy studying and learning all types of subject matter. I go to used bookstores and if I find any in the subject matter I'm interested in I buy them. I don't feel bad about buying them or if they sit on my shelves for a bit because they are study material and something I take my time devouring and learning. I feel the same way about resource books. Novels on the other hand, oh no, I read those as soon as I get them!

[@mediumjohnsilver]

Although the challenge is mainly about reading unread books, many participants will count rereads of previously read books. In both cases, it “justifies” having kept the book on one’s shelves. In any case, I am not participating in the challenge. I have acquired only 21 books this year.

[@MsReadsAlot]

40% 😮😮😮 that sounded like a big number in my head but it is really only 105.2 😊 that feels more realistic

[@michaelgliddenforteski6576]

20 books, Steve! 20! That includes gifts, box sets, and books in Portuguese. Many of these are great candidates for March of the Mammoths... I will say it is not crazy having unread physical copies of books when you have kids. Technology has really helped me keep up with reading in recent years. I may not buy books by the time i read these 8 books, but I cannot guarantee that my wife will not buy me any in that time span. Also, I shall not be getting rid of these books. I have a problem.

[@arthurodell3281]

A distinct lack of funds helps with not buying books.

[@lvndrrose]

Should giant resource books count, I’m not sure we ever really read those, but I have about 30 or more.

[@duffypratt]

I think the challenge has it backwards. Rather, it should be own what you legitimately intend to read (or consult for a practical purpose). That means only buy books that you will read soon, and get rid of everything that you will not (including any book that you will not likely reread). Your first rule is way too broad. Dictionaries? My law case books from Law School? I can come up with lots of other practical examples of reference books. Yes, they are becoming obsolete with the ease of finding the same info online, but not all of them. Another issue I have is with collections. I have many Library of America volumes that are partially read. I might someday continue in them, but I don’t know whether they count as one book, or several. I see no problem for example in keeping my copy of Steinbeck books, even though I haven’t yet read Log from the Sea of Cortez and might not get to it for years. I’m surprised that the exceptions you mention all seem to do with what you don’t have to read. Typically, the exceptions I’ve seen are on what you are still allowed to buy. For example, if you are currently on book 6 of a 14 volume fantasy series, it makes some sense to say you are allowed to buy books to continue reading that series. Same might go for new books published by a handful of favorite authors, provided that you read them forthwith, and you not count them against your arbitrary number. I had this book buying problem long before there was such a thing as booktube, or even the internet. I solved it in a very different way. I made a rule for myself that I could only buy a book after I had finished two books. And I could only buy one book at a time. Doing that, I got myself to where I had read everything I owned, excepting reference type books. Now, if you except the LoA partial books, I have somewhere around 10-20 unread books in the house. The longest I’ve owned is Krazy Kat by Jay Cantor, which someone gave to me 32 years ago, and I’ve never gotten around to, although I told him I would…

[@juliemartin6101]

No, I'm not on Fred's side and want the Read What You Own Challenge. My problem is when I see a book, by an author I know I like, but don't remember the book. Then I buy it and discover I had read it, enjoyed it (or not) and this is that book but it has a different title - usually because one was published in the UK and then published in the US. Just in general - how would you classify the book? As a new book, a re-read, or???

[@timewithbooks]

Keeping DNF books?! That is such an odd thing to do. That said, I am going through my cycling library asap (to get rid of them!) and trying not to buy books. Although I'm not participating in this challenge.

[@ethanschneider2711]

Great advice!

[@Behorn14]

i don't think ebooks or comics/manga count toward read what you own challenge other wise I lost on day 1 :) I thought you were going to say that the last rule was after reading a book make a booktube video or write a review of the book

[@DDB168]

I like the 40% and 30% thresholds. They're fair numbers. Fred has a few too many exclusions.

[@bigaldoesbooktube1097]

Booktube is full of crazy people. Enjoy your challenge as I’m off gaily buying new books 😝

[@lpeek56]

As a book reader, and a book hoarder, and a lover of all things books, I find your description past the 17 minute mark that people who had hundreds of unread books on their shelves are insane, I find that degrading to folks like me who love the look of a room devoted to my book collections, music memorabilia etc which I adore! I think you must be the insane equivalent of Margaretta Magnuson, who wrote “The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning”in this case, applied to Books! Enjoy your thoughts and opinions even so!!!

[@harmonyln7]

Excuse me, but buying textbooks and books in series or box-sets absolutely all count as adding more books to the to be read shelf.

[@alejandrorubio305]

Hey Steve

[@michaelgliddenforteski6576]

We aren't talking e-books are we?

[@saintdonoghue]

We most certainly are NOT talking about e-books, since e-books take up no space and gather no dust!

[@GentleReader01]

@@saintdonoghueI’m definitely about ebooks since these days I can only manage ebooks and audiobooks, so that’s where I’m hoarding (and have been for decades).

[@marciajohansson769]

Wow That is all I can say to these rules lol.

[@saintdonoghue]

40%!

[@marciajohansson769]

@@saintdonoghue the truth hurts and you spoke the truth

[@marciajohansson769]

@@saintdonoghue I woke up thinking 40% and hearing my daughter say "like that is going to happen". you have dug deep into my brain and that is freaking scary. LOL

[@christinaalvarez332]

Woo hoo! You just inspired me Steve! I'm going to unhaul some books I've been holding on to for a long time and focus on keeping books I really want to read and own. Thank you!

[@ObscureBookAdventures]

Sorry, books are more than a bulndled packadge of words and sentences to read. There is for example the graphic design to enjoy. I’m not only a reader but also a collector. And it’s not so that when I buy a book nobody can read it anymore. There are plenty of other editions easily available. I don’t see the problem. And I like to live in a library. As that isn’t possible I have to build my own library. And when I want something to read I have plenty to choose from. I’m not participating in the read what you own challenge by the way. That’s the way I think of it anyway.

[@thespaminator]

Well there’s one thing we can bond over. Our mutual irritation with all things Canadian…

[@choco1199]

Tissue🤧

[@saintdonoghue]

I don't use tissue. So you can stop mentioning it, right?

[@pegthebookprizeaddict579]

Yesterday you used knitters' jargon and now today I hear you talk like a golfer bro (mulligan?). What is this stealing terms from all my favorite hobbies, especially the one I Am too old to play anymore unless I ride in those darn carts (walking the course is the only REAL golf). Rules of the PEG!🤷🏻‍♀️📚🧶⛳️🏌️‍♀️