Is this what 99% of mumsnetters homes look like

[Damaged27]

After all these interior design threads this is what I'm imagining everyone on mumsnets homes look like. Just curious if I'm way off because iv never been in a home like this. Maybe if the person is in their 80s. Do people really have bookshelves?

We love books, have thousands, some very special, many not so. My masters research was on the keys to success and every successful person had one thing in common - a voracious appetite for reading.

Enjoying reading isn't snobbish. Making a big performance out of it is.

Well the kids have a bookcase in their room but that's all

I’m not sure I know of any homes I’ve been in friends / child’s friends / family etc without bookshelves.. I can’t think of any

My house looks nothing like that, I wish.
And currently bookcase has been moved upstairs. But I do have one, its crammed and that's after a ruthless book donation.
Sadly for now my bookcase is staying upstairs. I do need a new one cos the shelves have bowed with the weight. But I want a book nook somewhere and it might have to be in the new house. Not that I have any great plans to move, but it is on the cards.

I do have a couple of bookshelves, but not on display like the OP pictures, just in the spare bedroom, I only keep books I want to re-read and everything else goes to the charity shop as soon as it’s finished. I grew up with parents who hoarded books and it’s put me right off.

It's a sad state of out education system that people will spend hours on social media but don't appreciate the joy of reading or having books, and how reading can enrich their lives, language and even encourage empathy.

Claiming you don't read is also performative.

Why is it sad?

My house is a bit like the one on the right, although not thincluding the large fitted shelves I even have the door. It’s called a “Murphy door” and is a fab bit of design. I love it 😊

otherwise lots of lamps, layered textures (rugs, throws, cushions etc) and books piled on coffee/side/bedside/console tables throughout the house and yes mismatched furniture. I have enough sofas to open a shop and they’re all different

My house is nothing like that. I am minimalist, but with bright colours. I do not have book shelves (shudders). I am, however, an avid reader. I read once, then bin or give away.

I'm interested in the reading speed thing now.

I've done reading speed calculators in the past and they don't really work for me because they tend to use fairly famous novels and I read the first sentence, go I recognise that! And don't read the rest but click through to the comprehension questions. So it gives a very high reading speed which isn't really true.

I tried this one which has unknown text (ie nobody is going to recognise it and do the questions from memory).

readingsoft.com

I got reading speed of 1040 words a minute with comprehension of 91 percent.

Apparently average reading speed in the U.K. is somewhere between 200-400 words a minute so if an Agatha Christie is 50,000 words that is 166 minutes so just over 2 and a half hours to read, at average reading speed.

So reading two in a day would be 5 hours which is a lot of reading but not impossible or anything like it.

Because they are missing the positives that reading gives.

My house looks nothing like that but I do have book cases or bookshelves in almost every room of the house.

If I win big on the lottery, I'll buy a house that's big enough and posh enough to have a proper library with one of those wooden ladders on wheels to swoosh along from one bookcase to another and to reach books on the high shelves.

I'll be rich enough for a cleaner so won't need to worry about the books getting dusty.

I only read in bed. Or on a plane or train. So since I can't have a bookshelf in the latter two, guess where my bookshelves are? Yup. The clothes have to move out to the boxroom now and then.

Please don't bin your books!

We have loads of books all over the place but my house doesn’t look like the picture- it’s not tidy enough! I also have a large collection of children’s books going back many years, which is helpful when trying to answer questions on here like ‘ what was that book with the witch and the horse
that I loved at primary school in 1978?’

I used to have a ridiculous amount of bookshelves and books. But too much stuff makes me anxious so I culled it. I have still have some books that will go into a cabinet once I've renovated the lounge.

My style is very minimalist though.

Wow - how judgemental!

Some of us like to do other things with our time! Reading is something some people do for pleasure, but it's perfectly fine not to be 'a reader'.

I spend my down-time sewing or knitting. I don't have time to read because it's not a priority. I read on holiday, and I sometimes read my book club book. But it's not where I get my mental stimulation from, and I certainly wouldn't judge anyone on what/how much/when they read.

Yeah money and success isn't something I'm particularly interested in. And even if I won the lottery tomorrow my children would not be privately educated under any circumstances. But I suppose this is how people are different

This, i have a wall of 5 bookcases and further bookcase in the living room

i would love a library with a ladder, i have a library chair…but thats it 😀

I got 3486wpm, also with 91% comprehension

Of course they count.

I read everything from potboiler detective stories to heavyweight classics. I have friends who turn their noses up at some of my 'light' fiction but nobody who has come to stay has complained they can't find anything to read.

Agree @Nanny0gg . I feel the same about libraries closing. If you can’t browse how do you find authors you like.

Kindle algorithms seem quite good for my needs