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?

I couldn’t settle in a house without books on shelves! My house has bookshelves, armchairs, old wooden bureau, carpets - also cat tower, ikea chairs, big TV, sewing machines, crochet blankets, colourful cushions and random knitting paraphernalia (and cats)

Same. They hold all my memories.

Some of them are gifts from my dad- long gone. I have passed on my old books to my DC.

I don't care much about clothes or handbags or shoes- and I have no hand me downs-but books bring me endless joy.

I haven't got floor to ceiling bookcases but I have tabletop height to ceiling bookshelves in the alcoves either side of the fireplace in one of our rooms.

They don't go down to the floor because on one side of the fireplace, there's a unit with a few drawers and on the other side, the settee is right next to the shelves so books on low shelves would be inaccessible.

I don't feel claustrophobic at all. I love sitting on the settee and looking up at the books. There are probably a few hundred (with more in other rooms).

My DH isn't a reader and I love that he made the bookshelves for me.

Posting that you can pray away the gay is far more dangerous, which is what that poster has done previously...

I'm getting to the age where re-reading old books has become comforting, and I'm hugely glad that I kept some of my books from the past that I never thought I'd read again. Dipping into half-remembered words that I'd forgotten I ever read is familiar yet new, and it's a lovely feeling.

Yep - I have a study/library with about 2000 books. But I’ve a BA and MA in English, BSc in pychology and am doing a phd in creative writing, so books are seriously my thing… My teens also have shelves full of books in their rooms too, mainly YA, manga and graphic novels though.

But my house does not look as American/dated as the images above though!

Yes! I agree.

Do you want a wheelbarrow to help you carry that chip on your shoulder @Damaged27 ??

I have a bookshelf in our spare room for textbooks and files, and a bookshelf in my daughter’s room for her books.

I don’t have a bookshelf for novels (although I do have some books), and my house looks nothing like the picture.
I really want built in shelves beside the fireplace though.

I don't think those pictures look remotely like american rooms 🤔

I’m an avid reader but we don’t have books anymore (other than children’s books) - it’s all on the kindle - the bookshelves took up too much space… my parents have lots and lots of bookshelves crammed with books…

We are buried in books… on shelves, next to the bed, piled on the coffee table.
we have a mid-century vibe in our place.

This is my less booky bookcase and a catty cabinet

Clearly not as I did not mention out of print academic books.

Our sitting room is similar to the second picture but without such nice lamps or objects as DH hates both.
What I've realised recently is that my bookshelves have been static for about the past decade. They used to be constantly evolving as I bought books, lent them to friends and so on. Now, though, anything new I read tends to be on my kindle and of course that means lending & borrowing is a thing of the past.
Also, DH and I being avid readers has had no impact whatsoever on the DC. They would rather game, watch TV, be on social media & so on

Do you have ornaments, vases, objects that mean something to you in your rooms? Books are no more clutter than those. I can't get my head round people who refer to books as clutter.

Quite a few children come to school not knowing what a book is. This is why I find it depressing when people say books are clutter. Likewise people who struggle to have toys out and kiddies pictures on the walls/fridge. Having things out that bring you joy is what makes a home and makes it your home. I miss the half completed lego models, car races set up on the living room rug etc now DC are at university.

Having a house with nothing personal on show, could be anyone's house and not a home.

When DM moved after DF died and down sized, once she had put out pictures, books and ornaments that she had kept from their previous house/family home, it felt like home again and brought her comfort.

You don’t need money, success or a private education to be into reading ffs. I grew up in council temporary housing and always had a little stash of books from the charity shop. It was an escape. So yes I do like to have books around especially for my kids. I wouldn’t class books as clutter. And having bookshelves isn’t for the over 80s!!

I thought I recognised the username.

Assuming that the poster isn't a trill, anyone who promotes that toxic bull deserves no sympathy.

I have a very small bookshelf in my bedroom but I tend to borrow books from the library (I don’t like clutter and they’re free) and so I don’t have a lot of books in my home at one time.

Is this true? What good are the books doing if they don't read them?

Presumably it's a reasonably accurate proxy for class, and parental level of education, plus it normalises reading as an activity. Obviously it's more important that the child actually reads though!

Oh god, I don't think I've ever read anything that's made me want to read less!!!

Oh dear. Yes we have those exact bookshelves and yes, our house does look a bit like that... I am not 80.

We have bookcases. They are full, DH buys more, fills them, cycle continues

Our large bookshelves are in our attic office but we have a bookshelf downstairs too. Minimalist white and grey is not to my taste but I’m sure my Victorian house would not be to your taste either. Everyone is different!