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 would like to reread more than I manage to do. I plan lessons from them, lend them to friends or very occasionally trusted students, refer to them when I need to check a recollection or citation…

Ok so OP I’m here to blow your mind. DH and I just did a rough tally up ( using books per shelf x number of shelves). 8500.

So yes, some people really do have books. I think others would be surprised if they did a similar inventory. You get a lot on a big shelf. If you have shelves in multiple rooms, and shelves on more than one wall it does add up.

I'm in my 20s

I can't imagine living in a house without books. I think we've got at least one bookshelf in pretty much every room, and the attic has loads more in storage.

I much prefer real books to my Kindle. For me, reading is a tactile, sensory thing as much as an intellectual one. I love the feel of a book, the texture of the pages and even the smell, especially of an old book. DH and our adult DS who still lives at home prefer to read on Kindles, but we all like having books around.

I think my minds more blown on how large everyone's houses must be

This is twaddle! Children don’t achieve by osmosis- obviously they have to be read from the books/ read them when they can. Otherwise we could all just sit our children in libraries to become clever.

That makes you the smuggest cleverest person on the whole of MN.

You need better friends. 99% of my mates' homes look like this, only with much shabbier furniture and many more books.
None of us are anywhere near our 80s, thanks very much.
CF.

it's because they all live very rurally in big houses and there's nothing else to do but read.

@Damaged27 I know you you might not be interested, but if you’d like your world to be less small, reading would help with that.

If you read, you wouldn’t have got to 30 (or whatever) and genuinely not appreciated people live differently and lots of them have books.

Reading also tends to help with mental health, it gives you a curiosity in the world that takes you out of yourself, gives perspective and new angles, helps build focus and is somewhere to find respite from everyday life. It’s not the only way clearly, but it’s pretty major.

I live in a two bedroomed 'starter' home, and for this reason my sitting-room is also my library. Would have liked an extra room for a library but didn't want to overstretch myself financially. Still, I love my room.

I have amazing friends ty I don't choose my friends based on their homes

It makes them a fuck sight more interesting than the bunches of MNers comparing designer handbags.

Your mind would be blown by how SMALL my house is @Damaged27 !
not all of us have big houses, some of us just cram them with things we like looking at, that make us happy!

You know perfectly well what I mean, but carry on.

Those pics look like show homes from magazines, ours looks nothing like that, we have book shelves but not so many and regularly get rid of books and acquire new ones. I have relatives who read regularly but don't have any book cases so I guess they must pass them on when finished reading, I have a friend with house stuffed with books that spill over everywhere on piles as the bookshelves that cover their entire walls are not enough, their house doesn't look anywhere near as beautiful and tidy as the ones in your pictures.

Can you imagine choosing friends depending on how many books they have?

It's a very odd place when stating how many books you own - on a thread about books and bookcases is 'smug' - nothing smug about that post just a statement of facts!

@RampantIvy I own a 1970's semi which I purchased for £150,000 9 years ago - so no not a stealth boast or a massive house!

I re-read books loads, some I've read every year for years.

My DH does the the same

We read a mixture of new and old books each year.

It's not really all that mind-blowing to work out that other people might like something you don't like.

Well if you mean late 20s, then that’s quite late.

I do think reading would help…

I actually mostly read on my kindle for practicality (and to stop my DH from divorce me for having the light on all night) but we do have hundreds of books. Children's books, cook books and reference books are just not the same electronically.

It is actually true that the presence of books in the house results in better outcomes for children but I guess that can also be linked to the family valuing and discussing books. amp.theguardian.com/books/2018/oct/10/growing-up-in-a-house-full-of-books-is-major-boost-to-literacy-and-numeracy-study-finds

I would love to enjoy reading but I just don't seem to have the attention span

Some people like books. Some people like designer handbags. One is not automatically more worthy or more interesting than the other.

Now, now your real snob is showing.

But you're not allowed to have books, didn't you get the memo? People reading and thinking and enjoying it, must put a stop to it. Get back to consuming and gossip, woman!