#POLL: How Do You Organize Your Books?

When I first started accumulating books, I was like, “That’s it, I’m going to have the best bookshelves ever! I’ll make it like my own mini-library and put everything in alphabetical order.”

I realized very fast that I did not have the patience to squeeze in books to keep everything perfectly ordered each time I purchased a new book. Not to mention, all of a sudden I looked at a bunch of black books side by side, then a red, then two green … and colour coding seemed the way?

Let me just say that now, I live by the “if it fits, it goes there” rule, and things have never been better. But how about you? How do you organize your books to keep yourself sane, make it easier to find what you’re looking for, and impress all your friends?

OPTIONS

  1. Colour Co-Ordinated: If it matches, it goes together. That simple. There’s a reason everyone drops everything when there’s a rainbow. Colours are meant to go together.
  2. Alphabetical (author or book title): Why bother with aesthetics when it’s clear what really works? Need a book, you can go straight to the source with alphabetical order. Not to mention how fancy you look with a private library system going on.
  3. Um, if it fits, it goes? Do you know how many books a book blogger has? No way can simple bookshelves contain the troves of novels in your possession. Think under the bed, on the dresser, and possibly crammed behind cushions.
  4. What are physical books? Nevermind finding space for books when you have Kindle and Nook and basically the entire digital world at your fingertips. Maybe you have a shelf or two in your room for some faves, but saving space is priority (and really so much smarter).
  5. Genre: In the mood for mystery, then step right up! Everything is right in its place when you put the genres together! Maybe this takes a moment when you have to skim Goodreads to really know what’s what with each book you pick … but it certainly makes your bookshelf unique!

 

VOTE in the comments below to let us know how you organize your books!

SHA

93 thoughts on “#POLL: How Do You Organize Your Books?”

  1. My bookshelves really aren’t that easy to explain, they’re partly seperated by fantasy and contemporary then by color and size, it sounds complicated (and it is) but they look really good together 😂🤗

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    1. Hey Maxi! That *does* sound complicated… but if if it looks good, does it really matter? I’m also really getting the vibe that fantasy and contemporary really dominate your reading preferences ahaha…so that strategy probably makes it easier for you to find the books you like! 🙂

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      1. It does! And it’s true, I basically only read contemporary and fantasy, although I am planning on delving more into the sci fi genre since all of the sci fi books I read I really enjoyed, but lord that’s gonna make organizing my shelves even harder 😂😂🤗

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      2. Somehow I feel like the pleasure of reading the books will outweigh any struggle in reorganizing your shelves. There’s always so much fun to diving into a new genre, because you haven’t ingrained all the tropes to your memory

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      3. Ikr, slowly I’m lowkey over fantasy because I feel like all of the base lines are the same and I don’t know anything about sci-fi so it’s always refreshing to read it 😂🤗

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  2. I giggled at the “What are physical books?”, because a majority of the physical books I have are all from cons. I buy almost ZERO physical books, but the ones I do have are stacked up against a wall since we moved (over a year ago). I miss my floor to ceiling shelves.

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    1. Ahahhaa oh nooo that is such a shift, to go from books on a floor-to-ceiling scale and then just a wall space. (Not that I would complain about a whole collection of free physical copies.) I’m very much the reverse: I buy only physical copies and get all my freebies as digitals. Would you ever see yourself making the change back to physical?

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      1. I have carpel tunnel and a tendon problem in my thumb. Holding physical books is hard for me. Therefore, I can only read them at home, and I do most of my reading during my commute. That, and I struggle with the fonts – I need the print bigger. Ebooks are so much better for me. I really don’t have the space either.

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      2. That makes way too many cons to consider physical books. Your case is rested! I recall you mentioning the carpel tunnel in a past post. If there was a way for everything in the world to be as we wanted, I would wish you could have your large bookshelf again… But ebooks that adapt to your font size preferences, automatically mark your place, and travel with you wherever you go aren’t a bad option either 🙂

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    1. Hey Olivia! Series have to stick together! Sometimes I get lazy, read a book in a series, and then put the book away randomly … and next time I can’t find the book and assume I lent it or lost it, because it’s not with the rest of the set. Just makes so much more sense to keep them together? Especially when authors create matching covers, those look sooo nice!

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  4. I had my bookshelf organized by genre but then I got so many books over the years I kind of just go for what fits and looks best. Right now some shelves are organized by color and others are by size. 😂

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    1. Hey Brittany! Ahaha, I’m going to guess that a part of you wonders if the bookshelf needs to all be cohesive, but another part of you is like, who cares, at least I have a ton of books! Because that would definitely be me in that situation. 😀

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    1. Oh, the frustrations of odd sized books! Like the paperbacks that are oddly a half centimetre larger than the usual paperback size? I have to wonder if publishing companies sit down and scratch their heads like, “This fantasy book SCREAMS slightly-larger-than average paperback.” Thanks for commenting!

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  7. Lol I don’t think I can even begin to explain mine. The ones that are out in the open on my semi bookshelf are organized by color scheme. I have part of them rainbow and a few stacks are just by a color pattern. The others are all stashed wherever I can fit.

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    1. Noooo you must never get rid of books! Deny the people who could even consider such an idea. Or get reaallly creative, ahaha. Every time I lose a book I feel like a lose of piece of myself… Even if I didn’t like the book, which is maybe weird? Just me?

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  9. I organize my books by preference (basically star rating). I only have one shelf on the bookshelf in my room available to me, so I’ve just always just had my favourite books in order of how much I love them there.

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    1. Ooooh, I really like this idea. I kind of want to do this now, except that would probably takes ages considering I’ve not read many of my books for a long time, so I don’t even have ratings for them. And yet … this seems so practical? What star rating holds the most books for you?

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      1. Probably 3 stars. The nice thing about only having the one shelf is that if I change my mind on a book, I can just put it away out of view. The hundreds of books I have in my closet and in boxes aren’t organized. They used to be, but they aren’t anymore.

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      2. Now I really want to see your bookshelves, haha. They seem a far cry from what I have going on. Once upon a time I imagined myself with aesthetically pleasing bookshelves, and then I realized I can do many things … but that is not one of them.

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      3. I love my shelves I want to add lights and other cute things to them eventually, but right now they have stuff all over them cause my family likes to use them to put their stuff on, but the organization that’s all on me.

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      4. Lights would be super cute. I’ve also seen some bookshelves (on bookstagram) that use origami which is really nice. But YES it really starts with the organization. If you’ve got that, the rest will be easy (I mean, once your family moves their stuff, haha.)

        Liked by 1 person

  11. I try to organize my books firstly based on age range, middle grade is one shelf, YA another, and then from there I organize them based on whether or not they’re part of a series or if they’re a stand alone. To be completely honest, my shelves do not look organized at all 😂, and I need more of them so now a few are just doubled up which really bugs me because then you can’t see the books behind them.

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    1. Having to double up books is really frustrating, I get where you’re coming from. I like the idea of age range! Although I definitely do not have enough of different age groups to come close to doing that. Do you do anything special within the age groupings or anything goes once a book is within YA, for example? Thanks for commenting!

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  14. Mine is definitely a loose mix of genre, book height and if it fits, it goes haha I also stack two deep and two high so I can utilize my shelf space of one and a half bookcases. I don’t have much room and I’m not one for aesthetics anyways soo yeah. Also I’m preferring e-books and audiobooks nowadays anyways 😊

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    1. Considering how much space physical copies can take — and how much we book lovers read!! — digital copies make so much more sense nowadays. I stand by the “paper copy is more magical” notion, but can’t deny the space aspect. Also… almost two bookshelves full of books? See, that is the life! ❤

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      1. Truth! I mean I’m pretty sure if we get the opportunity to have the biggest space ever and all the books we want, that we will definitely default with physical books. Alas, it’s not feasible, and we might be too busy to even always have full hardcovers with us (I’m a paperback girl myself but still). Compromise! We can be good at that right? haha

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      2. Ooh, yeah, of course. I suppose unless we’re travelling … but really, physical books seem to win out unless space comes into account. Heeeyy, paperback girl here too! I can appreciate the value of a good hardcover though. Maybe we just need a “book gallery” app that cycles through our Kindle books. That way we can display it on our bookshelves and convince ourselves it … kind of the same?

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    1. Hahaa, I don’t think you realize how similar you are to Mandy (or Mandy realizes how similar she is to you?) Both with your storage containers full of books… Hey, as long as you *have* the books, who really cares where they’re stored? In the fridge? Sure, okay! lmao

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  17. I am sort of the if it fits it goes, but I keep thinking I should reorganize. When I do it will probably be alphabetical. Although I do usually have a separate shelf for unread books. That way I don’t have to hunt for those.

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    1. A separate shelf for unread is smart! I’ve been burying my unread into my bookshelf, so it kind of feels like I’m browsing a bookstore? And that’s a cool vibe, *except* I keep skipping my bookshelves to go to an *actual* bookstore aha. Maybe if all my unread books were staked in a menacing pile, I would tackle them sooner! Thanks for commenting!

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  20. Lol none of the above and yet all of the above.
    Just know that my system is a mess but it works for me. It is as follows.
    Size > alphabetical by author, but favourites take the top shelves, signed books get the middle shelf, books I need to read on the bottom. Oh and if possible, genres together.
    What a mess I am indeed.

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    1. I’m sitting here just trying to wrap my head around this system. Rendz, you’ve got a way all of your own haha. Also, I am now totally jealous that you have signed books. I’m immediately starting a countdown to the day one I am blessed with a signed copy of any book by a fave author. 😀

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      1. It is quite complicated lol. I didn’t even mention that I have to lay my books flat because most are too tall for the shelf space XD
        I can’t wait to read about the day you get a signed copy from a favourite author!

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      2. Oh, most of mine are flat too. Hmm. Is this considered bad? I think I’m the worst bookworm every, folding pages and tossing books anywhere and not even keeping a legit TBR. It’s shameful Rendz!

        That post would probably just be me saying OMG about a thousand times hahaha.

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  21. I used to organize by genre, but the fact that I am 90% a fantasy reader and only 10% a contemporary reader made it hard to organize. So now I’m pretty much a “if it fits and doesn’t look terrible, it belongs there for eternity” shelver 😂

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    1. I really feel you on never finding books. I have to walk through my house to figure out if a book is on Bookshelf #1, Bookshelf #2, Bookshelf #3, or on any of my dressers, desks, or randomly scattered on night tables and chairs. Maybe Kindle *is* a smart idea? Hmm. lol

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  25. My small little bookshelf in my dorm room was thrown together haphazardly during move in and has stayed that way. But my large shelves at home are together by height I like to believe…. BUT I am a very messy person its all “if it fits it sits”

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  27. Is it sad to say that I don’t have a particular way of organizing books? I hate color coordination, and I don’t even like my books to be the same height. My style is uber hipster, eclectic, and random. 😂

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  28. This is just going to prove how much of a mess I am:

    My pre-2018 TBR is alphabetically in a separate bookcase because.. well.. I want to knock those off first. [Wishful thinking right there.]

    Then the top shelves of my other three cases are.. on author / series. Like, a Cassandra Clare shelf, HP-shelf and such. Then.. There’s the fantasy favorites and contemporary / other favorites.

    THEN we have some shelves with books I read and loved, but aren’t necessarily favorites although I don’t want to get rid of them either.

    And.. well.. THEN we have the 2018-TBR which is currently divided into fantasy vs. other genres.

    My system does not make any sense whatsoever but we’re probably moving in a couple of months so I’ll figure out a game-plan for when that happens. Hopefully I’ll be able to fix this nonsense.. :’)

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    1. First of all: best of luck if/when you move, because that is never easy especially with a lot of items that require sorting ie books

      Second, that is INDEED a very intricate system! I love the ambition that comes with having a separate section for pre-2018 TBRs… even though we aaaalll know how long those take to get tackled. (How big is that section, exactly, haha?) And from this poll I’m getting the sense that fantasy is really killing it right now. Not that I’m seeing any reason it shouldnt!

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      1. Haha, thank you! The boyfriend already stated loud and clearly how “he is NOT moving MY books since those are MY problem”. Pretty sure he’s scared of drowning in them or something.

        I only did that fairly recently because my bf promised me “something” [we both don’t know what?] should I get my pre-2018 TBR down to 100 books. Which is.. what I’m now trying to do. It’s five shelves? Not double-stacked, thank the skies but still..
        Ooh, the reason fantasy is separate is because those are mostly books from sub boxes and since they’re all hardcovers, I’d rather have them all together, haha. 😀

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      2. Hahaha, books aren’t scary! Just very very heavy when you pack a bunch in a box, so either you’ll end up showing your muscles or he’ll cave and lend a hand.

        Five shelves!! Wow. Just the fact that it’s over 100… Good luck! If there weren’t so many tempting new releases, I’m sure you’d have it done in no time.

        Ahhh okay. Makes sense!!

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      3. I can’t lift heavy things right now so.. he’ll have to give in eventually. *evil laughter* At least I’ll be able to box them up properly and with care, ha.

        Exactly! Those new releases keep ruining that! But only that. New releases are too much fun to neglect or ignore. 😀

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      4. Hahaha, you’ve got him trapped now! Carrying the boxes is hard work sure, but packing away is the real work, so there you go! You’re doing the real stuff here!

        Oh of course. There is no way to ever ignore new releases. They are too tempting 😍

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  29. Pingback: 5 Ways to Organize Books (if You Don’t Have Shelf Space – Book Princess Reviews

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