 The Science of Too Many and Too Few PLOP! I jumped. The cats ran. It turned out that what had scared all of us was not someone trying to break in the house but a book that had fallen off the overcrowded bookcase in the living room. A book from the Penguin Classics shelf. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. The shelf is only ten inches in depth, which fit one row of books just fine—until there was no more room either on the row or in the space between the tops of the books and the bottom of the shelf above it and in desperation someone piled books in front of that row of books with the front row face out. I should have known. Known that no matter how much I wanted to squeeze those books in there physics, gravity, and whatever other scientific explanations would underscore the fact that too many books on too few shelves means something had to give. So I got up to walk over to the fallen book and just as I did so another loud PLOP startled me. One fallen book might have been “repairable”; I might have convinced myself that I could push a bit more, tighten up a heretofore invisible space and find room for it. But two books fallen was something I couldn’t ignore. My plan to double shelve—one row spine out, one row face out—just wasn’t going to cut it. I had to face facts—there was no more room and nothing I could do would make any. I gathered up the other four faced-out books from the shelf (that hadn’t fallen yet) and sighed. Where were these six to go? If I could answer that maybe I could also figure out where should the ones piled on top of my printer go—the ones I put there temporarily two weeks ago. And, uh, what about those on the nightstands in the guest room? Not to mention those on the sofas and the end tables, and the dining table and the kitchen counter. Fortunately, I told myself, I don’t have to worry about the ones in the master bathroom. Those are meant to be there, looking pretty (and available) on the imitation marble tub overhanging shelves. But the others are worrying me. This is an indication that for the first time I am in real danger of running out of room for books. That’s not to say there is no room. I have empty cabinets books could go in, but then they’d be hidden. And that’s unacceptable. So one of my New Year’s goals, made on this ninth day of January, is to acquire more bookshelves. And find room for them. Oddly, space I had already looked at before suddenly opened up. In my bedroom, the closet takes up on entire wall. On another, I have two large windows, and with the California king-size bed between them there is room for nothing else besides the nightstands. The third wall, the shortest of all, is where the dresser sits. The problem is that there is insufficient room between the wall and the side of the bed for what I’d love to have—a reading chair or loveseat and a floor lamp. The same lack of room can be seen between the fourth, and longest, wall and the end of the bed. At least I thought so. But desperate times call for desperate measures. Books it must be. So I have decided, with the help of a tape measure, that the bedroom dresser can go in the closet freeing up the short wall. (It’s only filled with underwear, socks and jewelry, after all, and therefore much less important than a wall full of books.) Two or maybe even three book cases there. Then there’s the wall that faces the bed, a wall I have often sighed over since it offers the length needed for . . . well, a lot more books. But my trusty (and trustworthy) measuring tape showed me that while it would narrow my passageway some, I could bring in standard-sized bookcases and not be cramped. I must admit I am nearly breathless with anticipation and excitement. So beginning tomorrow I will be turning to CraigsList with that sense of giddiness that comes with realizing not only am I not running out of room for books but that I have room galore! The vision is almost too much to contemplate, and I am looking forward to giving my Penguins room to breathe. Upcoming Book Festivals: The Pub House: Imaging Books & Reading: Of Interest: Until next week, read well, read often, and read on!
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