Sunday 18 October 2009

The Other Green Shelf


I have previously shared my bottle-green Virago shelf but I had many other lighter green books on my shelves and I brought those together to create the other green shelf.

First of all, there is NO Angela Carter book! I think this is the first shelf, other than the white one (and I do have a white Angela Carter book, but not on that shelf) that doesn't include a book by my favourite writer. There are, of course, the obligatory Virago Modern Classics; this time they are both Barbara Pym novels and are new additions to my shelves this year. Penguin are as always well-represented in classics (one read and loved and the other currently unread), beautiful John Wyndham novels, and a Gabriel Garcia Marquez one (also a regular feature amongst the colour-themed shelves); Vintage also sneak onto the shelf yet again with another Rushdie novel.

The Rebecca Wells novel is also a new addition and is a vile shade of lime. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett is my all-time favourite Children's novel and this is a beloved copy and one of the oldest books in my collection with Wild Swans by Jung Chang a close second (a fabulous autobiographical family history that has had a place on my shelves since 1997).

I am a Cat by Soseki Natsume is a Japanese classic that you will be reading about soon on my blog and the green Jasper Fforde books belong to great literary crime/fantasy novels and I adore the covers with their spoof beat-up appearance. Lastly on the shelf there is another vividly coloured TC Boyle spine.

I love green as a colour and like the freshness of this shelf, what about you?

I have exhausted the range of colours in my possession, covering the spectrum of the rainbow as well as some other core colours, so this will be the last in my colour-themed bookshelves series until I acquire more books! In the meantime, if the voyeur in you is seeking out then you can watch a vlog tour of Eva's new rainbow bookshelves.


32 comments:

Anonymous said...

Aww, I'm quite sad that you've exhausted the range of colors on your shelves! I love these posts - always try to pick out the books I have, the ones I want to have, and if I have the same edition or not.

Just as an FYI - The Secret Garden is one of my all time favourites, but I have a totally different edition, which is aquamarine in color.

Please get new books soon :))

Eva said...

I'm so jealous of that gorgeous jade colour on your copy of Wild Swans! I loved that book, but my copy isn't pretty. And thanks for the link. :) Although I'm sad this is the last of yours!

Bloomsbury Bell said...

My favourite colour is green - for so many reasons.
I am ashamed to say I have never read any Barbara Pym. I must give her books a go.
Your colourful shelf posts have been great - thanks for sharing!

Molly said...

I will also miss these "color coordinated" posts. I have so enjoyed seeing this alternative way to store books.

Kals said...

Green is my favourite colour and The Eyre Affair one of my favourite books :) Had fun reading this post!

Darlene said...

Reminds me of a stack of apples at the grocery store! I've really enjoyed these posts and appreciate the work you put into compiling them. My favourite was the yellow shelf.

Stacy said...

No more? Well I had so much fun seeing these posts...thank you. This shelf reminds me of childhood and my small obsession with anything green-apple flavored:)

Anonymous said...

The green is quite nice. Seeing your copy of Wild Swans makes me want to read it again.

verity said...

That is very zingy. I'm sad that you've run out of colours (but secretly pleased that Darlene mentioned my shelf :D)

Tracey said...

I've really enjoyed your coloured shelves. I think this one is my favourite. There's something soothing about the colour green, perfect for this time of year as well 0:)

Paperback Reader said...

anothercookie, don't be sad! If you can suggest any other colours then I'll try to mix the book palette! I love looking at others' books and trying to find my own too.

I don't think I know the aquamarine edition of The Secret Garden; I must share the cover of mine at some point as it is exceedingly pretty.

I have a self-imposed book-buying ban just now but I do have lots of other books at my disposal if someone can suggest another colour that I haven't yet used!

Eva, it's the last for the time-being ;). I do love that edition of Wild Swans and its colour (it is so apt being jade).

Naomi, green is my favourite colour too; I like its range and freshness.

I haven't read any Barbara Pym yet either but intend to soon!

Molly, perhaps I will come up with another creative way of sharing my books! I'm continually playing with them and re-ordering so we shall see what happens.

Kals, glad that you enjoyed it! The Eyre Affair and its follow-ups are fabulous.

Paperback Reader said...

Darlene, they look like Granny Smith apples! I've enjoyed this series although a bit stunned that your favourite was a shelf that wasn't even mine ;)!

Book Psmith, for the time-being ... unless you can challenge me with another colour? I love apple flavoured things!

Danielle, talking about this shelf has made me want to reread Wild Swans too!

Verity, rub it in ... ;) I'm sad too but, as I've said, if anyone can suggest a colour?

Tracey, I'm glad that you've enjoyed my series. Soothing is my thought when I look at this shelf and green in general; it's one of the most natural colours and reminds me of renewal.

Darlene said...

Oh yes, that was Verity's! Okay, we'll do a time traveler thing and rewind.

My favourite was the red covers!

Anonymous said...

I like this shelf... its looks very eco friendly hahaha.

Now then... Jasper Fforde, I think I need to read some of his stuff don't I? I own it all just havent read any yet.

Paperback Reader said...

Haha, Darlene, nice rewind! What about the pink? I LOVED the pink :).

Simon, eco-friendly?! Hee.

Yes, you need to read Jasper Fforde! Definitely. I wasn't fully convinced by The Eyre Affair (I really enjoyed it but didn't love it) but persevered and adore the series.

Frances said...

You are exhausted just as you reach my favorite color, green. Really lovely. I will miss your color coded shelves but not enough to endeavor to organize my own. My books are shamefully scattered all over the house - too much work to gather them. Happy reading!

Kathleen said...

What a beautiful shelf...I love all the green books. After reading Eva's post yesterday I arranged all of my white/beige/cream colored books on a shelf. It is amazing how beautiful it is to group all of the books of like color together on a shelf!

JoAnn said...

I've enjoyed all the color coded bookshelves! This one reminded me that Wild Swans is waiting on my shelf (though it's not nearly as pretty as your green one).

Anonymous said...

I think this is my favorite of the shelves, as green is my favorite color, too.

Paperback Reader said...

Frances, it does take a lot of energy to organise all the books in a house, especially when they extend to other rooms. One day I will have a sprawling library and do mini rainbow shelves.

Kathleen, it is really stunning and aesthetically pleasing. You begin to appreciate your books in a new and wonderful way.

JoAnn, so happy that you've enjoyed the series. Wild Swans is an epic book that I highly enjoyed (I was about sixteen at the time so curious what I would think now).

Jill, so many of us love green! Not surprising to me in the least. It is a lovely shelf; as Verity says, it is zingy.

Kailana said...

It looks so nice! I wouldn't know where anything was, but I like the idea.

Paperback Reader said...

Kailana, thanks! It's actually easier to find books than you would think although sometimes I suspect that I have an inbuilt radar when it comes to locating any of my own!

Serena said...

That green shelf is gorgeous!

Paperback Reader said...

Thanks, Serena! It's very vivid.

claire said...

Claire.. this is one of the loveliest colours on your shelves. I'm happy to know that I am a Cat's spine is that pretty. :D

So sad that this is going to be the last of your colourful shelves post. I so looked forward to them.

By the way, how did you like Wild Swans? I used to have a copy, left at my dad's house, and started it but never got around to finishing. Wonder if I should acquire another copy so I can read it here now, or is it worth it?

Paperback Reader said...

Claire, the spine (and cover) of I Am a Cat are exceedingly pretty.

I looked forward to making these posts too :(. Can you suggest a colour that I've perhaps forgotten about? Sadly, I'm not sure if there is one.

I loved Wild Swans but I read it as an impressionable sixteen year old and I wonder what I would make of it now.

Anonymous said...

I absolutely love green -- and your shelf makes me happy! :)

Paperback Reader said...

Hi Megan, thanks for commenting. I am so happy that my shelf makes YOU happy!

Sarah said...

I have just been on a quick tour of your rainbow shelves, by typing random colours into the search field. Sad, I know.

The white shelf is stunning, and I was so envious of your multitude of silver Penguins, not to mention drooling over the grey Persephone shelf...

Couldn't find a purple shelf. Or gold. A challenge for you!

After all your effort it seems a shame to let your shelves drift off into the ether. Maybe they desrve a dedicated page...

Paperback Reader said...

Sarah, did you know that if you click on my bookshelves tag on this post that it then shows you them all?

I had some purple books on the pink shelf but I didn't have enough for a whole shelf devoted to the colour, more's the pity. As for gold, I can't think of any I have... a challenge indeed!

I do love my white and grey shelves and I think I'll be devoting another post to my silver Penguins soon.

I have plans to move to wordpress one of these days and hopefully then I'll display the rainbow shelves somehow.

Thank you for taking the time to look through them all!

Sarah said...

Thanks for explaining, Claire. My native habitat is WordPress! (Which is no excuse, because I haven't been using WordPress tags effectively either.)

So, slightly embarrassed, but using the tag is a much better way of looking through :)

We have two gold spined books, both by Phillip K. Dick. Putting together a whole shelf would be tricky, but imagine the effect...

Paperback Reader said...

Sarah, it's okay, not everyone is au fait with tags.

The gold would make a wonderful effect, if I can find any gold books. I discovered another purple book last night and think I will try to create a purple shelf at some point.