I saw a video on YouTube earlier showing off a beautiful leather bound book with golden lettering on the spine, and it got me thinking if I would ever buy a book purely because it would look good on my shelf.
Personally, I’m somewhat conflicted because I hate the idea of buying a book without the intention of reading or gifting it, but I’m sure other people will have some more interesting insights into the topic.
So, thoughts?
by NotVerySmart3
5 Comments
Sure. I have a bunch of nice old paperbacks and pulpy novels I’ve skimmed at best. I wouldn’t buy a book that’s totally outside my interests or doesn’t represent my personality whatsoever just because it looked good, but I’ve bought plenty of books without feeling any great pressure to read them. They’re there, they look good. Maybe they’ll get a flip on a rainy day.
If your buying a book for the aesthetic, you’re buying decoration. It’s no different from buying a candle or an anime figure or a poster.
Under that scope, is perfectly valid and cool. But it’s no longer a book
a waste of money, it is better to buy a painting…
Another alternative buy an expensive book for decoration purposes only, and the same copy but cheaper price to read it.
That’s a question for a decoration subreddit.
I buy beautiful editions of books that I want to read or already love. Win-win