So I just moved, and I’m still living among the boxes. Many of the boxes are filled (or partially filled) with books, and now I have to find a place to put them all. Plus one bookshelf didn’t survive the move.

Oh boy.

My son packed and unpacked his own room almost all by himself, including his books. In his old room, he had stacks of books, but in his new room, he has an organizer in his closet, which he’s already putting to good use.

My daughters had a bin for their bedtime stories. Uh . . . still working on unpacking in there. They don’t have a closet organizer, but they do have a very large built-in desk with plenty of great shelves. Both kids’ rooms also have a shelf along the wall.

My husband and I had a very full bookshelf in our room, which he mostly packed up. But since they were books we’ve already read—and our shelf is replacing the broken one—they’re low on the unpacking list.

I’ve got boxes of books for my office, too (largely writing craft & research), but for right now, I’m working on filling the living room shelves—sort of. I like organization, but empty space always seems wasteful to me. My husband and I both come from homes with packed bookshelves, in his home often two rows of books on a shelf with more stacked on top. Space efficiency for the win but . . . doesn’t really work in the place where you welcome visitors to your home. Unless the message is that you’re a packrat. Then it’s cool.

Putting books in the reception area of your home is an interesting conundrum. Do I display books that make us look smart? (College textbooks?) Books that show who we are and what we love—or maybe who we wish we were? Books that match the decor??

Aspirational, inspirational, decorational . . . sounds like the Muppet Show 😉 .

Now, if I could only find places for all the books that weren’t on our shelves before the move . . .

Where do you put your books? Do you show them off to show off who you are, to make yourself look good, or to make your house look good?