I keep collecting books I know I'll never, never read; My…
““I keep collecting books I know I'll never, never read; My wife and daughter tell me so, And yet I never heed. "Please make me," says some wistful tome, "A wee bit of yourself." And so I take my treasure home, And tuck it in a shelf. And now my very shelves complain; They jam and over-spill. They say: "Why don't you ease our strain?" "Some day," I say, "I will." So book by book they plead and sigh; I pick and dip and scan; Then put them back, distressed that I Am such a busy man. Now, there's my Boswell and my Sterne, my Gibbon and Defoe; To savor Swift I'll never learn, Montaigne I may not know. On Bacon I will never sup, For Shakespeare I've no time; Because I'm busy making up These jingly bits of rhyme. Chekov is caviar to me, While Stendhal makes me snore; Poor Proust is not my cup of tea, And Balzac is a bore. I have their books, I love their names, And yet alas! they head, With Lawrence, Joyce and Henry James, My Roster of Unread. I think it would be very well If I commit a crime, And get put in a prison cell And not allowed to rhyme; Yet given all these worthy books According to my need, I now caress with loving looks, But never, never read." (from, Book Lover)””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
A lamentation of hoarding books without reading them, exposing the paradox of valuing knowledge while neglecting its consumption.
In simple terms: Collecting unread books as a status symbol.
Key Takeaway
Possession without engagement.
Themes
Intellectual vanity
Procrastination
Consumerism
Self‑deception
Cultural capital
Mood
Wistful
Self‑critical
Type
Self‑reflective
Satirical
When to use this quote
- A scholar with a packed shelf
- A busy professional buying books
- A collector displaying titles
Key Concepts
Reading vs. owning
Time scarcity
Self‑image
Practical Applications
- Encourage deliberate reading habits
- Design minimalist libraries
Questions to Reflect On
- What motivates you to acquire books you never read?
- How could you transform your collection into a reading plan?
A Different Perspective
The act of collecting can inspire future reading, turning shelves into a roadmap rather than a burden.