Spring Bookshelf re-org

I don't know what got into me, but I was overtaken by a powerful compulsion to create a fifth shelf for my paperback collection. My quartet of Archives Canada solid maple bookshelves all had 4 levels on them and that does seem to be the amount they were designed for. I've known for a while that I could theoretically fit a fifth shelf and I have the boards already finished, but I was never quite sure that it would actually work. The issue being that the gradation between the little pegs that support the shelves is about an inch and I wasn't sure that if in actual practice 5 shelves would actually have enough space to fit books of a paperback size.

Unfortunately, I got so into the job that I completely forgot about taking any pictures until after I was done. As you can see, my theory was correct, unfortunately, I had to segregate out trade paperbacks. Only on the bottom shelf (where I just can't bear to separate my old Parker paperbacks from the new University of Chicago reprints), is there enough space for anything taller than a standard, classic paperback.

I also had to sacrifice my rolepaying games shelf, which was quite a tall one on the bottom. I was quite proud of that, but most of the books on that shelf are for games I'll most likely never play, so I am going to sell a bunch and then consolidated the rest with my (also tall) comic book shelf.

Here are the major advantages that have resulted in my work: 1) I have much more space to grow into, as you can see and 2) all my paperbacks are on the same shelf unit, as opposed to divided across two. So while I am very happy with the change, it isn't without some small regret. Sometimes you need to get tough in order to move forward!