The ever growing TBR pile! Bookworms are forever being haunted by the mound of books they WANT to read, versus the mound that they already own and NEED to read. I have decided to jot down a few tips to help organize our TBR piles, in an effort to reduce the size of my own stack of to be read books. First and foremost, let’s discuss what TBR stands for:
TBR: Is an abbreviation for the phrase To Be Read. It can be one of two things.
One: A list of books that you already own and therefore really should read. Personally, this is what I think of when I refer to my TBR pile.
Two: A list of books that you have in mind to read in the future but have not acquired yet and will most likely stay on your “TBR” for a good long while. I might refer to this as more of a TBR list than a pile. A list feels like something that is not tangible, where a pile is like that giant PILE of dirty laundry that has been staring at you for the last 2 weeks begging to be washed. Disclaimer: please do not wash your books!
If you are wanting to expand your Bookstagram lingo even more you might be interested in my Bookstagram Lingo Guide too.
There is no one Right way to organize your TBR piles but here are a few options that you might want to try out.
Creating a separate Shelf or Book Case
Depending on how large your stack of unread books is, and there is no judgment here, you can create a shelf or an entire bookcase of unread books that are still on your TBR. This provides a separate organized space to easily find what books you own and still need to read. This is probably the best option for bookworms who like to keep their reading space looking clean and ordered.
There are other options for keeping your TBR books separate from your already read books, but they tend to provide a “wild and free” atmosphere to your space. It all depends on the vibe you are trying to create. I would recommend clearing out a separate space on your bookshelves for your TBR if you like your reading space to evoke a clean and orderly aesthetic that puts the entire focus of the room on the books lining your shelves.
Creating a separate space NOT on your Bookshelves
This will essentially provide the same level of organization that you would find by creating a separate space on your bookcase, but this will evoke a freer and slightly more chaotic aesthetic. Think Eve’s room in Only Lovers Left Alive. Honestly, I always strive to create this whimsical aesthetic. I imagine adventurous librarians like Evie from The Mummy would thrive in chaotically organized spaces such as these. Alas, my space always ends up looking messy rather than romantically chaotic.
There are always ways to create a combination of chaotic romantic book piles casually strewn around your floors, and slightly organized but still free spirited piles that are strategically placed in areas of your room as well. This organization system will require a lot of experimenting and hefting your books from one corner of the room to the next. Your main goal is to just have a separate pile, away from your bookcases, to store your TBR books.
Some of my favorite ideas for decorating with a pile of books include:
Fireplace mantle
Under a Window
Inside a dresser (Total Rory vibes)
Bedside Table
Piled beside your bookcase
Creating a design from your TBR books
This one requires an artistic eye, but I have faith that if you really want to create a fun shape with your books than it can be done. If you are deciding to organize your TBR books in this way you are presumably wanting to use them as a piece of décor in your design aesthetic. The first thing you will need to do is find the perfect space to properly showcase your design. Once you have found an area that will work for your TBR and your design plan you can then experiment with shapes. Some ideas to try are:
Varying heights
Making use of stacking your books vertically and horizontally
Color blocking your stack
Creating triangular shapes
Turning your books around on your shelf
You can choose to either turn the books you have already read, or the books that you have not read around so that the spine of the book is facing the inside of the bookcase and the pages of the book will face the outside. You might want to pick which ever has the least amount to turn around so that you can still see all of the pretty colors on the spines.
Remember, no judgment here! If your TBR stack is more than your already read stack you just keep on keeping on.You can turn picking out your next book to read into a game if you turn the books you have not read around on your book case. This way you are choosing your next read blindly, and whatever you randomly pick will be your next book. I won’t hold you to that decision if you want to put your first pick back and try again though.
Keeping your TBR books with your Already read books
This is currently how I am choosing to organize my books. When covid started and bookstores closed I felt a deep need to physically shop for books. I’m not used to going more than a week without stepping into a bookstore! (I work in a bookstore, but still!) I decided to combine my TBR books with my already read books instead of keeping them separate because I felt like I could pretend to shop through my own collection.
Honestly, I highly recommend you try this! It tricks your mind into thinking you are getting new books because you have to go looking through the books you have already read until you find what you want. DID I JUST SOLVE THE BOOK HOARDERS CRISES HERE?!?!?
No, I’m sure I didn’t. Let’s not go crazy here! We all still need to buy all the pretty books. This is an alternative when you can’t physically go shopping though, or if you want all of your books categorized in their proper places. Whether you organize your bookshelf by color or by genre, it’s sometimes nice to have all of your books categorized where you want them whether you have read them or not.
Using a Book Cart
Book carts are the next best invention after ketchup! And let me just tell you, I love ketchup. Book carts allow for you to keep your books organized in a separate location from your already read books while still keeping them tidy if you are not a fan of floor stacks. Carts are also portable so they allow you to move them as you see fit.
I would highly recommend taking advantage of book carts on days you have off and plan to spend the entire day reading! You can keep books, snacks, your computer, extra bookmarks, etc… all in one place so you never have to leave the couch! This is the definition of a perfect day is it not?
Here are a couple cute book cart options:
How to keep track of the books you have read and still want to read?
Now that we have discussed the different physical ways that we can organize our TBR, let’s discuss some ways to keep track of EVERY book we have ever read or want to read. It can sound like a daunting task! Personally, I like keeping track of my books on GoodReads. GoodReads provides almost every book known to mankind, and indie authors have the ability to add in their books easily. A part from setting Yearly Goals, the app also allows you to create lists. You can have a list for books you have already read, want to read, books about magic, books with sexy villains…The options are endless.
Goodreads also has a feature that will allow you to scan the barcode of a book. This is the easiest and fastest way to keep track of books that you see in stores that you MUST have. Rather than type the title out all you have to do is take a picture and the book is added into your “library”.
If Goodreads isn’t your thing you could also try Storygraph.
This one isn’t as interactive as Goodreads in terms of connecting with other people on the app, but it is great for writing reviews and receiving book recommendations. First! You can rate a book anything you like on Storygraph, that means a 3.87 is an option. I love this feature! I’m not always a fan of rating books with stars or numbers, but if I have to make a rating, I prefer to have the flexibility to rate it exactly what I want, rather than estimating the rating to the closest star.
The site also customizes book recommendations based on how you categorize books with your reviews. They also provide a survey to provide an even more customized experience for book recommendations.
If you enjoy the process of creating lists yourself a great option for keeping track of your yearly reading and TBR is with a Reading Planner.
@Littleinklingdesign makes my favorite Reading planners. Megan (she shares a name with me) creates the planners to allow for your personal creativity to shine. Artists will love coloring in the pages, customizing the TBR lists with cute designs, and filling in the bookcase pages with your own book spine designs. Honestly, this is a great way to set aside some self-care time as well. If you have the ability to set 20 minutes a day to organize your reading journal and spend time making it entirely your own, by the end of that time you have an aesthetically pleasing planner and will probably feel energized to tackle your next book.
It is important to note that you do not have to have artistic capabilities to use this planner though! I have zero skills when it comes to putting color and design on paper, but I still love using my planner for my TBR. My planner is definitely not aesthetically pleasing, but I still love it.
There are endless possibilities for organizing our TBR and libraries but there is one universal truth concerning your TBR…it will never be completed. And that’s how it should be! I have secret desires to be one of those mythical readers that are able to only buy one book at a time and actually FINISH reading said book before purchasing their next book but alas, that is not for me. I am a book hoarder and I’m proud of it! I have about 35 books on my TBR list to read THAT HAVE NOT EVEN BEEN PUBLISHED YET.
All this to say, own your giant TBR piles and I would love to see how you keep your TBR organized, or if you implement any of these ideas! Send me pics through my Instagram and I will share them in my stories!!!
