I’ll Show You Mine if You Show Me Yours Aka The Out of Control TBR (To Be Read)

Books on my TBR on March 1, 2020: 3

Books on my TBR on August 1, 2021: over 400

Yep, that happened. And that TBR, yeah, it keeps growing. It almost seems inevitable that once you discover a genre of books you like, or even an author who's style of writing you love, you’re going to keep finding books that fit that mold. And even some paths that take you down rabbit holes of similar ilk. What I thought was going to be me dipping my toe into the romance novel baby pool when Covid lockdown hit, turned into a cannonball into the deep end. All of a sudden I was getting recommendations from friends of what or who to read next, and it was awesome because the books were keeping me occupied and away from the endless and relentless TV news programs of gloom and doom. Then I joined some Facebook groups and started finding even more recommendations courtesy of the numerous “What Are You Reading Wednesday” posts across FB and IG, as well as the ever popular “Saturday Night with a Book Boyfriend” post in Claire Kingsley’s reader group. My TBR was growing quickly, and there was no doubt I would have plenty to choose from to read for a very extended period of time. But how the hell was I going to remember them all? How would I decide what to read next? How would I keep track of what I’ve already read? I think there are as many answers to that as there are books on my TBR. Well, ok, maybe not that many, but…

After some fruitless and frustrating efforts at making handwritten lists, excel spreadsheets, and Google docs, I finally landed on the perfect solution for my very visual brain. Whenever I find a book or series I want to read, I head over to Amazon to make sure it’s available for Kindle. If it is, I'll take a screenshot of the series or book and add it to the

TBR gallery I created on my phone. If it's available in Kindle Unlimited I'll add it immediately. Because, let’s be real here, I’m more likely to read a book if it’s included in the subscription I’m already paying for. Especially if it's part of a series. I’ll add books that aren’t on KU as well, I just look a little closer at the reviews to see if it’s something I’m truly likely to read. Side note: a review that says, “too much sex” or “too much cursing” will instantly shoot to the top of the TBR. That's it... find it on Amazon, confirm it's available for kindle, screenshot it, add it to the gallery. Woohoo! Simple. Maybe too simple. If it's a series, I screenshot the series page, not the book image, so while the gallery says 250 images, it's probably more like 500 books. Eeeep!

Now that I’ve curated this chaotic, out of control, ever-growing TBR, I get to choose what to read next. There’s no real method, rhyme, or reason for how I do that. Sometimes it’s whatever the first added screenshot is. Sometimes it’s the most recently added screenshot. Sometimes it’s a book or series by a specific author I’m interested in reading. Or a specific trope or genre. Sometimes I swear my TBR is jealous because I finish a book, see an ad for another, and just grab it. Meanwhile my TBR is on my phone throwing its hands in the air, kicking the floor, and storming off. Once I’ve read a book or series in my TBR gallery, I delete the screenshot. Sometimes I even find that same screenshot twice (ok, maybe 3 times) in my gallery. Bonus: that tells me I really did want to read that book or series.

The other side of the TBR is the ARI (already read it). Ummm… did I just make that up? (*off to google, brb*) Okay, that requires further research to confirm or deny the ARI list existence. Anyway, once I’ve read a book or series and deleted it from the screenshot gallery, I add it to by bullet journal list. This is something else that’s gotten out of control. The last few years I barely filled a page. This year… I should have left multiple spreads available. Or I need to slow down my current reading pace. No. Screw that. I’ll add another page somehow. And yes, I keep track of every book in the kindle app as well. But I really like the handwritten ARI bujo list as well. What happens if Kindle hiccups and loses my insights? *internally screaming at the possibility*

I think the most interesting thing about my TBR is that the out of control nature of my TBR is not unique. Almost every other book nerd I’ve asked has an equally out of control TBR. But why? I think it’s because we’re all so eager to share what we love. And I will admit to adding things to my TBR strictly because someone I like recommended it. And not all of the books added are new books. Some were published 10 years ago, and they just have amazing longevity. Then there are the Facebook ads that come up because of another book I read, or an author I searched for, or a group I joined. Or I said banana out loud in my living room and Facebook matched that to a book ad with a banana in it. It is nice to know I’m not alone in my quest to read all the books.

As a knitter, I’ve come to accept that buying yarn and using yarn are two entirely different hobbies. Fellow crafters will back me up here. I think it’s time I accept the book hoarder side of myself and admit that collecting books on my TBR and actually reading those books are two different hobbies as well. And I am entirely okay with that. I mean, what’s the worst that can happen? Well, the worst that can happen is that I stop adding to my TBR and then I have nothing to read. And that ain’t happening. So bring on the never-ending, always-expanding TBR. Maybe my TBR is my personal Winchester House, and if I keep adding to it my literary spirit guides will let me live forever.

Now, it’s your turn. How big is your TBR? And how do you maintain it? I’ll show you mine if you show me yours. Hop over to the BBURR FB page to share your recording and organizing methods, and your TBR photos/screenshots, in the post about TBRs. I may just have something for the person with the most creative storage method or the biggest TBR. (it’s a gift card, get your mind back up in the gutter with the rest of us, please)