Our shelves currently (after a massive clear-out)
As I’ve mentioned, I’m in California right now staying at our family’s holiday home. Between the swimming and the hiking and the general relaxing I have, naturally, had lots of time for reading and lots of time to consider our collection of books.
There is a certain uniformity to the oddness of any holiday home’s book collection and ours in no exception. Which lead me to some musings on how that comes about…
1. Ideally, begin by inheriting a collection of books. These should be books on topics you have absolutely no interest in, primarily published during an era you have no interest in, and take up lots and lots of space on the bookshelf, leaving you little space for your own books.
2. Accumulate books abandoned by guests. Because you are a generous sort of person, you invite friends to visit you. Hopefully these are friends are literate and bring their own books. However, even literate people chose ridiculous things to read on holiday and, once done, generally realise how ridiculous their choice was and so abandon it with you before they go home. Watch your library grow with bad thrillers, mysteries, and other airport books in this deeply unsatisfying manner.
3. Watch your favourite books disappear. The majority of guests won’t bring enough books to last the length of their holiday. If they had to fly to reach your place, they will inevitably need something to read on the flight home. Equally inevitably, they will not pick something as trashy as what they contributed to your library. No, they will pick one of the books you have carefully snuck into the shelves to ensure you have something to read.
4. Absorb the tastes of your family members. Odds are, your close family are your most frequent visitors. If one of them is a book-lover, be prepared for their tastes to begin to dominate your collection. For some people (ahem), vacations are a wonderful time to browse bookstores and rejoice over library book sales. You will inevitably be gifted books as a result of these. Pray that your tastes align with your family member’s and hope for the best.
5. Get rid of nothing. You are on holiday when you are here, why would you want to spend that time sorting out books instead of reading them or doing vacation-y things? A clear out every fifteen to twenty years is permissible.
Our shelves pre-clear-out – more soapy sagas, American bios, and books on early 1990s Russia
The Captive Reader 
I loved this, having recently rented a house with a small but wonderful collection of books. I was tempted to steal one particularly interesting old book I’d never heard of before and had not finished and replace it with something lamer — but I resisted!
Excellent restraint!
I confess that I started reading Patriot Games (out of desperation) at a holiday home and regretted not stealing it for the trip home because I was in deep suspense. 🙂 But I think your suggestions are perfect!
It’s a difficult thing to do, isn’t it? I’ve definitely struggled with that as a guest, too.
Well, I read this a day or two late, but I must comment. Holiday home? As in Family Cottage? Okay. My partner’s cottage has been in his family since 1930, so there are some very very interesting books there. We never get rid of them. Masses of nature info and camp lore. Bird books, plant books, tree books, star books. Plus old kid books from the 1950s. And, bonus, because his parents were serious lefties (dare I say the C word?), some really really intriguing political books from the 1940s. Plus old editions of Wodehouse and Christie and GDH & Margaret Cole. etc. And a Doonsbury Treasury. Plus my second copy of The Blue Castle, by LMM, so I have one in both the city AND the country.
That sounds like a gem of a cottage library, Susan! Definitely no shortage of things to keep you entertained on rainy days.
I’m glad you didn’t cull James Herriot!
Never! Especially as one of the library’s main visitors (my brother) is a vet himself!
Very funny 😀
Though I’m always surprised by those people who have space for inspiration in their holiday reading – as mine is, of course, rigorously planned!
You just need to take longer holidays, Simon! I agree a weekend or other short trip requires rigorous planning around reading material. But a nice long 10 day or 2 week trip allows for a lot more flexibility – and that is perhaps one of the many reasons why longer holidays are much better for you!