Today’s New York Times had an article about how decorators are using books in their interiors, doing things such as putting several shelves of old books with their pages facing out, bundling old coverless books a la Restoration Hardware, and covering all books exactly the same. 
One of the interesting comments was that clients want their books written in English, because as Alexa Hampton said “Now they want books they actually might read.” (Emphasis mine!)
I actually don’t mind the way the books above are covered, since you can actually see the titles… Or the alleged title, since mention was made of covering old Danielle Steele books for a library!
As a committed book lover, I always have a hard time with the concepts of either books facing “spine in” or covering all of the books in identical paper or in a design that gives no indication of what book it’s covering.
Funnily enough, the article talked about Restoration Hardware discontinuing the book bundles because of the ridicule from bloggers. Count me in as one of the hecklers, here!
I don’t have any objection to a decorator assembling a collection, such as the one above for a house in Wyoming or Montana. 
But I do agree with the comment that if you’re going to have rows of law or medical books, perhaps it might be more credulous if you were a doctor or a lawyer.
Books have always been such a major part of my life and so it’s anathema for me to see books solely as a decorative element, and not something to be read and treasured.
What are your thoughts on this?
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