Aussie Readers discussion

Having spent some time on the weekend going through my bookshelves (and some long unpacked boxes in the garage from moving house 2 years ago), I was struck how books are such dust magnets. I was also struck by if left unopened or untouched for a while, how they pick up that musty smell we are so familiar with from secondhand bookshops.
So it got me wondering - how should we care for the books in our possession, that we have undoubtedly spent time, money and love upon? How to dust or clean them without damaging them? Do people have any tips or ideas? Or is this just the nature of things?

My books don't get that musty smell but I know what you're talking about...I actually have my bookshelf next to a window and I let it get air into the room every so often....However, the window happens to be under a deck so I'm not worried about rain/wind damaging the books.

I know comic collectors use a certain type of paper (some sort) which they slip into the pages to stop the smell.

Dusting..I just use a very soft cloth.

I scrummage along the top of my books with a feather duster but should probably be more dilligent in taking them off the shelves from time to time and give them the once over. However so many books and so little time and I am a somewhat reluctant but timely doer of housework - when I am not working I would much rather be in the garden or on the beach with the Jack Rascal.
Still now that spring is on its way - although today here in SW Victoria you would be forgiven for thinking it was winter again - doors and windows will be open and letting in the breeze.

I wash my hands before sitting down to read for any length of time so I don't get those yucky sweaty thumb-prints on the pages.

A little bit OCD.

Liam wrote: "I wash my hands before sitting down to read for any length of time so I don't get those yucky sweaty thumb-prints on the pages.

A little bit OCD."

Just a tad OCD - but very respectful of books :)

I kind of like the way books age. It gives them character. That said, they sure do collect dust! Every so often I go over them with a duster of some kind. I dust the tops, the spines and the shelf and anywhere else I see a problem. I've used compressed air before, too, but mostly due to laziness. It had no discernable advantage over regular dusting.

To get rid of that dusty/musty smell — which I hate — when I dust my books, I give the paper edges on all three sides a light spray with linen spray. It dries out quickly and leaves the books with a nice clean smell.

When my family was renting a smaller place whilst our house was under construction a few years ago I had to move most of my books into boxes and store them in my Nonna's shed. I remember the first thing I did in my (then) new room was unpack those boxes, and I can recall being so surprised with that strong musty smell that had been built up. That musty smell mixed with fresh paint was oddly pleasant though. I can still smell it :')

Not sure about suggestions to take proper care of them, most of mine are pretty good anyway. I've always thought that the worse condition a book is in, the more love it has had. My copy of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix has had it. I've almost read it to death.

My father, who was a bookseller for many years, has always said that the best way to care for hardcover books is to take them off the shelf and bang them together to remove the dust. Of course, this can be a bit more damaging to paperbacks, but that never stopped us when I was a kid and he used to give me pocket money for dusting his books this way. As for me, I usually give my books a dust once a week with a special dusting mitt that picks up the dust rather than just moving it around.

I once read it isn't good for hardcover books to keep them opened for a long time. But I think it's obvious.