Novel Living: Collecting, Decorating, and Crafting with Books

In a world starved for space with 10-by-10 Tokyo apartments and 282-square-foot tiny houses, why would anyone attempt to find more cubbyholes and corners for physical books -- those things with paper and spines that get dusty and take up precious space? Occhipinti (The Repurposed Library), an artist, responds that books provide "an intimacy that is grounding, and a counterpoint to the swipe of a screen." She provides the means to preserve that connection to the bibliophilic past, with instructions for replacing worn covers and gifting books after preserving and conserving. Suggestions are offered on sourcing and budgeting for a home library. Her ideas for crafting with old volumes are more hit and miss. Books hung on twine or slung on a rod look more huh? than handsome. Covers and pages photocopied onto fabric is more promising: A moveable feast table runner, anyone? Projects are suitable for all skill levels, with detailed directions. (Nov.)