Why I Need a Book-Buying Ban

I love books. I mean, you have to know that, right? After all, I have a whole blog dedicated to books. There's also a good chance you came from the bookstagram account I co-run with my sister, so you would also know how much I talk about books over there. (It is a bookstagram.) And there definitely isn't anything wrong with liking books. My mom actually said recently that she's glad I'd rather buy books than some other stuff kids my age want, whatever that may be.

Except there's a problem with liking books too much: You end up buying a lot of them.

Sure, I don't have as many books as others do. I've seen people dedicate three or four shelves just for their TBR books. But I still have over 20, a number that makes Em, someone who practically finishes a book days after buying it, shudder and shake her head.

And now I've begun to shake my head, too.

Yes, having a lot of books gives me options when it's time to pick a new one to read. Even if I'm not feeling like a particular book at the moment, I still have plenty to choose from. But how often do I actually choose a book that I own?

School's starting up again soon, and I hardly get the chance to read the books I want to read during the school year. Why? Well, even though we have to read certain books in class, my school also requires us to read other books independently. This would be the perfect opportunity for me to read the books I own that I actually want to read, except my school uses a certain reading program. And, unfortunately for me, the books I want to read aren't usually on the program. (Yayy...)

And even if I somehow manage to read one book I own in a month or two, it doesn't make up for the two or three books I'm bound to buy. Therefore, even though it breaks my heart to say it, I think I finally need to go on a book-buying ban.

Details of My Book-Buying Ban:

• If, for some reason, I need to buy a book for school (excluding independent reading books), I am allowed to do so.
• I can still browse and look at books if I'd like to. There's no harm in just looking, right? (There absolutely is, because there's a possibility that I won't be able to control myself and I'll just impulsively buy a book, but let's not worry about that, okay?)
• During my book-buying ban, I will try to read some of the books that I own but have not read. 
• The ban will be dropped once I've finished reading a few of my books, or, more realistically, until I break and buy a book. (Because let's admit it: I'm probably going to find some way around this ban.)

But, I'm going to see what happens. My prediction is that I'll break after a month or so, or whenever I'm offered to go to a Barnes & Noble. (How could you go and not get a book?) My other guess is that there's an old Nancy Drew book somewhere and I just have to get it.

Oh, well. I guess only time will tell! Have you ever been on a book-buying ban? And if so, were you successful?