Having a library in your home is suddenly coveted in these uncertain times. Not for reading, idiot—we either do that online or don't do it at all. Instead, they're womblike, comfortable "memory rooms," says the WSJ. The new home libraries are places where books look great as decorations:

"Reading rates are down and Americans say they love casual living. And yet, one of the most popular rooms in big new houses is a library. Rather than being about books, their appeal is often about creating a certain ambiance... What can make libraries more soothing than other formal rooms isn't so much books but the framed family photographs, awards and mementos that share the shelves and define a family's interests and identity, says McLean, Va., architect Chris Lessard. "They're memory rooms," he says. ...Tucson, Ariz., interior designer Terri Taylor says she spends a lot of time scouring flea markets and bookstores for books with fancy bindings for her clients' bookshelves. She selects books to match color schemes rather than for their content. She once was ecstatic to find a stash of beautiful, leather-bound books at the bargain price of $20 apiece — never mind that they were written in German, a language her clients didn't read. "I bought cases of them," she says."

And that, friends, is the future of the publishing industry. [WSJ]