I find them great reading.  I don't even know how many I have.  I usually pick them up for less than a dollar or when I see someting on PBS that is specific to what I'm interested in at the time.   Anyone else suffer from this delicious addiction?

Oh yes.  I have far too many cookbooks, but can't seem to part with them.  And there always seems to be room for one more!  Just perusing through them is one of my favorite ways to "waste" time. 

Oddly, though, I have my core of "go-to" recipes that I make over and over again, all tried and true.  So I don't actually attempt to make too many new recipes.  So I'm not exactly sure why I love cookbooks so much.  I just do!

I love browsing through them to allow myself to "think outside the box" about ingredients and preperation methods.  I figure if I buy a cookbook for a dollar or two and I find even a couple recipes or ideas I'm ahead.

OOhhhhhhh, you should see my shelves! I read them like novels, and keep some around to glance through all the time.

It's amazing how often  I'll come across one that didn't appeal so much a couple years ago, but now I find bunches of good recipes! Thankfully DH does not complain; he says he the beneficiary.

There are worse addictions ;-).

I had the same addiction for over twenty years! Trust me, with time you will become more discriminating! I eventually put aside one shelf of favorites; put the rest in boxes and stored them away for several years. After some time had passed, I took out them out and went through them. There were a few I had missed and several were grabbed up by my daughter and daughters-in-law! By then I was a member of paperbackswap and so I posted the rest. Since then, I only pick up ones that seem very special. I find that I use cookbooks now mainly for inspiration. I love the "Beautiful Cookbook" series: Italy: The Beautiful Cookbook, Mexico: The Beautiful Cookbook, China: The Beautiful Cookbook, etc. The photography is exceptional. So keep on feeding your addiction and picking up cookbooks. Hang on to your treasures, but share the rest on pbs!

Oh my goodness!  we just moved and I didn't realize how many cookbooks I had until I started unpacking them!  LOL  I can't help it - I can spend

hours looking through and reading them.  I do occasionally try a new recipe. Nice to know I am not alone.  Of course now I need to look up the

"Beautiful Cookbook" series.  I don't think I have any of those!

I am a cookbook addict as well.  I recently saw a show with Gordon Ramsay where he mentioned he owns something like 3500 cookbooks.  I figure my paltry collection of about 200 is OK. 

The title of this thread is I cannot stop picking up Cookbooks and it's truly literal for me!  This very morning, while out for my daily walk with a friend, I saw someone had put out a pile of books marked "FREE".  So of course I had to look.  And holy cow, they were all cookbooks---beautiful hardcover cookbooks from the Taste of Home and Light Cooking Cooking Light series from Country Woman magazine.  Their annual collections and holiday collections from different years.  My friend was tsk-tsking, but I was drooling, thrilled.  I couldn't resist.  I took six.  It didn't seem right to take all 20.  But I feel I found treasure this morning!!!  Yippee!   

Ooohhh!!  Go back and get the rest!  I have a lot of those on my wish list.

Carole, I did!  I forced myself to wait 24 hours, to give others every opportunity to get some.  But I just went back this morning and got 3 more!!  I am in hog heaven!!  These are keepers for me, I'm sorry (er, happy!!) to say, as they are among my very favorites.   I just can't believe my good luck!

Oh fudge!!  I was hoping to get a couple WLs.  But, hey, I certainly understand and am happy for your good fortune!!

Golly, there are reasons to acquire new (for you) cookbooks!   If one cooks for DECADES, as I have, you can't just do the same old things over and over and over.  That's one good reason to try new (to you) recipes.  Besides, if you want to keep challenging your brain ("anti-Alzheimer's tactics, y'know) this is one good way to do it.   Reason two: I have a granddaughter of whom I am so fond, and proud, who became a vegan some years ago.  I used to worry, at first, about her getting enough protein, but she is "healthy as a horse" and I have learned how to prepare tasty and nutritious vegetarian dishes.  I hope to see her graduate from Med School next spring.

One thing I didn't used to know about was stir-fries, but they are great, and they use some of my personal favorite ingredients, such as vari-colored peppers.  Here, the grocery puts a red, a yellow, and a green pepper in a package and sells it as "Stoplight Peppers".   And this summer I've been learning more about the use of fresh herbs, since I took a "subscription" to get a basket of "stuff" weekly from a local farmer.   For instance, there is a lovely green mayonnaise with chives, dill, etc. in it that goes so nicely with salmon.   And most men really like bruschetta, when the tomato season rolls round (and fresh basil smells so wonderful, too!)

Consolation prize for me, I got Taste Of Home 2008 in the mail today thanks to my wish list.  Still looking for more though.

Bonnie, same here.  I just get tired of the same things and have to have a fresh idea.