If books threaten the order of your apartment life, you’re not alone. The people who love books (and that means “purchase books”) make up a somewhat small group of fanatics, and when you’ve been in their living rooms you’ve noticed a library-like ambience that is unmistakable.

As you probably know, most book storage systems aren’t sized right for an apartment, especially a studio apartment. But there are a couple of winners and one in particular is a real stand-out. I found this one at the Design Within Reach website. The Sapien bookcase was designed by Bruno Rainaldi and the “short” version allows you to stack 50 books inside of a footprint that is 13.5” wide (though I think of my largest book on the bottom as being the real footprint because a really big book would hide the base.) I think Bruno must have lived in a studio at one point, and his solution is perfection.

I’ve seen this thing in action, and it’s very cool. The short one costs about $200, but if you buy more than one, they’re $175 apiece. And it’s beautiful to see all stacked up….somehow it brings an orderly and intriguing perspective to the notion of a “stack.” In a studio apartment, you could put a couple of them side by side and they could kind of function as a room divider.

The best part? Your small apartment will feel bigger and neater immediately – maybe you don’t need a two-bedroom apartment after all! So if you're looking for a studio apartment, start here: Studio Apartments for Rent in Los Angeles