by Christopher Browne, exclusively for Property Secrets

I've got a serious bookshelf habit. I swoon each time I see a new wall-unit or some smart-looking shelves at a friend's house. I just love their solid wooden craftsmanship and the way they can turn a bedroom into a reading room and a study into a personal library.

I had an attack of bookshelfitis the other day when I stared at the mounting pile of dictionaries and reference books on my desk. I remembered the small, dark-stained bookcase I made during carpentry classes at school. It was neat, discreet, held nine or 10 books and would fit snugly between my desk-top computer and printer.

But hard as I tried I couldn't recall where I'd put it. Though I had a vague recollection of seeing it on a sideboard at Browne Towers. I did a ring-round of my tenants but none of them had spotted it either. How disappointing I thought as I pondered that rising pile of books.

Then a pair of tenants who'd recently moved into a ground-floor apartment phoned and said they'd been using an old wooden rack to store a few leaflets and a spare set of keys. Would I like to come over and check it out.