But love is not a constant, Al's analytical mind supplied, yet he knew better than to supply an argument where it would not be appreciated. "I'm here," he merely said, stating a simple fact.
"They need to remain in separate stacks, and sorted in alphabetical order, first by author's surname, then by title," Al reminded mum. "Except in special cases when there are multiple authors, or none, then it's easier to reference by publisher instead." He considered it further. "They also form a rather comfortably-shaped sofa at the moment, so there's no urgent need to move them."
He turned to mum. "I can ask Roxanne and Uncle George whether they prefer a sofa or an empty wall, if you'd like."