How do you spend your money?

- I spend my money on _______.

1. novel books, poem books, essay books
2. novels, poems, essays.

(In the blank, which ones are suitable, #1 or #2? Thank you.)

#2 because novels are books

2 is correct; 1 is not.

A couple of alternatives for #1, however, are these, but they're awkward:

... books of poems.
... books of essays.

# 2 is better.

It would be better to say:

I spend my money on books which include novels, poems, and essays.

Thank you.

What about storybooks, science books, or history books?

1. I spent my money on story.
2. I spent my money on storybooks.

(Which one do I have to use?)

In this case, #2 is correct.

There are different types of books, of course. Collections that have stories, poems, drama, etc., in them are called anthologies.

Science and history books are usually (but not always) textbooks.

Both options can be suitable, but it depends on how you want to specify the type of books you spend your money on.

Option #1: If you want to be more specific and list out the categories of books individually, then you can use option #1 and fill in the blank with "novel books, poem books, essay books." This indicates that you spend your money on books belonging to these specific categories.

Option #2: If you want to be more general and encompass all types of books within the categories of novels, poems, and essays, then you can use option #2 and fill in the blank with "novels, poems, essays." This suggests that you spend your money on books in general within these broader categories.

Ultimately, the choice between #1 and #2 depends on whether you want to specify the subcategories of the books you spend your money on (#1) or if you prefer to keep it more general and cover all types of books within the given categories (#2).