apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I keep them, but love the idea of leaving them places for others to enjoy. Our stack of books usually come from the thrift store. It's interesting to see which portions of the book are worn out and read over and over by someone else.

I think home libraries are the next big bathroom.

always donate or leave somewhere when I'm done (such as on a plane or friends house when I travel) if I'm not going to read again or don't just love.

I still have about 14 shelving units full though...but I do try to limit what I bring in and have a one in-one out policy (good for everything really in a smaller space)

I can't bring myself to get rid of a book. The thought of ever trashing a book makes me cringe. Even though I have more books than I can handle, I always linger at bookshelves and buy, buy, buy. If I could display them in a decorative way, I might not feel so guilty. But, if you must make space, lending, exchanging, donating and leaving is the best way to give an old book a new home.

I've been donating the books but its hard. Also Im trying to be more green and go the Kindle route so I don't have to deal with to keep and what to part with

like julieM ... i was contemplating getting a kindle so that way i could free up my bookshelves but then i think, what if i liked the book and i want my own copy but then what would i do with my own copy, read it again?? so i'm starting to slowly getting rid of books (of course donating them) and i do have a hard time parting with them. some books i haven't even opened. do i keep those or what do i keep them for? i love forsenics and so i have tons of those books because they are interesting to me but then i wonder, how long will they interest me and when should i get rid of them. some of the books have the same material. is that a sign that maybe i should stop collecting??

Sadly, I just do not have the space for all the books I had and have. I have kept many and many are still in the hallway closet and had them in storage boxes. I don't have space for lots of book shelves and I don't like the look of clutter. I really weeded through and donated, gave to friends and sold at my local used bookstore. I had to ask myself why do I need to lug these around especially the ones I read. Now saying that I forgot the authors and the names of many of the books I enjoyed. So for those that read a lot and don't keep them laying around keep a log of what you read. My mother in law use to do this with movies, something I wish I started.

I donate the ones that I don't really need to my local public library. Three times a year they have a killer book sale so they go to good use. I try and limit my books to 3 4' high bookshelves so when they're full I need to weed some out so I have space for new ones.

I'm a big fan of BookMooch.com (I know there are other sites that do the same think, but this is the one I use). Basically, you keep an inventory of books that you have that you're willing to part with, which other members "mooch" from you. You have to pay the shipping to mail them out (usually about $2 with media mail), but you get a point for each book you send. You also keep a list of books you want, and the site alerts you when one comes available; then you just use one of your points to request that.

Obviously, if you're just trying to purge, this would end up being too expensive to be worthwhile. It was a godsend to me though, because I had a ton to get rid of, but also wanted to stock my classroom library with the coolest, most interesting books for 9th graders. Plus, I really like the idea of giving a book to someone whom I know actually wants to read it. I feel like most books donated to Goodwill et al. probably just sit there unread for months or years.

check out www.paperbackswap.com - at least you know your book will go to someone else who would like to read it, and you can swap them for books you want to read, then swap them back into the pool. it's free for now - only have to pay for postage to send the book to someone else.

the only bummer is that the current pool of users tend to list really popular books, romances and mysteries, so it's harder to find rarer books there. but, I've had no problem requesting and "recycling" a NYT bestseller to someone else after I'm done!

i keep my books for the most part, but having moved twice in the past year - i'm starting to think about getting rid of the ones i'm not super attachted to. we'll see.
on a side note - a friend of mine was recently do a purge of his books and did some research on where best to donate them and apparently, prison libraries are terribly understocked and outdated. so - if you're looking to get rid of yours, that's something to consider.

i stick them in the lobby of my building for neighbors. been working on my mom. she really has an aversion to mistreating or disposing of books.

I keep only the ones that have meaning for me or that I love to re-read - the rest I put up for swapping at bookmooch.

When I get too many to handle, I start going through the paperbacks. I can't part with hardbacks. But, I'll take some paperbacks to Goodwill (where I get some of mine) or donate them other places.

Luckily, I am able to accomodate all the books I now have. And, I move frequently, but lug the boxes of books around with me. I can't help it.

To me, books represent so much more than just a thing to read. I think of the time the author spent writing it and the artists that create the cover art, the typefaces, the design. And, the ideas and stories between the covers. Some better than others, to be sure, but they almost all capture my imagination.

I do go back to my books and re-read. I sometimes forget what books I have, and I'll look at my bookshelves and pick a book out and maybe I read it years ago and my memory of it is fuzzy, so I read it again. It's like having a library in my own home.

As an avid bookworm and audiophile, one day I also realized the tons of books and cds I had. They weren't going to fit in my new place, and the financial cost of moving and storing them, as well as what it cost to buy them was overwhelming.

I inventoried everything and used the limitation of one bookshelf to nail down to the must haves that I enjoy reading over and over again. I sold some of the cds, and donated the rest to the public library.

Now, I wander bookstores and Amazon for new ideas of books I want to read, and then reserve at the library. They send to my closest branch, and I make sure to logon to the renewal site every 3 weeks to renew so I don't get pinged with late fees.

I use rhapsody for the music collection now, buying only the music I truly love.

i keep all of my books. the only books that haven't made the cut are textbooks from college that didn't pertain to my major.

but i must say i am not a true bibliophile - i try to only buy books i love. i buy novels, but borrow things like how-to, self-help, and other things i know i won't enjoy more than once.

I used to hang on to all my books and proudly display them for all to see. But after a couple of cross-country moves, a move abroad and then another back again, I've had to whittle my collection down to my all-time favorites or out-of prints. I limit myself to 2 shelves in a Billy bookcase.

Now, when I buy, read and finish one. I donate it to a friend or leave it somewhere if traveling. I also leave a box full of books out on the street twice a year. It's great fun watching others go through them from and finding unexpected treasures.

Like others, I'm strongly considering the Kindle. This seems more eco-chic as well.

I think I'm going to start taking certain books with me on vacation...
...and leaving them there.

I can't help keeping them. The books I have read are the person I am. Plus, I have a fantasy that someday I'll have a library with floor-to-ceiling built ins.

I purchase and donate at the Salvation Army...

I keep my favorites. I give away books I don't want to keep by leaving them on the "free" table in the lobby of my apartment building. If no one takes them, they go in the recycling bin.

Funny timing -- my kitchen counter is covered w/books. Sending them (along with the DVDs I don't care about) to soldiers serving in Afghanistan or Iraq (via http://anysoldier.org) finally got me to take the plunge & clear 'em out.

There's an age thing going on too. Back in my student days, I could never imagine getting rid of a book. Now there are things on my shelf about which I think "I haven't read this book in the 40 years I've owned it, what's the likelihood I ever will...."

But heavens, one should never ever just toss. Library, thrift shop, bookmooch....

I had such a hard time departing my book collection when I was decorating my apt. Now I only keep two bookcases around my apt and once it is full, I get rid of 2-for-1... so it does not look cluttered..

It was not a problem when I used to live in Istanbul, I used to take it to our summer house for guests to enjoy it but now living in NYC gave me no choice but give away some of my books..

I'm shamed to say I have tossed books. The desperation resulting from not being able to afford much double rent or movers mostly cured my book hoarding during my last move.

I say mostly because I need to move again and have spent an embarrassing amount of time shifting some of my home decor, craft, and pop up books between out boxes and moving boxes.

PS, if you love books, be sure to watch the tour of Nicholas Basbanes' home library on Cspan booktv (authors on writing section). I think I'll live vicariously through his library for now on :) The fact that I'm anxiously waiting for the 2010 release of his book about paper does not at all indicate I'm falling off the wagon.

i love bookmooch - it's the best, and i've gotten a few school textbooks from there for almost free... totally awesome.

I've never thrown in the recycle bin a book that was not damaged beyond read-ability. I have a few authors that I keep full series of, I always keep good reference and non-fiction (language books, travel guides, forensic science books etc) and a few classics/favorites that aren't part of a group. All the other average fiction paperbacks get traded to friends and coworkers. Once when moving though, one of the moving guys commented on my having a nice collection of books and mentioned his family liked to share books of that genre; I walked to the closet and handed him a sack FULL of books, maybe 30 or so. Made his day.
You never know who might enjoy your old paperbacks, schools are almost always in need (try direct to a teacher of an appropriate grade rather than the library), homeless shelters and homeless people in your neighborhood, Scout groups, etc.

After years and years in school, I've lost any sentimental feeling I might've once had about books. Nearly all of mine are paperback, scholarly in nature, and not particularly beautiful in and of themselves. I regularly weed out my collection, as do most academics I know. Otherwise I'd be buried.

My department recently got a new building, and the faculty has left what is probably a metric ton of unwanted books in the old building. I was tempted to browse through the piles last time I was there, but remembered the sagging shelves I have at home and refrained.

Oh, and I try to sell, give away or donate them whenever possible. If worse comes to worse, I'll leave them in a neat stack in a public area in my apartment building. Even surprisingly esoteric titles will disappear.

Oh, please. There's nothing the least bit sacred about books as objects (and I'm a librarian). Just box up those suckers & donate to Better World Books (http://www.betterworldbooks.com). You'll feel better for it all 'round!

I second (third?) bookmooch. It's a great way to cycle books out into the world. I also have a giveaway table outside my office, which I use for lots of stuff, not just books. If something stays for more than a few weeks, I just take drop it at Salvation Army.

I purged books earlier this summer and made a couple hundred bucks selling them to abebooks.com. You enter ISBNs on their website, they give you quotes, you pack up the ones you opt to sell and slap on a pre-paid label. It was impossible to predict which books would be worth something , but that actually made it kind of fun -- like scratching lottery tickets.

Those that I don't have a serious emotional attachment to, or cannot sell/donate, I rip to shreds and use in art projects. They're good for decoupaging all sorts of stuff (I'm working on a computer desk covered in various pages right now). I also draw on book pages. I like the depth that the text gives the images when I'm finished.

I keep a lot - but I move a lot on to new homes, too. There are many ways to do that; see http://jdorganizer.blogspot.com/2007/07/10-ways-to-find-new-homes-for-your.html for twelve ideas (10 in the original post, plus two more added later).

I collect beautiful books, antique books, out-of-print books that I enjoyed, and nature/art/reference books (I'm an artist, and not all visual reference can be found on a computer).

Novels? I have a Rocket eBook for that, it's been my faithful library device for the last 7 years, and I love it. I keep all the novel files on my computer, and download the ones I want to read, or re-read, onto the device. That way there is no clutter of once-read novels to throw away!

The only novels I have paper copies of, are the ones that either friends gave me, or ones I liked so much that I bought a paper copy, because I wanted to be able to share with friends who do not have eBook devices.

I absolutely recommend eBooks, they'll change your reading life - for the better and less cluttered. :)

former english major here: I purged a lot of it. There are some I can't part with - potential for rereading, great notes in the margins, etc - but there are others that will forever lurk at the bottom of the bookcase.

if you get over the sentimentality associated with books, you realize it's just more crap you have to dust.

bookmooch.com!!!!!!

Swaptree.com. LOVE IT!

We have book overload and no one in the house can stand to part with them, and no wall space for bookshelves are everywhere! More and more come and and even though they don't know it we have a one in three out program at work here!!! Every time we go to the library I take two or three and donate them - no one notices!!! But was is surprising to them is that there is always room for the books they buy!

Basically if it is not loved and adored it goes... if I can't decide it stays... later on a decision will come!

Get rid of them to charity shops. When my husband and I downsized we could not cope with our books. they were everywhere. It has taken years just to get on top of them. Unless you have the space be ruthless. I get rid of at least 20 books a month and we still have too many.

After several moves where the boxes never got unpacked, I started selling them on Amazon. It's easy and it feels really good to let go. They don't sell for much, but it's surprising how it adds up over time. I've made about $60 this month and my inventory is quickly dwindling. It feels really good to be free of them. I'm down to a small shelf of favorites and signed copies. I'm done buying books. I've taken a lot of joy in rediscovering the library and it's nice to return the books when I'm done reading rather then trying to find shelf space.

I donate my books (paperbacks mostly) to The Book Thing in Baltimore. Of course, when I go there I usually end up bringing back a few! I don't mind too much as long as I can swap a mediocre paperback for a stack of vintage National Geographics.

I use paperbackswap.com or I donate to my town's literacy association's annual book sale (I also go and buy tons of new books there, so it really just perpetuates the problem!). I also donate to the resale shop that helps fund an organization I'm a part of. I used to really cling to books, but I'm learning (slowly) to separate myself from the ones that I know I'm never going to revisit.

I second Cheryl K's comment: The Book Thing is great! I had to make myself a rule though--I can't take any more books home with me than I donated that day! Check it out here: http://www.bookthing.org/

This week alone I took my unwanted books to a carboot sale (flea market/stoop sale) and only sold one, then I took them to a friend of mines 2nd hand book shop and he could only take a few because it was costing him to dispose of unwanted/ unsellable books (€150) the previous week.

I've just got a box left. I remember stumbling across a book that had a note (or something like that) in it saying that if you found it, read it, and pass it on when you're finished. I'm tempted to do that with the last of mine and leave them in random coffe houses etc. In fact, it would be interesting to put in a contact email to see if it travels around the world...

getting rid of books gets easier once you begin to do it. When I moved cross-country, there was no way that I could take all of them. And I find that I don't really miss the books I let go of. Consider starting slowly -- leave for neighbors, donate to charities, sell at used bookstores. Remind yourself that you're making room for new books. Also, I recently put a big Bonde bookcase in my large clothing closet. Most of my books fit on it and I don't feel overwhelmed by clutter since I can close the doors and not see stacks of books.