This past summer we had lots of repairs done to the house and now I am spending my time sorting through 45+ years of book collecting rather than just putting them back to where they came from. I don't find parting with "stuff" easy so that is one hurdle I have to get over but books that I have enjoyed, even cherished, are so hard to part with.
Have any of you managed to do this? What did you do with the books? I really can't just put them in the recycling.

 

Catherine, we donate any books we've read and don't want to the local library. They are happy to get them!

 

For whatever reason I've never become attached to books. We have one bookcase in the basement with books that Rick plans to re-read. I used to buy paperback books from a used book store, turn them in for credit when I read them and buy the next batch of used books at the discounted price. That certainly eliminated the "what should I do" with the books. Now I have a Kindle

PS I have a few kids' story books that I read over the years with the grandchildren. When I cleaned out their toys, they had favorites they wanted me to keep. So I did.

 

I had not thought of the library. I'll give them a call. Better still I have a friend who volunteers in her local library, I'll ask her.

I wish we had parted with the books so that the problem would not be so big! I don't have a kindle. I really like the feel of books, the ink on the paper etc.

 

We donate old books to the library as well. They "recycle" them, by putting them out on a regular basis, for sale. They then use the money from the books to help balance their budget. It does work well.

 

When it comes to books about sports cars and sports car racing, I too have been collecting them for 50 or 60 years. I can't part with them. Heck I even have 'special' magazines that are meaningful that I've saved. I still use them for reference and enjoy just having them nearby in my own little library down in the MG garage. Some are rare and valuable, others not at all. Dosen't matter, they have meaning to me.

 

I keep books I loved reading and have read more than once. I've dropped off boxes of books at the "Friends of the Library" door. Lake Forest, CA has a library with a separate volunteer run resale shop, attached to the library. I still have my college Physics, calculus/math, astronomy and weather books. They don't take up much space. I don't look at them but they were so important for a few years that I want them like a security blanket I no longer need.

 

Here is a list of what is NOT accepted at our county library. Might be true at yours, also.

• Books that are moldy, mildewed, food-stained, heavily highlighted, or falling apart. Materials previously stored in basements or garages need special checking. If they smell, they can’t sell.
• Most magazines more than a year old (or three months old for weekly magazines). Exceptions: We do accept back copies of Architectural Digest, Bon Appetite, Gourmet or other cooking magazines, and all magazines published before 1960.
• Academic, scientific, medical, or similar professional journals. A local university library is most likely to be interested.
• Travel books by AAA, Fodor, Frommer, etc older than five years
• Medical, legal and computer books older than ten years
• Tax books
• School textbooks that are no longer used
• Consumers’ guides older than 3 years
• Discarded library books
• Multi-volume sets of encyclopedias cannot be accepted. 1-2 volume specialized encyclopedias are desirable.
• Audiocassettes (books on tape or music)
• Computer software (games) on 5 ¼ or 3 ½ inch disks
• Videocassette (VHS) tapes

 

I can't imagine why they wouldn't want 10 year old computer books.

Having moved twice in a year, we gave (to the library) probably 15 boxes of books. We now read 95% on our Ipad Kindles. No more collecting.

 

It could be because they already have enough of those. Lots of people live here, so maybe they get lots of everything and can be more choosy about donations.