I Don't Like Books (and how to pare down yours)

I know it's a heretical thing to say among intelligent, educated people, so that's why I made that statement: it commands attention. Now let me amend that title a bit. I don't like books, but I love reading.

I don't actually remember learning to read, and I can't remember a time when I didn't know how. As someone with an academically-oriented job and a blog, I'm reading all day, whether it's print materials or online. In my spare time, I devour books. Suffice it to say, reading is a significant part of my life, and a genuine joy.

That being said, I don't like books. They're heavy, they take up too much space, and they require large pieces of furniture for the sole purpose of storing them. My books are now tremendously pared down, but that hasn't always been the case. I understand, and personally have experienced, the impulse to hoard literature. It's tempting to be able to access all of your favorites at a moment's notice, even if you rarely (or never) re-read them. This impulse disappears, however, after you move this large book collection to a new house, especially if multiple flights of stairs are involved.

So how do I fix this?

First, you need to detach yourself from the emotional connection to the books, a process which is not unlike the emotional detachment from other objects that is necessary to live a freer life. For some reason, books trigger more of a reaction in people than a lot of other things, but here's my take on the subject:

They're just paper. No matter how wonderful the story contained within, any other copy is just as delightful as your own. With the exception of rare, out-of-print volumes, the story you love can easily be obtained again at any reasonably-sized library, or even as an e-book. No matter what happens to the paper on your shelf, the stories will always be there. I take a lot of comfort in that fact.

Books were also made to be read. Until fairly modern times, literature was quite scarce, and thus sharing books was much more common. Books want to be read, and enjoyed, and appreciated. That copy on your shelf could be enriching the imagination of somebody else out there, rather than collecting dust in your home.

I'm now an avid customer of my local used bookstore. Every month or so, I'll trade a few books in for store credit and bring a few more home. When those are done, they go back to the store. With the seed money from an initial purge of my shelves, I haven't spent a dime, I've brought home dozens of new books, and I'm supporting a local business.

The actual process of sorting through books can be daunting, but you have to start somewhere. Here, generally, is the approach I took.

Some questions to ask yourself:

• Will I actually read this again?
• Is this irreplaceable?
• For reference books: Do I actually reference this?
• For cookbooks: Do I use any of these recipes? If so, do I use more than a few? Would it be easier to just photocopy the few I do use, and pass it on?
• For textbooks: Am I ever going to take this class again? Is this information outdated?

For the majority of these questions, the answer is often no. In the modern internet era, reference books and cookbooks are increasingly obsolete. Yes, somebody probably paid hundreds of dollars for that encyclopedia set at one point, but it's bulky, heavy and outdated. Recipes are also more easily found online, along with reviews, ratings and modifications that others have made. There's simply no comparing the versatility of recipe websites with any cookbook collection. With textbooks, I understand you may feel like you'd need to look up something about chemistry or accounting at some point in the future. Remember, though, that the information in old textbooks is likely outdated, and if you ever re-take this class, there's probably a new edition you'd need to buy. Get rid of it while somebody may still want it.

Now what do I do with all of this?

The problem with books is that some of them are very desirable and can be sold easily; others you can't give away (see my earlier comments about encyclopedias). Here are some ways I disposed of them, in order of descending financial yield (which may or may not be your goal).

• Sell them. This can be somewhat tedious, depending on the number of books and their relative value. Textbooks are easy to get rid of at half.com (especially in early January and mid-August when college semesters are beginning), and if they're fairly new they're usually valuable enough that they're worth a trip to the post office. Other books, like paperback novels, may only go for a dollar or so. If you have a lot of these, consider having a yard sale. If you price them fairly cheaply and put up signs, your local yard sale scavengers will be at your house bright and early on Saturday morning.
• See if your town has a used bookstore that accepts trades for store credit. Like I mentioned previously, this is how I started my initial investment which funds all of my new reading material.
• Donate them. Your local Friends of the Library may want them for a used book sale fundraiser. Also check with charity shops; my local Goodwill had one location that is just a bookstore, and I dropped off many boxes there. If money isn't a concern, donating your books may be your best option because it's definitely the least hassle.
• Give them away. Try your local Freecycle chapter. This is a good place to get rid of things in general. I've listed all kinds of strange stuff on there, and I've never failed to find somebody who wanted it. Your useless junk may be exactly what someone else was looking for.
• As a last resort, recycle them. Contact your municipal waste department to find out their procedure for book recycling. This may involve a trip to the recycling plant.

At the moment, I personally own twelve books. Seven of them are children's books that I cherished, and plan to pass onto my not-too-distant future kids. One is a wonderful cookbook that is out of print, and contains a collection of Franciscan brothers' recipes for bread, and I use it frequently. I also have a copy of Strunk and White, which I reference in my daily life to improve my writing style. The remaining three are in circulation from the used bookstore.

For me, books have really become a good uncluttered gift idea, because they don't hang around for long. If you love literature but hate clutter, consider a revolving book collection. If you've found another solution to the book clutter problem, tell me about it in the comments.