Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Robyn Devine.
It is unmistakably comforting to curl up in a thick chair with a tattered copy of a book you love, listening to the rain while you let yourself get carried away by the words on the page. I know – I used to hoard books. Don’t let the title “minimalist” scare you off – I have a love of books that dates back to my years toddling around with Dr. Seuss, a love that was handed down from my mother.
Until just a few years ago, books were stacked everywhere in my home. My two huge book cases were double-stacked with volumes ranging from children’s fiction to college text books, and piles had formed next to couches and the bed, not to mention on any available surface. I could not imagine my life without these friends surrounding me – the very thought of letting go of just one was enough to send me hurling at my shelves, attempting to wrap my arms around every book I owned in protection.
Today, I am the proud owner of approximately 20 books – six of which are craft books. To move from one extreme to the other took some serious work, and was not an overnight process. It started with the realization that I was not so much attached to the stories and words themselves, but the physical books sitting on the shelves. Once I had that realization, I began to let go of some of my books, and moved slowly towards a more minimalist reading collection.
The best way for any book-collector to tackle their bookshelves is by looking at one book at a time. When we look at the whole expanse of our book collection, it can be hard to imagine ever letting a single book go, but in reality there are volumes hiding on those shelves that we truly don’t need or want. Taking time to pull a book down off the shelf and truly look at it as an individual item will help you decide for that book alone if staying on your shelves is the best option.
Here are a few suggestions to help even the biggest bibliophile relieve your sagging shelves of stress:
1. Write It Down.
Sometimes, it’s the way a book made us feel, our connection to the story or a character that keeps us from letting go of the book itself. Take some time to write down those feelings, those connections. Maybe you’ll keep these notes on your computer or in a notebook, or maybe you’ll begin a blog for them. Once you get those emotions and thoughts out, it can be easier to pass the book on to someone else who you think would love the story as much as you did.
Tiny Action: Grab a notebook and start writing down your thoughts about each book as you take it off your shelves. If you can’t think of anything to say, you probably won’t miss the book if it weren’t there anymore.
2. Divide. Get ruthless with your “yet to read” pile.
My rule of thumb is simple: If it hasn’t been read in six months, it probably won’t ever be read. I went so far as to test this theory myself as I found books on my shelves I hadn’t yet read, but couldn’t yet bear to let go. I dedicated a shelf to “need to read” books, and noted the date. Any books that started out on that shelf on that date but were still there six months later I purged – I had discovered I truly had no desire to read them!
Tiny Action: Let go of any book you haven’t read yet that has been on your shelves for more than six months. Afraid you’ll want to read it someday? Make a note of it in your notebook – title, author, ISBN number even – so you can find it at the library if you truly want to read it later.
3. One of the best ways to make use of your book collection is to share it with others!
As you look at books, anytime you find yourself thinking “So and so would LOVE this book!” write that name down on a sticky note, stick it on the front cover, and set the book aside. After you’ve got 20 or so books in a pile, begin handing them out – drive to friends’ houses and drop them off, or put them in the mail (book rate shipping is SUPER cheap).
Tiny Action: Pick five books off your shelves that you’d love to share with someone else, and then send them off to their new homes. Today.
4. Set aside one shelf of your book case as your “desert island” shelf.
Most book lovers have books they know they will never let go of, no matter what. I call these “desert island” books – they are the books I’d want with me if I were stranded on a desert island, that I could read over and over again for the rest of my life. As you come across these books in your collection, add them to your shelf. Not only is it comforting to see those books being saved as you pare down others, you now have a physical boundary – you can have no more “desert island” books than will fit in this one space, so you are forced to think analytically about your collection.
Tiny Action: Clear off one shelf to keep as your “desert island” shelf. It can only hold one row of books – no double stacks or piles!
5. Organize your non-fiction books by topic.
I found when I began to organize my non-fiction books by topic, I had overlaps in some subjects. For me, the largest overlaps came in religious studies (my major in college). As I saw where I’d doubled up on topic, it was easier to let go of a few books.
Tiny Action: Organize your books by topic and author. Begin to pare down where you see overlaps.
6. Look for multiple copies, and get rid of them.
You may laugh, thinking you would NEVER buy a multiple of a book, but trust me when I say I’ve found multiple copies of books on the shelves of almost every sentimental bibliophile I’ve met. Once you have more than a shelf or two of books (not a book CASE or two, a SHELF or two!), the chances of your remembering what books you own dwindles. Even if you love the book, there is never a need to own more than one copy of it!
Tiny Action: Every time you notice a multiple of a book, immediately give one copy away.
While going through this process, here are a few tips to keep in mind:
- Take breaks. When I first began paring down my books, I would get dizzy after 15 minutes!
- Take five minutes to step away anytime you begin to feel overwhelmed – this is a new experience for your body, and it takes some getting used to!
- Stay hydrated. I found I would get drained and tired as I went through my books – keeping a glass of water next to me helped keep me alert and focused.
- Set a timer. Sort through your books for no more than 30 minutes the first go-round or you will find yourself getting frustrated and overwhelmed.
- Honor your emotions. Your sentimental attachment to your books is not something to feel ashamed of or sad about. Acknowledging your emotions as you sort through your books can be the first step in helping you move past that attachment and towards a more minimalist reading habit.
- And above all, remember this: you did not acquire those books overnight, so you will not release your attachment to them quickly either. By spending a few minutes a week and by letting go of a few books at a time, you will find your feelings shifting towards the stories and the moment rather than the books themselves.
***
Wondering how to get rid of books? Consider donating them. Here’s a list of 20 places you can donate your books.
For more help with decluttering, see our list of 10 creative decluttering tips.
Danna says
I have well over 1000 books right now. Some of them are already in storage. I’ve been thinking about whittling down my collection lately and donating some of the books that I don’t read anymore to a juvenile detention facility nearby that always needs new material for teens. But I can’t imagine getting rid of all but 20! Some of them I read over and over. If I was stuck on a desert isle I’d probably need to build a bookshelf out of palm trees and coconut shells for all the books I’d put in my “stuck on an island” pile.
I am glad I found your blog though, I am trying to become more minimalist and un-clutter my life.
Heather says
We trade our books online at http://www.bookmooch.com
even when our house burned down people gave us some points to get new books and everyone was nice about us having to delete what we had in inventory that we were trading since it was all toast.
We are back to trading again and we also donate to goodwill the books that we think wont trade quickly since we dont want to store a whole lot. Its a point trading system and really a fun way to recycle and get new books too!! You can even have a wishlist and get alerted when someone has what you want
Heather
William Mize says
As someone who’s gone from about 1,000 books to less than 100, my mantra was “Books Are NOT Trophies”.
It’s similar to having a lion or boar’s head on your wall. It says “I killed that.”
The book on the shelf says “I read that.”
Now I give them to the local library (I call it having visitation rights :)) or sell them used on amazon or eBay.
Jess@minimalistmum says
My shelves now hold mostly rows of books from my favourite authors that I reread year after year and do not want to give up and depend on the vagaries of supply at a library.
A big “problem” I have now is kids’ books, present and future! We have lots of great books for the kids aged now, plus books handed down from my sister’s kids, plus boxes of classics from when I was growing up. Yes, this is a generational love! Has anyone else released their old classics?
Morrigan says
Jess, the classics are particularly easy to find in digital format if you are willing to read them on an eReader, smart phone or computer screen. I bought a Barnes & Noble Nook several months ago and have been delighted by the number of classics I have replaced for free either through B&N or sites like Project Gutenberg. I also find that the classics are pretty easy to find at most libraries.
Dave says
We have been slowly decluttering our house. We have made great progress. Books are the items that I have the most trouble with!! I have to admit I have gotten rid of about 3 boxes worth of old college textbooks, binders with class notes, old fiction that I honestly would not read again, etc..
The problem comes down to, I still have too many books!! Most of the paperbacks, I know I will read again, the rest I still need to read, then of course there is my comicbook reprint collection. I have sold most of the original single issues and decided that I still want the stories, so I bought the books that reprint 20-25 issues of a comic book title at a time. These books take up a lot less space but they are addicting (for me anyway)!!
What to do? I still need to down size to the 2 bookshelves in my home office, I need to get rid of about 100 books to do that, but the eternal question is, which ones?
Sabine says
Great piece! I have a table near my door where my guest can pick books they want to take home. At work I have created a temporary exchange table for the summer holidays: you can take books from there and put read books on it – the remaining books will be donated to Terre des Hommes, a organization with a second hand shop here in my hometown, all profits go to children. I still have loads of books, I will take your advice at heart, especially the part of the 6 months! I do have books that are on the shelf a long time and somehow new books cut in line :D
Thanks!
Laura says
I recently reduced my collection, after 40+ years of acquiring books, I began to realize the weight and space that was being devoured by them. I had three large bookcases just filled with books. Now I have two and they include my music, photographs, and assorted knick-knacks I don’t want to part with. The knick-knack collection, no quite as old as the books but equally unruly, also suffered a bruising 50% reduction. Now I have one shelf of fiction I love and want to keep, several shelves of reference, several more shelves of art & design books and one shelf of to-be-read books. I alternate reading one book from my shelf with one from the library, slowly reducing the shelf. Anything I can’t get into is immediately recycled. I have learned that I don’t have to read every book to the bitter end. There is more room, and the library appreciates the donations if no friends want the books. Everyone wins.
DavidT says
I’m an engineer-turned-historian (ancient and classical history of Ideas and Technology). Though the digital books are beginning to become a sizable percentage of my holdings (about 1500 of my 5000-odd books are PDF files), most of my “tools” are still words-on-paper books which are personalized with notes, underlining and commentary that reduce their monetary value while bonding them to me. What I have done is to make a firm commitment to limit my shelf space and when faced with overpopulation, to banish books to electronic format before disposing of them. Of course, when the new dark ages come, I hope my electronic scriptorium is still accessible.
Nicole says
I know the comments here are getting pretty long, but I need to see if anyone has a suggestion for books that are personalized—the children’s book my brother and I ripped up and used for posters that my mom had to tape back together—the copy of a life-changing book signed by my best friend—a gift from the students in my class—the one I used to write down this wonderful guy’s phone number when I had nothing else to write on (that guy’s my husband now)…..
How do I reconcile parting with these treasures? It IS the physical book that matters! I want very badly to move toward minimalism, but this is really hard. I appreciate any and all suggestions!
Ari Herzog says
Nicole: You don’t part with those, because your children and grandchildren would want to see those pieces of history that led to their birth. But you can take them off your bookshelf, wrap them in a plastic bag, and put it in the attic.
Nicole says
That makes me feel better. Even one person who understands can help me a lot! I just hope I don’t go justifying EVERYTHING as something with sentimental value!
Maggie Stokes says
Robyn, I would like to know what is on your desert island list besides Robots Have No Tails. I’m paring down my books, but I always tell my reading friends that the best present I can think of is simply the title of a good book.