Sunday, April 14, 2013

Should It Stay, Or Should It Go?

I try to only keep the books that I love, or that I want to read again someday.  But sometimes I let books linger on my shelves out of habit...or laziness.  It's hard discarding books.  I live in fear that the book I get rid of today will be the book I'm desperate to read tomorrow.  Which means that I keep a lot of books and that my book shelves are full ... But at least I don't have a growing book hoard creeping across my floor.

I'd like to keep it that way, which means weeding my shelves occasionally.  Never fun, but necessary.  Still, it's not easy choosing which books should stay and which should go.  That's why I try to limit myself to only buying books I love and know I'll want to own forever.  But bookstores are temptresses, and somehow I always come home with more books than I should.

So, what's your criteria for keeping or getting rid of a book?  How do you choose which ones should stay ... and which should go?

4 comments:

  1. Hard one, I used to be a book hoarder but as the years roll by, you have to get more selective. I prefer ebooks now so it's less of a problem. For older books, if there is a chance I'll reread, it can stay, if not then its days here at my house are numbered.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I have to wait a couple years or more after I read something I liked. If I have not been tempted to re-read a book after a few years, or if someone in the house has not, then I consider weeding it out. Not so easy with my art books though. I find it very difficult to cull that collection. I have pulled out certain art books after literally years of not looking at them and found new insights and inspiration in them. It's a tough call because I love books.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love books, too. But I have to live within the limited amount of space I have, which means I can't keep every book I've ever owned. Sigh. Maybe someday I'll have more book shelves.

    ReplyDelete
  4. My bookshelves have books I love, and books that are my good intentions. Sometimes I ask myself, "Do I really want to take care of this book for the next year?...five years?..." If the answer is yes, it can stay until the next go around. If I connected emotionally with a book, it is harder for me to get rid of it, even if it sits on the shelf not being re-read. Those take longer for me to cull. Too many books! What a lovely problem to have!

    ReplyDelete