I just finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, and I will finish On Writing before getting rid of it. I recommend both, though honestly... after finishing Guernsey I watched the movie and I have to say I think I liked the movie better. That said, reading the book, I'm sure, seriously enriched my understanding of the movie. So I guess, in the end, I recommend reading the book and then watching the movie. Some of the other books here I've read or skimmed, and others have just taken up space refusing for too long to inspire me to read them.
I've decided on some criteria for making quicker work of this book purging business...
- If it's health-related and it's say, over 5-10 years old (depending on the material), out it goes. More current information is available online.
- If the book is no longer related to my life-stage, out it goes (e.g. I really don't need to be inspired about parenting or homeschooling anymore).
- If the cover is uninspiring, and nothing written on the cover inspires me to want to read it (and I have nothing more than that to go on for why I even own the book), then out it goes.
- If it's a classic and I can find it at my local library, then seriously... why do I feel like I need a copy? I may think of reasons to keep such a book as I go, but for now, I think having ready access at the library is a decent reason to not feel like I need to own a particular book.
Now that I've set some guidelines, let's see how much more progress I can make...
hmmm - when you're finished do you want to come and help me do an under-the-bed dive? I don't even want to so much as THINK about how many books are under there waiting to be read and now they've managed to overflow to a box full under the chair. And that's not counting my rather large bookshelf that's stuffed right full of craft books!! I'm ashamed of how many books we're hoarding!!
ReplyDeleteKoodos to you for making an attempt at it. I find that books are the last thing I think of purging, but really are one of the first things I should be going over. So many of my little book "collections" are related to different life stages, that sometimes I am sad to let them go. Silly, but I don't think I am the only one who sees it that way!
ReplyDeleteSeriously, all good reasons...our library is across the street & I rarely reread a book. I should purge. We have a Half Price Books near us, so I want to try to sell!
ReplyDeleteWow, you've really given this thought and planning.
ReplyDeleteGreat guidelines! I too have noticed so many of my books no longer relate to my lifestyle. I loved the Guernsey book and didn't even know there was a movie...where have I been? I also have the sequel on my Kindle app but haven't read it yet. My 15 minute a day (or longer once I get going) is really making a difference around here. Good luck with your clearing out....I'm sure your house doesn't need it quite as bad as mine! LOL! Keep up the great work and I love that you are blogging every day!
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