Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Entertainment and Arts > Books
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 10-12-2018, 08:27 PM
 
1,375 posts, read 1,188,523 times
Reputation: 2158

Advertisements

Mostly keep unless I really didn't like it at all, don't think I'll ever get anything out of it again or want to trade in the paperback for a hard cover - which I much prefer to keep shelved plus the older I get, the harder it is to see the small print on paperbacks. We have been downsizing a lot of the non fiction books though - cookbooks, do it yourself, sports and hobby books because as time passes - our interests and hobbies change so we don't really find ourselves needing or referring to those types of books anymore & when we want to make a particular meal or use a particular ingredient or fix a particular problem - we find it easier to go to the internet then try and find the right book reference. So our library is changing but still pretty substantial.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 10-12-2018, 08:52 PM
 
1,375 posts, read 1,188,523 times
Reputation: 2158
Quote:
Originally Posted by phantompilot View Post
I don't usually give books I buy away....unless I buy them specifically to give as gifts (which I do a lot).

On the other hand I have some books I'd like to give away but don't want to just donate them and don't have anyone to give them to, so there they sit.
Sell them on ebay. Someone, somewhere really wants that book. If you sell it fairly cheaply - just cover your postage and add 15% to cover selling fees - its like donating but you are sending the book or books to someone you know really wants it. That's how I look at it with stuff we want to downsize but don't know anyone who wants it. The last straw for me was walking around one of those donation places - good will or salvation army or whatever - half the people in there were complaining the prices too high because they wanted to resell on ebay - LOL. Figured I might as well just do it myself. And frankly, when I'm looking for a particular book - like the latest in a series by an author I like - I love when I find that one guy who is selling it at a reasonably cheap price. I still patronize barns & noble and the last local bookshop we have here - but can't afford to buy all the latest books at those prices and some of the books we want aren't even available in the shops anymore anyway so you have to rely on others getting rid of them.

There's also Freecycle.com if you want to donate to your local community. We did that a lot too but it started to get filled up with some really greedy people who always had their hands out within minutes of posting something and others who never came to pickup. Those kinds of people - combined with lousy moderators who encourage the type of first come greed - eventually run the others out of the group. Then they get fed up because they can't get the "good stuff" anymore and leave. So I find its cyclical.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-16-2018, 08:14 PM
 
6,784 posts, read 4,767,713 times
Reputation: 26037
I take most of them to Powell's bookstore in Portland Oregon and trade them for other books. Of a book is exceptionally good I will pass it on to a friend.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 07:05 AM
 
Location: Savannah GA/Lk Hopatcong NJ
13,384 posts, read 28,660,475 times
Reputation: 12025
Depends on book, there are few I have kept because I know at some point I'll want to reread them
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-08-2019, 02:16 AM
 
Location: Twilight Zone
950 posts, read 687,733 times
Reputation: 675
Since the last post was in October of last year I thought I should bump it up again.
Seems that most bibliophiles are 50/50, that is, they get rid of some books but keep some as well. That's how it is with me. If it's a novel then I'll get rid of it after a single reading---but if it's instructional or a reference book then I usually keep it. For example I've kept my copy of The Guide to the Supernatural, by Raymond Buckland. Got it during the 1970s and still have it.

So what do you get rid of after a single reading and what do you keep?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-08-2019, 03:09 AM
 
13,498 posts, read 18,138,198 times
Reputation: 37885
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monastic555 View Post
...

So what do you get rid of after a single reading and what do you keep?
I am rereading my copy of Dubliners published by the International Collectors Library in 1967. I keep fiction I think I will read again, and I have some old collections of short stories where I have read practically all...but not quite all the stories. I keep them because in a pinch I will grab one for a plane trip or train ride.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-08-2019, 03:58 AM
 
Location: Henderson, NV, U.S.A.
11,479 posts, read 9,108,828 times
Reputation: 19660
It doesn't always work out this way, but I mostly keep my reference books (non-fiction), which is why I buy them. Fiction is usually the ones that have long library wait lists - kindle and / or paper hardbacks or whathaveyou. These I give to the local library after I've read them.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-08-2019, 03:05 PM
 
Location: Twilight Zone
950 posts, read 687,733 times
Reputation: 675
A Coffee Table book is usually a keeper because they are too classy to part with.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-14-2019, 05:37 PM
 
Location: New York Area
34,755 posts, read 16,767,477 times
Reputation: 29893
Quote:
Originally Posted by Monastic555 View Post
After reading a book, do you keep it or give it away? In my case, if I read the entirety of the book, that means I love the book, so I keep it.
Or are you half and half? In other words, do you give away some and keep some? And what determines the differentiation?
If I am likely to refer to the book in the future I keep it. I even buy a few books I start in the library. Other books are different. If I have a friend that would uniquely like a certain book or we have discussed the book I give or lend it to that person. I donate my Judaica to the synagogue if it is not a book I with respect to which I would make reference. If I need to I am at the synagogue often enough that I can look at it when I want to. Other books I donate to one of several libraries' used book sales. One book totally lost credibility with me because when I checked out one of the judicial case cites he referred to a non-existent case. That book went into the recycling bin or garbage.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-14-2019, 07:04 PM
 
Location: California
2,083 posts, read 1,081,224 times
Reputation: 4422
I usually keep mine. The couple times I’ve lent out a book I’ve never gotten it returned. When I ask about it they act like they don’t even remember me loaning it to them, which means they probably didn’t even read it, and it got tossed into their garage sale box someplace. No more.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > General Forums > Entertainment and Arts > Books

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 10:35 PM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top