10 Simple and Effective tips for Decluttering Your Book Collection

Are you overwhelmed by piles of books? Ready to organize your stacks? Read on for some useful tips on decluttering your book collection!

As you have probably guessed, based on the contents of this website, I am an avid reader. I also have a huge sentimental attachment to a lot of books-whether they’re favorites I love to reread, or have a personalized message from an author, or are special editions, I like living my life surrounded by books. And pre-pandemic, I regularly obtained a LOT of books.

I also live in an apartment in New York City, aka the land of expensive real estate. I don’t have an extra room I can turn into a library-I don’t even have room for more bookshelves (though, trust me, I’ve squeezed a LOT of them into my small space). So, getting rid of books on a regular basis is a necessity for me. Since today’s Top Ten Tuesday topic is all about spring cleaning, I decided to focus on decluttering the old book collection-so here are five simple tips for decluttering your book collection, and five things you can do with the books you’ve decluttered!

Out of sight, out of mind.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve had to start double stacking books on some of my bookshelves so I don’t just have them in piles all over my floor, tables, etc. The books that are in the back are ones that I’ve already read and don’t think I’ll want to reread in the near future. When it’s time to declutter, if I haven’t gone looking for those books in a certain amount of time, then I most likely won’t miss them if I get rid of them. The time period can be up to you-6 months, a year, however long it’s been since your last declutter-but if you haven’t sought out those books in a while, then the first step in decluttering your book collection may just be to get rid of them.

Gross=gone.

If you work in a library, you often weed books that are stained, are so old they’re discolored or smelly, or are falling apart. In my opinion, you should do the same thing when decluttering your book collection-why would you want to keep books you’d probably be embarrassed to show other people? I know some of us have attachments to books from our childhood, but in general, if a book is old and yellowed and falling apart and musty, get rid of it! If you really love that book, and you find yourself wanting to read it, you can always get a new copy, whether you buy it or borrow it from the library.

Someday, someday, maybe…

I’ve got news for you-if you haven’t yet read that ARC from a conference you went to in 2012, odds are you aren’t suddenly going to pick it up and read it now, 9 years later. If you bought all of the books in a series only to stop reading after the first one, odds are you aren’t going to miraculously start reading the series again soon. If a book has sat on your shelf for years and you still haven’t read it, pass it on to someone else! If the time comes that you REALLY want to read that book, you can always get another copy.

ARCs are just paper.

We bibliophiles can get a bit obsessed with our advanced reader copies-whether you just love the privilege of reading books before they’re out, or you’re an avid collector of a certain author’s works, or you just NEED to know what happens next in that series, you may be a bit attached to your ARCs. But the thing is, ARCs are really just unpolished, cheaply made versions of the books you love-so you really don’t need to feel bad for just getting rid of them. If you change your mind and suddenly really want to read that book after decluttering your book collection, you still can-once it’s been published, you can find it in a bookstore or library and satisfy that need. I will admit I am definitely guilty of keeping my ARCs longer than necessary, but as the years have gone on and the contents of my bookshelves have gotten more unwieldy, I’ve tried to be more practical, and a bit more ruthless, about what I declutter.

Honesty is the best policy.

When taking on any decluttering project, it’s important to be honest with yourself. This applies to more than just books, of course, but I know it’s something I have to work at when it comes to deciding which books to get rid of. Do I *really* need 3 copies of a particular book? Is it worth it to keep travel guides from 10 years ago, when the details about hotels and restaurants and prices are probably vastly different now? Do I need those cookbooks, when I usually find recipes online? You may have different questions to ask yourself, but being honest about what you really want and need is an important part of the process when you are decluttering your book collection.

Ok, so you’ve cleared off your shelves, and have piles/tote bags/suitcases of books that need to go SOMEWHERE. Now what? Well, here are five suggestions for what you could do with those books!

Sell them! (and get money for MORE books).

After decluttering your book collection, if you have books that are in good condition, but they just aren’t right for you anymore, one option is to make a little extra money by selling them to others. I’ve sold books at local used bookstores (if you’re in New York City, The Strand and BookOff are two places that will accept used books), online to non-local stores, like Powell’s, and my most recent venture has been selling books in my own little Depop shop (feel free to check that out if you want to shop my shelves!). I’ve never tried this, but you can also look into things like Facebook Marketplace or OfferUp. Of course there are no guarantees when it comes to selling used books-some stores may not want the particular books because they don’t think they’ll sell, some may not be accepting new inventory because of the pandemic, and you most likely aren’t going to make a TON of money in doing this-but a little money is better than nothing, if you’re willing to put in the effort.

Donate them!

If you just want your books to be GONE and your house to feel spacious again, donating them may be a better option for you. Again, due to the pandemic, you may need to look around a little bit to see who is accepting donations right now, but generally thrift stores like Goodwill or your local public library will accept book donations. After decluttering your book collection, you might want to call library branches or thrift stores near you to see if they’ll accept your donations.

Trade them!

This is another option that takes a bit of effort and also won’t necessarily help in the whole “I need fewer books” quest, but if you have books or ARCs you know other people will love, you can always seek out like-minded individuals interested in a swap. The books you no longer want after decluttering your book collection may just be another book lover’s treasure! I know there are some Facebook groups dedicated to this, and you can check out #booksfortrade on Twitter as well. I’ve had success with this in the past, though these days I’m more interested in books being decluttered and not immediately replaced with different ones!

Put them in a Little Free Library!

Ok, I recognize this is basically just another way to donate your books, but it’s possible you have a Little Free Library somewhere close to you, and it might be easier to drop off a few books at a time at a place in your community rather than hauling them to a thrift store or library. Plus, while stores and libraries may still be avoiding donations, depending on your location, Little Free Libraries are right there in your neighborhood and open for business (though you may find, as I did, a completely stocked library not in need of new donations!).

Make them into something else!

As I mentioned earlier, books (ARCs, especially) aren’t sacred, they’re just paper. And as such, you can use them to make other things! Whether you’re super talented and can make flowers and wreaths and ornaments out of the pages of a book, or you, like me, just want to take apart your old ARCs to do a blackout poetry project with your students, repurposing your old books into something new may help relieve some of the guilt you feel about getting rid of them.

Well, there you have it, friends-all my best tips for decluttering your book collection, and what to do with all those books in your discard pile. I hope you found this helpful! Tell me-what’s your best tip for decluttering your shelves?

Want to read more Top Ten Tuesday posts? Try these:

• Book Characters with the Best Jobs
• Young Adult Books to Make you LOL

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