My research interests are Gender/Development/the Middle East – these books take up most of my collection space. In order to cut down on PURCHASING these books, I maintain Wishlists on Amazon, use delicious to bookmark those that can’t be found there, and a Bibliography software. If I find a book that I have bought to be unsatisfactory, I will get rid of it ASAP – preferably to another person who can use it. If not, it just needs to be out of the house.

My second largest group of books are my long term reading selection. They are books that may well become classics in my own personal canon. Inherited from others or purchased, they may be read/unread/to be read again. These are books that I feel I will enjoy and read, and likely keep. For me, these books fill the equivalent of one whole bookcase, and include a large selection of French existentialism, Russian literature, classical history and international authors. Many of these books have been read and reread, and will likely be read again. For the most part, this collection gets culled as needed (ie, when the shelves get too full!) As a collection grows too large, I re-evaluate, and cull those books that I feel I have appreciated, and consider whether or not I may need to get rid of some other books in order to relocate the collection.

The final group (aside from my professional books) are personal, expendable, short term novels. They are books that I am interested in reading, but am not going to keep. Ideally, they will be passed on to someone else. They may stay on the shelf for a while, but I would not worry too much about getting rid of them.

The collection is culled as needed, but definitely every year. I feel that by tackling one book shelf at a time makes things easier. Organising a bookshelf into themes that are logical for you can help you begin to identify patterns and overlap. It sounds ridiculous, but I would also consider moving one book at a time. If there is a similarity or theme that relates them, pick it up and move it to its twin, even if it means having to wedge something unrelated into the empty spot it would leave behind. That way you start to have a collection of two books on dogs, then three, then twenty. You may realize that you have an extensive set of resources on terriers, which could be grouped together…. Step by step, and no step is too small, if it is constant.

As for favourite books. There is alway a book shop or library that you can if you so desire to read it again.
Most people only ever read their books once, twice or thrice MAX!!
Piles of books will always feel like a clutter and this will make you feel yuk.
Have a book shop but honestly if you really felt good you wouldn’t be asking this question to others and yourself. Happy reading

I don’t know how many times over the years I’ve had to purge my book collection simply because I could not afford to move them all. Being a rank capitalist I usually haul all the books I feel I can part with to the local used book store and trade them in for credit for other books.

I’ve always approached my decision on which books I can purge based on functionality, will I have an immediate need for the contents of book that cannot be met by my local library system? So my thinking is:

If the book is available through my local library, and that means every public library in the state of Connecticut, then I can get rid of it.

If the book contains information that I use repeatedly, but do not wish to store in my poor brain’s long-term memory, then I keep it, even if it’s available in the public library, because the public library is not alway open for business.

Finally, this may be construed as sacrilage, but I have pretty much purged my collection of all classics. They are now widely available as free downloads on the Internet from locations such as http://librivox.org/

“At BookCrossing, you can register any book you have on the site, and then set the book free to travel the world and find new readers. Leave it on a park bench, at a coffee shop, at a hotel on vacation. Share it with a friend or tuck it onto a bookshelf at the gym — anywhere it might find a new reader!”

If a finder registers the book on the site, its travels can be tracked. Sounds fun.

http://www.bookcrossing.com

I may try BookCrossing next time I need to declutter. I usually donate technical books to a small library at work and take the rest to charity drop sites.

My own categories might be Keep/Use (books I know I’ll refer to), Keep/Want (books I think I’ll reread — or that are physical reminders), and Shed (as in get rid of).

Only you can choose the Shed percentage, so you have to decide: if 20 bookcases is too many, what about 18? That’d be your first triage goal: shed 10%.

I’ve decided not to get any more bookcases for now, so when the shelves fill up, I have to week back. I keep an odd array of things (including two copies of I, Claudius and one of How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive (a 1970s edition, though I haven’t had a VW since the 70s). But I’ve given away novels, poetry, biography, history, and even some training/development books that I realized I never opened.

I love books, but I face the same struggle. A good book is like an old friend. You may not see each other for a long time, but it’s good to know that he or she is close by.

My recent push is to borrow more books from the library.