Spring Cleaning

I'm a pack rat by nature, but if I tried to hang on to every book I read there'd be no room left in the house for the kids or the dog.  Luckily, it's easy to pass books on for others to enjoy, while clearing a little shelf space in the process (for more books, of course.)  Here are a few ideas, depending on what you want to do with your books.

Give Them Away!


If you're fond of altruism and serendipity, you may want to check out Bookcrossing.com.  More than just a website, Bookcrossing is a philosophy: the world should be a giant library.  To that end, bookcrossers register each book they want to give away on the site, then leave the book at the nearest coffee shop or give it to a friend.  Future readers can post their own comments on the website so it's easy to see where your book has traveled and what other readers have thought of it.

Another option: donate your books to support the cause of global literacy.  Better World Books works with literacy partners like Books for Africa and Room to Read to ensure that people the world over have access to books.  Be careful, though--Better World Books offers free shipping and bargain bin prices, so it's hard to visit the website without placing an order!

The easiest alternative, of course, is stopping by your local library with a big box of books.  Most libraries regularly hold book sales to earn money and accept donations year round.

Trade Them For More Books!

Okay, so this won't actually free up any extra space on your bookshelves, but at least it will keep your supply of reading material fresh.  BookMooch is my favorite book trading site; users list books available for trade and earn points by sending and receiving books. The site lets you know when a book on your wishlist becomes available and you can use points to "mooch" the book.  PaperBack Swap takes it a step farther by allowing you to print exact postage from your computer, sparing you trips to the post office.  Swaptree will let you trade books for any other items users would be willing to exchange in return.

Sell Them!

Financing a serious book buying habit can be tricky in these difficult economic times, so you may want to sell your books.  I've had good experiences selling books to Powell's, where you can choose between virtual credit at the store or a slightly lesser price in cash through PayPal.   Just type in the ISBN numbers of the books you want to sell and Powell's provides an instant quote.  Sell more than three books, and you can print out a free shipping label to use when you put your books in the mail.