The Great Book Purge

Sometimes decluttering is needed in your life. Spring is here and I figured what's a better time than to start decluttering. I am very fond of spring cleaning. There are several things I want to tackle but the main one is books. Let's face it, book lovers own too many books. We are running out of space for physical books because they take up too much room. And will we re-read all of these books that we own? Probably not. My boyfriend is actually trying to encourage me to use my Nook more often. I get it. I can still read my books but will be able to store so many in the palm of my hand. Because of limited space, I must go on with the book purge.

HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHAT TO PURGE?

Books that I have re-read will be kept. Also, books by my favorite authors will be kept. These include Harry Potter, Rainbow Rowell and Emery Lord titles. I own some special editions of books I love and those will be kept as well. Five star books will be kept.

Newly acquired books I have not read in a year are most likely going to be purged. Although the word purge gives off a negative connotation, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's bad. Some purges are good in life. 

Books that have a three star rating or less will be donated unless a three star book is part of a series and the remaining books in the series have a four star rating or above. 

ARCs that I have read and plan not to read again will be donated. The only ARCs I plan to keep are ARCs of my favorite books.

WHERE TO DONATE THE BOOKS?

I plan to donate my books to the library, children who are in need of books or to the thrift shop. I do pass some of my books to my students as well.

Depending when I decide to donate my books, I might donate some to The Harry Potter Alliance's Accio Books campaign. I am a big supporter of the Harry Potter Alliance and I am often donating books to this wonderful organization. 

HOW TO PREVENT FROM RELAPSING?

I will be using the library more for books that I am unsure about or if I want to test the waters. I will only pre-order books by authors on my auto-buy list. If a library book becomes a new favorite, I might obtain it in the future but it must be with a gift card or it is gifted. I don't mine buying books used. I often find gems at used book stores and at thrift shops. 

Avoid discounted sales such as library sales, BookOutlet sales, etc. Heavily discounted books often means I am more inclined to purchase books. Unless it's a book that I have been searching for some quite some time and is on my must have list, I shouldn't be purchasing a book just because it's on sale. Often, these discounted books are purchased on a whim and then they end up sitting untouched for some quite while.

How often do you purge your books? Do you set rules for yourself when you clean your shelves?