My husband and I have way, way too many books. I'm finally at a point where I am ready to get rid of many of them. Any ideas on how to do that? I was thinking of maybe sending boxes to Iraq, but not sure how to go about doing that. Any thoughts on that? Or other ways to find other homes for them?
2007-11-24 12:51:36 · 22 answers · asked by Robbie B 2 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
You can NEVER have too many books. It's impossible.
I give my extra books to a neighbor to read, then she passes them to another neighbor. Check and see if any nursing homes or senior centers could use them. If you have any Inspirational books, you might try your church. The churches are always looking for books. Check at a recruiting office and see if they can tell you how to send them overseas, or watch for a local group to be sending stuff over and get with them. Donate them to the library for one of their sales, or to a group you like for one of their fundraisers.
Hope this helps.
2007-11-24 13:00:34 · answer #1 · answered by dragonmomof3 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It depends on what you want in return.
Do you want money for them? If so, having a yard sale or selling them on eBay would work. You can bundle children's books, books by the same author, etc. and sell them on eBay. This might be a way for your kids to earn some cash -- they can help pack and ship. You can put he cash towards afamly vacation or college fund. I have sold on eBay for 8 years and it isn't hard.
Do you want to trade? I can recommend Paperback Swap -- www.paperbackswap.com -- where you can list your extra books, mail them to requestors, and use the credits to get books you do want. Then list them again! The same folks have a CD swap site. I have been a member for over a year and love it.
Do you want to donate? Call your local VA hospital and nursing homes and ask what kind of books they will accept. Don't be surprised if there are only certain types and conditions that these places will accept. Many are wanting mainly audio books and DVDs.
If you are willing to pay postage, look at Operation Paperback -- http://www.operationpaperback.org/ . This is a verified group that will give you names and addresses of military personnel and sites overseas that are requesting books; going through this group ensures your packages wil get through the red tape and not be destroyed or go undelivered. I have sent several boxes through this group.
Finally, call your local library and ask about giving the rest as a donation to their next book sale, if it has one. If not, ask if the staff knows of another library that has one.
Happy Reading!
Connie
2007-11-24 13:57:23 · answer #2 · answered by Connie S 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The local library is your best bet. They regularly have book sales where people can go and pick up new books for cheap. It makes sure they're not getting tossed in the trash and that they find their way into the hands of someone genuinely interested in the contents.
2007-11-24 13:14:13 · answer #3 · answered by sentinelseventeen 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I donate my gently used items to a freecycle group in my area. I found them on yahoogroups and I'm sure you can find one in your area. I have never gotten anything from the group but I do put on all the things that I want to get rid of. I had tons of VHS tapes and the person who took them was very grateful and came and picked them up. She emailed me later to thank me again as it got her through some rough times. So why not try that. At the least, you will know that someone wants to read them and afterwards can pass them on to others through the freecycle group. Or to friends.
2007-11-24 14:15:01 · answer #4 · answered by oldbeatlefan53 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
1. Donate them to your library or Friends of the Library bookstore.
2. Sell them at a yard sale.
3. Donate them to a local nursing home.
2007-11-24 13:07:52 · answer #5 · answered by Scooter 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i think all of the above answers are great ones. Also don't forget you can donate the books to goodwill to help out families that might not be able to get their own through bookstores.
Or you can do what i do and leave them in boxes and reread them every once in awhile when the mood strikes.
2007-11-24 13:08:54 · answer #6 · answered by Lisa P 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are some great answers above. Another thing to consider is donating books to the local prison system. I know that we have a local organization that provides books for prisoners, to try and help them improve themselves.
2007-11-24 15:06:28 · answer #7 · answered by Rose D 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You've gotten a lot of good answers, but I'll add one place for you to check out:
http://www.booksforsoldiers.com/ Apparently if you fill out an application, you can send books and DVDs and games and relief supplies to soldiers.
I hope that helps.
BTW: This site http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1029409/posts talks about things the Red Cross gives to wounded soldiers. They don't mention books, but there's both an e-mail address and a phone number where you could ask them if they would appreciate books.
2007-11-24 13:40:37 · answer #8 · answered by ck1 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
when we finally got tired of packing and unpacking thousands of books, we donated them to the VA's hospital system and got a receipt, averaging about $10 each that Iused as an income tax deduction. There are thousands of vets living in military hospitals that would desperately love to read them.
2007-11-24 12:59:32 · answer #9 · answered by lorenzo 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Sell them to a second hand book store. If you have more stuff in the house to get rid of, have a yard sale.
2007-11-24 12:59:13 · answer #10 · answered by Suggah 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋