Do you still purchase physical books?

[kyrilson]

Originally Posted by issybird

Easier said than done, and also easier said than should be done, in many cases.

As for the first, I’m pretty sure that my own public library hasn’t started accepting donations again yet.

As for the second, there are too many instances of people passing along the valueless to a charity so the charity has the problem of disposing it. In this particular case, it’s important to remove the “sacred” aspect to the notion of these books and view them for what they are, a commodity. Then evaluate them closely for ones with intrinsic value, i.e., it would be worth it to another to buy/sell/keep it. And then the rest, which realistically will be most of them as used books have very little value in general, really are trash and should be viewed as such and recycled as possible (covers on hardcovers are not recyclable) and the remainder dumped.

In any case, it’s a big job. Books are heavy and bulky - another reason it’s wrong to shift your own deaccession issues onto another entity.

It is a big job. I took my time when I was doing it. Back when I had a bunch of physical books that I wanted to donate, what I did was separate them into two categories:
1) Sell - These were books that were typically hardcover, limited edition, signed editions, etc. that didn't have any sentimental value to me. I did keep some books that I couldn't part with, but there weren't very many.
2) Donate - everything else.

I separated them out into those two piles. The first pile was much smaller. I posted the Sell pile on eBay and sold those. The Donate pile, I put into large Rubbermaid tubs, but I didn't fill them to the brim, just enough so that I could still carry them. Stacked them in the garage. Every time I went out and about on errands and was going to be near a Half Price Books or Goodwill, I'd put one in the trunk of my car and take it to one of those places and sell/donate it. Over the span of about a month I got all of the books out of the house. So it took a while, but it was pretty painless that way. If someone can't handle the bulk and carrying of books, due to physical limitations, they can also use services like Got Junk? https://www.1800gotjunk.com/us_en That was something I considered, but figured since I wasn't in a big hurry I could handle it myself.

I'm not minimizing the issue, it's very difficult (physically and emotionally) to get books moved from one place to another, I'm just saying it's possible to do it, and there are different ways and solutions available to people that might need to get their physical books out of their living space.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by issybird

As for the second, there are too many instances of people passing along the valueless to a charity so the charity has the problem of disposing it. In this particular case, it’s important to remove the “sacred” aspect to the notion of these books and view them for what they are, a commodity. Then evaluate them closely for ones with intrinsic value, i.e., it would be worth it to another to buy/sell/keep it. And then the rest, which realistically will be most of them as used books have very little value in general, really are trash and should be viewed as such and recycled as possible (covers on hardcovers are not recyclable) and the remainder dumped.

Certainly valid, but it's also true that one's man trash is another man's treasure. Beyond the obviously damaged, it's not unreasonable to give a charity right of refusal if they are interested (as opposed to just leaving heavy boxes on their doorstep unsolicited). Though admittedly, it might be hard to find an interested charity.

I recently carted a box of books that were worthless to me to a nearby comic store, and he was happy to rummage through it and pay for what he wanted...and he let me use his dumpster for the rest, so that worked out well for me.

And of course, it is winter here, and, as Nickel Creek pointed out, books burn warm in the fireplace....

[Rbneader]

I only buy ebooks for most things, even cookbooks now, but there are some series I want to own in hardcopy.

Which reminds me, I need to order the latest Order of the Stick book in hardcopy.

[Victoria]

I overwhelmingly prefer ebooks. Physical books feel cumbersome and awkward to hold now. Last summer, I donated everything except a small bookcase of my favourite art books, and a few nature guides. Whenever I’m tempted to purchase a physical book, I remember what a backbreaking job it was to pack up my library cart it all off.

At first I hesitated because I had invested a lot of money in the books over the years. But that passed the moment they were welcomed by a local charity. It’s great to know other people might find pleasure in them. And in retrospect, I feel relieved and lucky to have found a good place for them.

[kyrilson]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

May I present another option that is not a charity shop? Donate books to prisoners. https://prisonbookprogram.org/prisonbooknetwork/

Prison libraries vary wildly from facility to facility and what each state will allow prisoners to read also varies, but you won't find a more marginalized group with less access to reading material in the US.

I hadn't thought of that. That's a great idea! I would imagine there's not much to do in those places and reading would be a welcome respite for many there.

[JSWolf]

With a Reader, every book has the exact same weight and feel.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

May I present another option that is not a charity shop? Donate books to prisoners. https://prisonbookprogram.org/prisonbooknetwork/

Prison libraries vary wildly from facility to facility and what each state will allow prisoners to read also varies, but you won't find a more marginalized group with less access to reading material in the US.

Agree. I've also had success donating books to the local public high school (after asking first of course). The few that weren't super student-suitable were taken by the teachers.

[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by issybird

As for the second, there are too many instances of people passing along the valueless to a charity so the charity has the problem of disposing it. In this particular case, it’s important to remove the “sacred” aspect to the notion of these books and view them for what they are, a commodity.

A local charity book fair actually had to beg people to stop donating Harlequin romances and Reader's Digest Condensed Books, lol.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

A local charity book fair actually had to beg people to stop donating Harlequin romances and Reader's Digest Condensed Books, lol.

There are a lot of books that have in effect a negative value, the cost to get rid of them. Calling them a donation is a misnomer! My sense is that more and more places that accept donations require them to be checked in. Which doesn’t solve the problem of the dump and run, but if it’s a dump and run that tells the story in itself. What’s wrong with people?

I think there’s a tendency for them to overvalue their stuff, probably in part because they know how much they paid for it and in part because of emotional attachment. But it shouldn’t be all that hard to step outside and ask yourself, “How much would I pay for this if I were buying it today?” And everyone knows Reader’s Digest Condensed Books are worthless, so no excuses.

[yekim54]

Other: Over the past decade or so I've only purchased paper books as gifts for others. On the other hand, I have also received a few paper books gifted to me.

[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by issybird

And everyone knows Reader’s Digest Condensed Books are worthless, so no excuses.

The one redeeming factor of those things is that the art is usually very nice.

[sheri2022]

Just gave Barnes and Noble a visit today and checked some books, there is no way I'm going back to physical books. I have an interesting story regarding ebooks vs physical. I'm new to ereaders (just got my first ereaders this month Clara and Forma) I was an avid reader for all my life but by responsibilities and work I didn't have the time to read bought few books in the last few years but weight and laziness stopped me from continuing. But since I got those ereaders the passion came back I read everywhere on bed, my car and in the kitchen. I have a modest library in my house back home, but I'll just keep it for sentimental reason.

[Poppaea]

I very rarely buy physical books as presents or if they are craft books or have a lot of maps. Estimated books bought per year are four or five. All these books are second hand, even those I give as gifts. I have a really small shelf with craft, cook and fashion photography books.

But I don't buy more than that as ebooks either. Most of my reading material comes from the public library. I am a patron of two to four libraries (this changes with their acquisition strategies) and I spend between 6€ and 30€ per year on it.

I sold most of my physical books over a decade ago to buy my first ereader. I kept the most loved and beautiful books because I wasn't sure I'd take to the reader. When I realized I would never go back to paper, I either sold or donated the rest of my books. And I was fed up with dusting the damned things off anyway.

There are companies buying used books to sell them on Amazon Marketplace or ebay. They have websites and one can scan the barcode of the book one wants to sell, to find out how much they offer for it or if they don't want it at all. I did that for the majority of my home library, which was HUGE. For the donations i contacted a project that offers books for people in a not so well off part of the city and they came to my house and took what they wanted. The rest went to booksharing places in old telephone booths.

The money i got for my books was shockingly little. Sometimes 0,10€ for a premium book, still on the bestselling list I had paid 36€ for myself. But I told myself, they'd wouldn't earn me anything sitting on my shelves and gathering dust. The money was gone and I actually couldn't loose, just gain some of it back. And in the end there were some books that had some value and the amount I got all in all wasn't bad at all.

One totally unexpected benefit of getting rid of my library was getting rid of the dumb "Have you read all these?" question. "No, silly, I bought them for show! Much better than having a sports car or a yacht to impress people!" This alone is worth it!

Since I got my first reader I haven't read a physical book. I might peruse them, like cook books, but I haven't read the books I do read front to back other than on a reader. Last week an acquaintance wanted to gift me the book they just wrote and I said, if you want me to read it, send me the ebook.

[gridlewak]

I chose the first. Paper more than eBooks. My partner and I both prefer paper. We're nostalgic that way. <grin> The main reasons we have eBooks are because of some of the older, public domain, books are out of print and unavailable and/or the prices for the hard copy requires taking out a mortgage to buy it, but it's available in the digital version for free.

The only new hard copies we buy are usually related to the local history here. The rest of our purchases have been used ones. Our second hand clothing stores here also have a book section. $1.75 for hard covers. Just bought David McCullough's biography of John Adams there in mint condition for that price. Not bad for a CAN$53.95 book, according to the jacket price. We both seem to need that feel and smell of an actual book. It's an addiction.

We're fortunate here too. Just over 6 years ago, we bought an old school built in 1902. One of the classrooms is being used as a combination studio/living area. Thirty by thirty with twelve foot high ceilings made it perfect for us. Two years ago, my Summer project was a 16 foot long by 8 foot high set of book shelves. So, in our case, we have the space for it and we're taking advantage of it.

[jviscosi]

I only read ebooks now, although I still have physical books from before I had an ereader. The last physical books I read were when my dad sent me a bunch of Nero Wolfe novels, which are short and so easy to hold one-handed while eating lunch (which is when I do most of my reading). In contrast, when somebody loaned me a copy of "Dune", it was so unwieldy I gave it back and got the ebook to finish reading it.