To put books in the bin?

[OneNight]

I have many hundreds of books to dispose of. They're all good books in good condition, some of them doublers some just no longer what I want to read, let go for a variety of reasons and the sort of items which I'd have thought would sell at the right price. I'll still have maybe a thousand or two left to use myself.

I put the first load in bags and took them down to the nearest charity shop: a decent little place where they sell books from 10p upwards so you'd think they would shift. To my consternation, they very nearly wouldn't take them.

'Oh we don't sell many books any more Dear - they all read their Kindles'.

They did eventually agree to take them and I slunk out and haven't been back which still leaves me with my front hall covered in piles. I'm now actually considering putting the rest in the bin which feels quite dreadful. I never thought that might be something I'd do.

Are books dead?

Actually, I must admit that our playgroup Christmas fayre now only accepts children's books for our second hand book stall. Those fly but we couldn't give the adults books away and it was costing us money to store them- we'd then sell them by weight to recyclers. Agree residential homes might be a better bet. It's also no excuse for charity shops to be rude. A polite explanation costs nothing.

I have just broken the rule of a lifetime and got rid of more than 50% of our books. It was devastating.

We took the first few hundred (OK, many more than just a few hundred) to local bookshops, travelled further afield for the next batch, table topped them, Freegled them, Free to a Good Homed them and then had to admit defeat. So we bagged them up and put them in the book bank [ashamed]

We still have quite a few to go... But can't quite face it just yet.

So book banks in a couple of recycle places would be my suggestion. That way the charities who place them get to have them without any one shop being drowned by them.

Oh! And I have Book Bombed a few of the more interesting ones too - left them on benches, in cafes etc, with a little note about passing them on once read.

But that takes time an I have far more books than I have time!

It definitely isn't a snobby charity shop, specialsubject. They'll take anything that is sound apart from VHS tapes. They're just not happy about books any more.

I've heard of those book labels too Notso. People leave them on trains and in doctors waiting rooms and things. We have a charity book shop near us, but all the others take them too. We just had to give away a load of my dad's old books and I hope they're bringing pleasure somewhere.

I second psychiatric wards - the Trust where I work set up a library about a year ago and asked for books, I ended up giving them about 500 including a lot of complete series and they were seriously pleased.

Don't bin them.

Putting them in a box outside has always worked for me- with a sign saying please take. The only book it didn't work with was Piers Morgan's diaries !!!!

our local Tesco has a book shelf and people leave books and others take and donate to charity. Please don't bin.

Just to agree with others above, my gran is in a home and we donate our books there. Others followed and they ended up making a 'library' with 3 massive bookshelves and a couple of sofas. Any that are unsuitable go to charity shops but they sort through them and do it all themselves

Lol at Spring.
Even people after a freebie have standards!

We just had a big sort out of childrens books (all in good condition, lots of hardbacks) and my Mum took them to Oxfam for me. The women in there were so rude to her that she nearly just brought them straight out again.

We took the next couple of bags full of books to the Mind shop and they were very happy to take them and very grateful.

I think donating them to an old peoples home is a lovely idea.

I can't, just cannot bring myself to throw a book in the bin. I freecycled a few boxes recently (I guess people take them to car boot sales), but even if I couldn't shift them, I think I would end up keeping them in boxes under the bed till the end of time. I'm very soft-hearted when it comes to books. I would be interested in any community libraries where you could donate books so that people enjoy them rather than sell them on.

I volunteer as a librarian at a local primary school, and would always be happy to receive donations of children's books for that age group. Obviously not adults' books though!

Ooh, book bombing sounds like a plan. I have a pile to go as well. If I take one with me every day on the train and leave it behind I can get rid of a few that way.

Do you have a book recycle bin near you? I had similar problems getting rid of books in the past, now I just dump them in the donation box in Tesco car park.

I'm a librarian, and the only time I throw books away is when the book is in a terrible state eg water damage or pages missing, or is out of date eg references to or maps of Soviet Union instead of Russia.

For my own books that I no longer want, I have a cardboard box outside my house with a free books sign. I fill it up, and they disappear quickly. It helps my house is on a main road on the way to the station.

Amnesty international run just book charity shops.

It's one off DDs favourite haunts.

I am also desperate to restock my secondary school library. Where are you op?

I'm going to get ripped to pieces and flamed to dear but do book art and sell them £8 a pop.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/111451342128?limghlpsr=true&hlpv=2&ops=true&viphx=1&hlpht=true&lpid=108&device=m&adtype=pla&crdt=0&ff3=1&ff11=ICEP3.0.0&ff12=67&ff13=80&ff14=108

I once put a really awful book in the recycling bin. But I only did this because I couldn't bear to inflict it on others!

I long to put Gina Ford in the recycling, but my teen DDs think it's hilarious.

Definitely do book crossing. Leave them on trains and at stations.

Healthy Planet have book centres where they take books (and give them away for a charitable donation). Check if you are near one.

Centre Map - beta.healthyplanet.org/get-involved/sustainable-community/books-for-free/centre-map

I believe you can also contact them to collect, but only if you have a lot of books (like, a thousand).

Secondary school Libraries
Old Peoples Homes
Many charity shops - some have specialist book shops
Hospice
Hospitals - esp places where people have to spend a lot of time, eg on dialysis, or some cancer specialist wards
The houses they have near Children's hospitals or the specialist Armed Forces ones that families stay
Rehabilitation Centres

I bagged up loads of books recently and dropped them in the book recycling bins outside Sainsbury. Google book recycling for your area, I did a few carrier bags a week and they were soon gone.