Trying to donate books

[Boedatives]

21 large boxes full. Some v new, some older but basically all literary classics.
So far, local hospixe has said they will charge £500 to come and collect (it's a 2 hour round trip for them).
What else can I do with them?
(I have a condition whereby I'm advised not to lift over 15kg as well so makes it tricky)

Do you have an Oxfam bookshop? I took my late dad's collection there and they took a max of 6 bags a day. We took many bags!

Bookselling app? May only get 20p for some of them, but they collect.

I think it will be tricky with that amount, but you could try Freecycle - someone might want them. Alternatively you could try Ziffit...

A local secondhand book seller or dealer might take them.

Ziffit them! It's really easy but they won't take very low value books.

Anything actually decent or just standard paperbacks?

2nd hand books are unfortunately hard to shift.

Local library, school, webuyanybooks, list on Facebook.

I've donated to local library and school, but arranged to take it to them (if you can).

Depending on where you are, these might collect :

https://anglodoorstepcollections.co.uk/bookcollection.php?advert_id=bitegoogle&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIw__X1a_RhwMVYLCDBx2EgBjNEAAYASAAEgKQ8_D_BwE

Put them on Facebook marketplace as suitable for a carbooter and someone will take them off your hands.

I had to deal with an unbelievably large number of books left behind by an elderly relative after she moved into a nursing home where they could not be accommodated. I couldn't count the books but there were many hundreds. She had bought all of them at used bookstores over the course of several years. Buying used books daily became part of her routine/impulse as she grew senile. There was no theme in types of books she bought, there were multiple duplicates, and she never read any of them sadly. Anyway, long story short I managed to donate a few boxes of the best looking ones back to the local oxfam bookshop. I kept a few back for myself. But the vast majority I burned in my garden I'm afraid to say

Literary classics unfortunately won't be huge demand.

Can you carboot? Put a box on the drive/wall for people to help themselves? Advertise on Facebook? Try getting rid of a few for junk journalling? Seed a few locally as you go about your day- with a note inside the cover.?

Tip

All our local supermarkets have a bookshelf you can leave books on and then pay a pound or whatever to take a book. Morrisons, Iceland, co-op and Sainsbury's.

And our Dunelm has a massive table full.

Secondhand bookshop I used to work at would buy a job lot to fill their £1 boxes in the outside bit, on the off chance that among the bulk would be something worth a fortune for their posh bit.

Music Magpie and other apps will buy and collect. Otherwise house/rubbish clearance or hire someone to drive them to the tip, which will often have a book bank.

Is it only the local hospice you've tried? Are there other charities or charity shops around your area that collect?

I think getting rid of all 21 boxes in one is a little bit ambitious. You might need to offload to several different people, places or organisations.

Adding to the suggestions here - also think about contacting a local craft group to see if they want a box of them.

Had loads to get rid of last year (elderly MIL went into a care home). Eventually took them to a local National Trust place - they had a second hand book barn, and they were very grateful.

We were able to drive up to the building to unload, too!

I'm a university researcher and spend HOURS looking for old books.
Sometimes people think old -no good but I am buying these one at a time from a bookseller.
Whatever you decide to do, don't skip them.

I’d split between charity shops, most would accept a bag for life’s worth at a time.

There are companies that sell books 'by the yard' for decorating pubs, restaurants and trendy hotels. If you can find one of those companies they might take them (hardbacks) off your hands.

Failing that you could visit local libraries and stuff a few on each shelf - in a similar manner to how they got rid of the excess soil in The Great Escape.

Ring your local Salvation Army. They will come and collect items you want to donate.

Do you live somewhere where you get decent footfall? I put books out on my wall and people walking past take them.

Or Olio/Facebook freesite them. If you can organise into genre if there's a huge amount as this could generate more interest. People will come and collect from you.

All the out patients departments in our local hospital seem to have a bookcase for donated books. I take some there..... and sometimes buy more. I intend getting rid of lots of my old books. The worse condition paperbacks will be going in my recycling bin. Hardbacks can only go in if the hard backs are removed.

@Boedatives did you contact the actual hospice or one of their charity shops?
The hospice themselves probably won't want them. Do they have a shop nearer to where you live?

I wonder if they misunderstood - a hospice near us charges to do house clearances, so maybe they got their wires crossed somewhere.

@Peasnbeans , I’m in an identical situation to the pp , I have about 20 boxes of books cluttering my living room currently. I’m afraid I’m going to have to do a tip run with them next week , as my very small flat is currently barely habitable.