Anyone who goes near a charity shop these days realises that books are two a penny. Indeed our biggest charity shop recently offered CDs, DVDs and books for 1p each simply to clear stock and make room for more. They have thousands (and that is not an exaggeration).
Over the years I have been clearing my loft of books and have given many hundreds to charity shops. Indeed on one occasion a few years ago I filled my very ample estate car (US station wagon) with boxes of books and vinyl records and took them to Glasgow where the Oxfam University Bookshop and the separate Oxfam Music Shop were delighted to take them. The books included a complete original Heron set of the Russian Classics which I'd had from my early twenties when I devoured them all with great relish.
I recently came across a 150+ year old set of books on painters in my bookcase. I have a rule now - one out for every one in. I needed space for a couple of new books. I hadn't used these reference books for many years and would be unlikely ever to do so again. I'd just ask Google. I knew they would have no value in an ordinary charity shop so I looked on line to discover that the set had been reprinted many times and was still available as a 'new' book. The condition of my set wasn't good (good sets of that age were selling for a few pounds) so they went in the bin (refuse). I think it's the first time I've ever disposed of a book that way.
Although I use a Kindle, physical books still have a place. Apart from anything else digitised books go out of date very quickly. The format changes. Old formats are frequently not readable by newer programs. There's an interesting and straightforward article here. If I pop my clogs whilst living in my current home then there will still be books here for my son to dispose of. There will probably still be my CD collection of over a thousand (I've just done a rough count of the ones in the living room and there's many more in the loft). My very extensive DVD collection isn't going anywhere anytime soon either. I know I can stream what I don't have but I still like watching the occasional DVD.
I've not mentioned digital newspapers. I only buy a paper when I'm going to have to go into hospital or spend a day on a plane or train. Apart from anything else the paper I buy has lots of puzzles which I can do without an internet connection.
It made me wonder how many of my Blogland friends and acquaintances have decided to go entirely or even mainly digital.
I've made a few guesses in my mind.
Interesting post. Your huge collections make mine tiny.
ReplyDeleteI just today sent of an email to a relative about purging books. Years ago I sold 5 to 7 boxes of good books for a measley twenty US dollars. Foolish, but when you have so many you make furniture out of the boxes, drastic measures are warranted. I am very near the keeper level/not of value except to me.
I do not own an ebook reader nor have I used one. Irony there because I hope one day to publish an ebook novel. If that happens, then I will get an ebook reader. I will not be giving up paper books in my life time.
Maywyn, when the Amazon Kindle came out I embraced it because I was flying between New Zealand and Scotland twice a year. No more carrying big paperbacks. Last year Amazon 'killed' the original Kindle (that I had) so I had to buy a new one to keep or read all the ebooks I have. It does have advantages but despite my enthusiasm at the time I still prefer a good paper book when I read before going to sleep.
DeleteAlthough I've disposed of a lot of books in the past year, there are many I've kept. We also have CDs, DVDs, Audio casettes and vinyl LPs, and the means to play them.
ReplyDeleteTasker, I have a feeling that many of us (especially people like me of advancing years) realise the mammoth task we may be leaving someone when the inevitable happens. I know that I will no longer read most of the books that I have so, if they are not reference books or ones I may refer to or read again, there seems little point in keeping them. I, too, have the means to play all the old media (including a wind-up gramophone) but I decided that I never would so have bitten the vinyl bullet at least. I got rid of my tapes years ago.
DeleteHi Graham, blasted Goodle will not let me sign in, it's Jayne.
ReplyDeleteWhen the Kindle was first available I swore up and down I would never relinquish my hold on proper paper books. Now older (and hopefully wiser) I have learned never to say 'never'. These days nearly all my fiction reading is digital (it's a Kobo now, much nicer experience than the ubiquitous Kindle) although there are the treasured, old favourites which I re-read every year that just HAVE to be real and not electronic.
I have found, however, that I cannot retain information the same way from digital versions of non-fiction books and those libraries continue to threaten to take over. And I have no problem with that at all :-)
I do have a concern that without lovely old-fashioned printed books, should there be a digital-damaging solar-flare or other electronic catastrophe, half of humanity will be up smelly creek without a paddle as all their reference material becomes inaccessible.
Good to hear from you Jayne. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that your blog is now private? Apart from that I can see no reason why you can't sign into mine. Do you still blog, by the way? I rarely use my Kindle now (even though I had to update to a new one recently) but I've never tried a Kobo. Several hundred of the books adorning the end wall of my living room are reference books even though I rarely refer to many of them. If Armageddon were to happen I'd have some reference material. Whether by then I'd need it heaven alone knows.
DeleteThe Wonder Which Is Google - this morning, signed in no problem 🤨 Not blogging anymore, but thank you for asking. I took down my original garden/life blog a couple of years ago and the replacement one about my little camper van sits untouched . . . Just do not feel the need to blog anymore, but having done so almost constantly since 2008 I reckon I was due for a break. Never say never, ha ha, who knows I may start up again sometime?
DeleteJayne, I'm glad you got past the Google Gatekeeper! I can understand you not blogging but was intrigued when it said that I hadn't been invited to read it implying that it was still there and available. I don't blog as much as I'd like to because there just are not enough hours in a day or week or month to do all that I want (or have) to do. But I still read blogs (often on my phone when waiting for things) even if I don't comment as much and I would miss it very much if I stopped.
DeleteI'm old-fashioned, and I refuse to go digital. I love reading paper newspapers. I have them delivered on the weekends,and I usually purchase at least four newspapers through the week...of the paper variety.
ReplyDeleteAs for reading e-books, kindle and the like, that is not for me. I can think of little worse. Books are "books"...made out of paper, and paper products! As I said...I am old-fashioned, and not embarrassed, nor ashamed to admit to being so.
I gave a lot of my books to the local Op Shops....and I've also given quite a few to a young woman who works at my local supermarket. She loves reading...and has been studying part time to become a librarian. I have no family to leave my possessions to...and, selfishly, I get great joy giving books to the lass at the supermarket. :) I still have many books on my shelves...so all have not been given away.
I have a million cassettes, CDs and LPs. They're not going anywhere soon.
Take good care, Graham. :)
Unfortunately, Lee, I don't allocate enough time for reading newspapers except when I'm away. I don't read anywhere near as many books as I used to either. My pre=sleep reading is ALWAYS a paper book.
DeleteI'm a long way from complete digitalization.
ReplyDeleteI think, Red, that most of us senior citizens are. I have embraced digitalisation but I'll never be completely converted.
DeleteOur books were severely culled when we moved here, down to two tall bookcases. I love the books I've kept but I rarely look at them. Otherwise, pretty well all digital for me. I don't buy hard copies of books or anything else much now.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, Andrew, I do still buy the occasional hard copy and so have to take the decision as to what it is going to replace. That will get harder as the few hundred remaining in the lofty gets disposed of.
DeleteI believe that charity shops can house plenty of unrecognised valuable first editions. Always good to check the front pages. I only buy one paper these days; The Sunday Times. I don't even read an online paper.
ReplyDeleteCro, I'm sure that you're correct although many are becoming much more aware of what they have and Oxfam, in particular, is very savvy in their approach to marketing, the goods they stock (and move around) and the prices they charge. On one occasion I saw a pristine boxed set of Beatrix Potter books. I bought them on the spur of the moment for a friend's just born daughter. When I got home I discovered I could have got a new set from Amazon for less. C'est la vie.
DeleteI'm going by the "one in, one out" rule too... I can live with my shelves being full, but have no room for more shelves! And consider myself "saved" by Kindle and Audible... ;) Nowadays I buy few printed books and most of them Swedish and to do with Swedish and local history. The ones that go are mostly outdated reference books, various old paperbacks of poor quality (falling apart) or which I'll never reread anyway, and English paperback classics replaced with free Kindle versions. My CD collection is nowhere near as large as yours and I don't buy all that many new CDs and DVDs any more. (I have some old DVDs of poor quality I can sacrifice if I should need space for a few new ones.) As for my local morning newspaper I switched to only the digital version last summer. Miss it sometimes but wasn't quite the same since they replaced my front door to the flat with one without a letter slot...
ReplyDeleteMonica, I think the one-in-one-out practice with books is a very good practice as one gets older for lots of reasons many of which you and others have suggested. One category of books I culled severely was my cookery books. I tend to use them for idea but if I think of something different I usually just use an online recipe.
DeleteI hate getting rid of books. My husband's solution is to put them in the loft 'in case'. I'm sure the ceiling will fall in one day!
ReplyDeleteJabblog, I got over my mental inability to get rid of books when I realise that to do some work in my loft I would have to move hundreds of books and the shelves and then re-instate them all. Now they've gone I don't think about the loss. Although occasionally I discover that a book I thought I'd kept had been culled.
DeleteI don't read digital books; just actual books - usually from the library. I get the Sunday paper as an actual paper delivered to my driveway but the rest of the week, I get my news from newsletters to my email account.
ReplyDeleteEllen, the one paper I might have bought if I'd been able was the Sunday paper. However no papers are sold on Sunday on Lewis and a Sunday Paper on a Monday would be pointless even if one had time on a Monday to read it.
DeleteI like reading a proper paper copy of a book when in bed. I buy mostly from charity shops where around here in the county they are usually 50p, I don't have anything against e books although have never tried it but I did download the e library app just this weekend coincidentally as sometimes I am finding books in the lending library are only available to borrow as e-books. I don't store fiction in the house but give back to charity as soon as finished. I do have a few art reference books that I am not parting with at the moment because I still refer to them in my studies. I don't have any problem with parting with books or possessions in general. I sold my entire record collection to a dealer, singles and LPs, about 10 years ago along with the record player which I had had since I was 13. I don't miss them because I can play all I want on You Tube from the comfort of my armchair on my TV set. I sometimes buy the FT on a Saturday for the financial news and culture and arts. I buy my daily local newspaper for local news which I like to keep up with.
ReplyDeleteRachel, that sounds like an eminently sensible and balanced approach: pretty much as I would have expected from you.
DeleteI still prefer printed books even though I like my laptop, iPads and iPhone for just about everything else. Yes we use the one in one out routine too. The village has an extensive library too, all donated books by residents who had to downsize to live here. We ditched our huge collection of CD's when we moved here and many DVD's. But I still have a cupboard full of DVD's made by Bill of our holidays and family over the years. (Should watch them more often)
ReplyDeleteDiane you have raised a very pertinent point about family DVD/films. I have a number of such DVDs and I had almost forgotten about them. Your comment reminded me to search for them and I will play them when the appropriate moments become available. Thank you.
DeleteAlthough I have been using my kindle for more than 10 years now (still the original first model that can do nothing but display pages of text), it has never been intended as a replacement, just as an addition. And it keeps serving me well on my frequent train trips to and from work, or to O.K. and back, and of course it is my trusted companion for longer trips and holidays. Gone are the days when I had to limit myself to a few paperbacks in order not to make my suitcase too heavy, knowing full well they would not last me the entire holiday. Now I have all the books I want, weighing almost nothing, and readable even in winter on an icy platform with my gloves on.
ReplyDeleteAt home, reading happens almost exclusively from paper books, either in bed before going to sleep or when I am working from home, on my yellow armchair during my lunch break while eating a sandwich.
My shelves are pretty full, but I still get books as Christmas and birthday gifts, and buy some for myself at my favourite book shop, The Little Ripon Book Shop, when I am in Ripon. So far, I have not had to get rid of many books, and if I wanted, I could put up shelves in my Third Room (a combination of study/office and guest room).
Meike, I first bought a Kindle to use on my journeys between home in Scotland and home in New Zealand. It also meant that I could read books in New Zealand without buying duplicates. I did the same with my music collection on one of Apple's original iPods. Over 1000 DVSs available wherever I was. How irrelevant that seems 10 years later when one can stream anything anywhere.
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ReplyDeleteJill, I understood your comment perfectly. I feel the same about those hundreds of books (and many other possessions) that I still have.
DeleteI have relatively few books and I try to keep moving them out. My books about birth are the ones I have the biggest issue with. I bought them all new and they added up to hundreds of dollars worth (which is irrelevant because they are worth nothing once purchased) I could sell them for a few dollars but my daughters are coming closer to child bearing so they might be interested but if they are not, I will have kept them for nothing as they continue to date. I offered them to the clinic Caitlin works in, thinking a library for clients might be a nice idea but the boss there thought a library would be too much work.
ReplyDeleteI have only a couple of dozen cds and no dvds. I've never been one to spend much on these kinds of things so it wont be too much to dispose of. We have a familiy spotify account now so there is a stack of music available to me and no need for storage.
I wrote a long comment here and I don't suppose it's hiding in comment moderation since this is a newish post. I lose so many comments and mainly blame my own vagueness but sometimes I wonder. Anyways.....
ReplyDeleteI read paper books, usually bought second hand or borrowed from a son/ sister/ daughter. I borrowed a kindle for a bit and didnt much like it although I had expected to.
I try to get pass books forward rather than keep them but I do have a large collection of birth and early parenting books I bought to further my knowledge as a doula. The collection is losing value as it ages and I probably should pass it on but my daughters say they will have babies some day so I'm loathe to get rid of the books yet. My daughters will probably not want to read them but if they did, I'd want the books.
I use spotify to access music and have only a tiny collection of cds. I have even less dvds. I've never been much interested in buying a lot of those things. I rarely watch a movie twice so I've always been content to see them on tv or these days to stream it.
It's the decision making that's hard when decluttering, what to do with what. I wish you well, Graham
Kylie, I'm so sorry that you had to write your comment twice but I'm exceptionally grateful that you did because your second was published and led to me finding many other "missing" posts. Your experience with the birthing books is very typical of the current state of affairs with books in general. Where did they all used to go? Even charity shops struggle these days despite hard copies of books still being exceptionally popular. The digital revolution has not seen the demise of the paper book.
ReplyDeleteI do find one big advantage of the CDs that I have is that I would almost certainly forget many composers and old recordings and pieces of music in recordings that I love. I can browse my CDs. Browsing the entire collection of the world's classical music alone would just not happen.
No need to apologise, I just get so mystified sometimes :)
DeleteHi GB, here's my personal take on reading/listening. I love real books. If I am reading at home, at my leisure, it will always be a real book. Over the years I have stopped purchasing books, as my cottage is stuffed with books, so mostly library books for me. My sister recently mailed me a book, which I enjoyed, and then she requested that I send it back to her, so I suggested that in future if she wants me to read something (most of her books are recently published) to just send me the title and author via email and let me check the library for it. My own books, keepers, at home, I read over and over - one of my yearly reads is "Les Liasons Dangereuses" - I've even started a little collection of antique early editions, some in French! I don't read French, but owning gorgeous antique books in stamped and gilded leather covers makes me shiver deliciously. Of course Shakespeare's "Hamlet: Prince of Denmark" is on my home shelves, in various tomes of various antiquity...
ReplyDeleteEven though I own a gazillion CDs, most of the music I listen to is on YouTube & Pandora (in the house) or SiriusXM Radio (in my Jeep).
As for movies, I'll watch them wherever I can get them (Netflix, BritBox, Amazon Prime, Kanopy) but I own a really great collection of DVDs, because if I love a movie, I watch it over and over ("Withnail & I", "Dangerous Liaisons", Kenneth Branagh's "Hamlet", "It's a Wonderful Life", "Othello", "Original Sin" - to name just a few). Most movie channels only play modern, recently filmed dreck, and most of my favorite movies are old... I would rather own them so I can see them whenever I want to.
We are fortunate that our library has a vast collection of DVDs and a well-functioning network with all the other local libraries on the island and their collections of books and DVDs, so almost anything is accessible, sometimes with just a bit of a wait for it to travel to our library.
I do have a Kindle, for those odd occasions when I will be perhaps away from home for a while, or I know I'll be sitting waiting somewhere...
It all boils down to how important something is to me and how often I will re-listen, re-watch, or re-read it. If that is high on the list then I own it. If not, I get it digitally or from other sources.
I truly miss newspapers and magazines. And I mean the old kind that you know, are made of paper!
ReplyDelete