Day 17: Books

What: Books

Why: There is just something inspiring about looking at a huge library full of books. I think back to the movie “The Beauty and the Beast” when Belle is swinging on the ladder that reaches to all ends of that massive library. I thought it would always be thrilling to walk into a library that has that feature – a movable ladder.

Even though our own personal “libraries” may not need a ladder, there is still something inspiring about looking at those shelves, isn’t there?

There is only one problem…

How many of those books do we actually read?

Life is full of good intentions – one of them being: reading all the books we own. In reality, how many of us think that we will actually accomplish this?

Well, today you are going to make this goal manageable and possible. If all goes according to the plan, you will be able to CONFIDENTLY say you will read all of the books you own.

How – Where to start?

1. Think about all of the places you have books stored. However many places you may have, you are going to have to go through each and every one of them.

2. The time-consuming part: going through EACH book. Questions to ask yourself:

• Why do you have this book?
• Why have you not read it yet?
• Will you HONESTLY read it?
• Is it a book that you can get from your local library?
• Do you know someone who would benefit from the book more than you?
• What it comes down to is :WHAT PURPOSE IS IT SERVING ON YOUR SHELF?

3. While going through each book, either put it in a pile to keep or a pile to donate.

4. Clean off your shelves

5. Now it’s time to ORGANIZE!

• There are various ways you can organize your books and there is not a “right” way to do so. Here are a few options: alphabetically, according to height, hardcovers together/paperbacks together, reference books together, etc.
• One idea to keep in mind: the books you are keeping because you want to read them? Put them in one section of your bookshelf so when you are looking for a book to read, you know exactly where to go.

6. Donate or sell the books you do not plan on keeping.

Now your bookshelves should be neatly organized and more importantly, you are not shelving books that do not belong there or books that will never get read.

a few thoughts on libraries…

Libraries tend to be a novel idea (no pun intended). We tend to forget about our libraries – we are so quick to order a book online or go to the closest Barnes and Noble, when in reality, the book we ordered or just bought, will probably only be read once. Libraries are making it easier to find a book as well – just like we search trying to find the best price on books, why not spend that time going on your library’s website seeing if they can get the book for you, FOR FREE?

Here Are A Few Reasons To Go To The LIBRARY:
1. It’s free! Yes there is a limit to how long you can have the book, but if you don’t get it read in the first 2 weeks, just renew it!

2. Library books don’t take up precious space on your bookshelf – again, many of the books we buy, we only read once anyways.

3. E-books: call your local library to see if they are available

4. If your library does not have a certain book you are looking for, often they can get it quicker (from another library) than if you were to have a purchased book shipped to you.

5. Magazines – instead of subscribing and PAYING for a subscription, check to see if your library carries that specific magazine. I would HIGHLY recommend this if you are looking to keep clutter out of your home or if you are going on a vacation. Why spend extra money on magazines when once again, you can get them for FREE from your local library!

6. Libraries also have many other resources we overlook. The internet is usually our first go to, but there is something to be said about being able to pull the ACTUAL book off the shelf, page through it, and THEN decide if you want to read it. I have heard people say that the book they ordered online wasn’t what they thought it was going to be. Now you are out some money and it will just sit on your bookshelf, wasting space.

7. Librarians are people too. We often think of them as “keep to themselves” people. They are FAR from that!

The next chance you get, stop in at your local library and if you soak it in for all it’s worth, you will not go home disappointed.

Now it’s time to make a cup of cappuccino, sit back, kick your feet up, and read that book you’ve been waiting years to dive into.