Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 I have around 3000 books. We are downsizing significantly and some just have to go—but where? No Goodwill locally and the Salvation Armies are not accepting donations as they’re completely overwhelmed. No little free libraries. I’ve advertised on FB as book giveaways. Libraries are not accepting donations. I shudder at just dumping them but…any ideas I’m not thinking of? I could just make room for them in the new house if my husband’s construction tools mysteriously disappeared, but then I might mysteriously disappear…or at least my marriage might…. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 do you have a half-price books? schools? home school groups? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 1 minute ago, gardenmom5 said: do you have a half-price books? schools? home school groups? No half price books or any used bookstores. No schools are accepting donations. I gave two boxes already to a homeschool library but that was all they wanted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirstenhill Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Better World Books? They have an email address for "large donations" - you could contact them to see if they can help you out and find a way for you to get them the books without paying to ship them: https://www.betterworldbooks.com/go/donate 5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 No used bookstores that would accept a donation anywhere in reasonable driving distance? I have placed many books by listing them for free on facebook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Is there a nearby nursing home or adult center that takes donations? Do any local churches want donations for a future rummage sale? Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 5 minutes ago, regentrude said: No used bookstores that would accept a donation anywhere in reasonable driving distance? I have placed many books by listing them for free on facebooked. About 2.5 hours one way. And they want you to leave them and come back 24 hours later to get the ones they didn’t buy. Ive been listing. I may just keep trying. I have a ton of lhousehold goods and stuff that I can’t get rid of either. Every place is overwhelmed with donations. A lot of peolple spent last year cleaning out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoo Keeper Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 I've donated to homeless shelters/crisis pregnancy centers/domestic violence shelter that were THRILLED to have books or other educational materials available for a range of ages. The director of one of the shelters said many times they have moms with older children who are temporarily unable to attend their normal school because of their circumstances-- she was very happy to have *anything* that could be used for those children and their moms. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selkie Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Do any of the animal rescues in your area have thrift stores? That's where we donate our books. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 That's too big of a volume for fast disposal by any of the means that I use. But just some ideas in case you have not thought of them: I give away a lot of books on our local Buy Nothing list. I group them in categories, photograph them, name the group, and say 'Please take all". In my circle that means all or nothing. The practical limit of a group, though, is only about 6-10 at a time. We have a bunch of Little Free Libraries locally and I carry books to donate with me whenever I go anywhere. When I see a LFL I drop a few in. Practical limit, though, is about 5. There is almost never room for more than that in any single one. I put books two deep in my bookshelves. I keep an eye out for new coops starting up. Sometimes they want to build libraries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Better World Books. Prisons (although sometimes they will only take paperbacks). Some zoos like board books for their primates. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 I want to add--even I know that I have too many books. But one of the instantaneous things that happened here when the SIP started was that all of the libraries shut down immediately and completely. And then I was glad to have a lot of books to read and to share. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katy Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 Ask your pediatrician’s office if they would like them. Ask your local elementary schools & teachers. Many elementary teachers I know feel like they’re hemorrhaging books. If there are Catholic churches in your area look for a St Vincent dePaul store. They’re like goodwill but provide things for free to people in need (including kids in foster care). They sell to people who can afford to pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 I posted on our local school’s FB group. It’s nice books like Because of Winn-Dixie and Little Bear collection and Paddington. I just have to cull down to about 1500 books. The real issue is that I don’t actually want to get rid of any, because they’re all loved and lovely books, but we’re going from about 2500 square feet to 1300/1400. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janeway Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 I wish I could look at your books! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R828 Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 If you are willing to ship, maybe you could post for free on one of the FB homeschool for sale groups and ask that the buyer just pay for shipping. Media mail can be surprisingly affordable, so you might find takers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R828 Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 12 minutes ago, Janeway said: I wish I could look at your books! Me too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlktwins Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 I post our outgrown kids books for free on our neighborhood FB page. Teachers snatch them up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Idalou Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 (edited) May I ask where you live, general area? Sorry if that is intrusive. I can tell you are in NY, but didn't know where. Edited August 10, 2021 by Idalou Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted August 10, 2021 Author Share Posted August 10, 2021 22 minutes ago, Idalou said: May I ask where you live, general area? Sorry if that is intrusive. I can tell you are in NY, but didn't know where. Fingerlakes area. I’d be open to posting and shipping if the new owner covered shipping and promised to love my books. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 3 hours ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said: I posted on our local school’s FB group. It’s nice books like Because of Winn-Dixie and Little Bear collection and Paddington. I just have to cull down to about 1500 books. The real issue is that I don’t actually want to get rid of any, because they’re all loved and lovely books, but we’re going from about 2500 square feet to 1300/1400. There is no shame in boxing them up for an attic or even storage. If you really love them and that is a thing, it's a reasonable expenditure for now. You might feel differently later, and that would be a great time to do this. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Idalou Posted August 10, 2021 Share Posted August 10, 2021 10 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said: Fingerlakes area. I’d be open to posting and shipping if the new owner covered shipping and promised to love my books. There are places called Bright Red Bookshelf in the Buffalo and Rochester area, but the main one is in Ithaca. I am in Pittsford. They may also go by Red Bookshelf or Little Red Bookshelf. I think they still accept books for kids at several places. It's part of the Family Reading Partnership. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth S Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 Put them out at your curb, with a FREE sign. Post them as Free on local FB Marketplace (or even on your personal FB page). I'm on our local library board, and we didn't advertise that we were accepting donations, but we unlocked the donation bin. 😉 I'm astounded at the lack of interest in your local community! Veterans, Homeless Shelters, Thrift Stores, Back to Homeschool Mtgs this month. What a problem to have! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 Dang it. I was all ready to give a bunch of books away, and someone asked me a question about Renaissance history and I started really looking at my logic stage collection seriously, and…I like them. For ME. And they are mostly in a big office suite that I badly need to clear out before the lease is up, my plans for which did not include installing a library in my home beyond the many shelves we already have. Not going to be easy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 Have you considered advertising a "free yard sale"? Put all the books out then, see if people take them. Or... when are you moving? If you can store them until Halloween I have actually moved some serious volume of books by giving them out to trick or treaters. If they're children's books, I mean. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 34 minutes ago, Tanaqui said: Have you considered advertising a "free yard sale"? Put all the books out then, see if people take them. Or... when are you moving? If you can store them until Halloween I have actually moved some serious volume of books by giving them out to trick or treaters. If they're children's books, I mean. Wait. What? Halloween?? Mind blown. What a wonderful idea! Wow. That’s just … why didn’t I think of that? Do you just pop them in the kids’ ToT bags, or do you do anything else to make them Halloween-y? Totally planning this for this October! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, Spryte said: Wait. What? Halloween?? Mind blown. What a wonderful idea! Wow. That’s just … why didn’t I think of that? Do you just pop them in the kids’ ToT bags, or do you do anything else to make them Halloween-y? Totally planning this for this October! We have that here, it’s a thing. There are drives for books months beforehand. There is a local charity organized to do this, called Books for Treats. You might look at their website. It’s really cool. Edited August 11, 2021 by Carol in Cal. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 I sorted them roughly into groups - picture books here, chapter books there, YA over there - and encouraged every trick or treater to take as many books as they wanted. I just wanted to clear out my old stock of things the kids were never gonna read again and that I didn't care about saving for the future. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 This is brilliant. I wondered about sorting them! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Tiggywinkle Posted August 11, 2021 Author Share Posted August 11, 2021 1 hour ago, Spryte said: Wait. What? Halloween?? Mind blown. What a wonderful idea! Wow. That’s just … why didn’t I think of that? Do you just pop them in the kids’ ToT bags, or do you do anything else to make them Halloween-y? Totally planning this for this October! That’s awesome!! We are too rural for ToT’ers at the new house but my MIL always gets quite the crowd and can move some lol. I found two teachers that got moved to middle school who took some for their classroom libraries. The rest I think I’m just going to keep and find a place for. Apparently I am a book hoarder. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cintinative Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 There were some great ideas upthread. Other than the battered women's shelter, Maybe the social service agency that does foster placements? Local big brothers/big sisters organization or volunteer tutoring organization (we have one here called WhizKids) Ronald McDonald house (if there is one) or other long term residential care for kids like St. Jude's Children's Hospital Police station for when they have to care for kids temporarily (Maybe?) Local play therapy/talk therapy provider for kids. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 27 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle said: That’s awesome!! We are too rural for ToT’ers at the new house but my MIL always gets quite the crowd and can move some lol. I found two teachers that got moved to middle school who took some for their classroom libraries. The rest I think I’m just going to keep and find a place for. Apparently I am a book hoarder. Book hoarders unite! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 3 minutes ago, Spryte said: Book hoarders unite! We are total enablers here. 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted August 11, 2021 Share Posted August 11, 2021 If you have time I would sell them rather than give away. It sounds ridiculous but I’ve found people seem to place a higher value on books listed for sale than giveaway and are more likely to come looking for them. I use Facebook buy swap sell or eBay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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