How to Consolidate a Library
A personal book collection never was meant to look like the Library of Congress. Regardless of your reasons for overstocking your house with unneeded books, you may be in need of consolidating. It's easy to create a more useful and attractive space for your home library. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Review your library in sections. If you have a large home library, you may lose motivation if you try to consolidate your entire collection at one time. Instead, try visually dividing your library into thirds and tackling a section at a time.
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Pull out any books that you've owned for more than a year and still haven't read. You may have good intentions for reading that Oprah Book Club pick from two years ago, but it's likely that you aren't going to get around to it. Unread books take up valuable shelf space that could be used to display books that you have read and that can accentuate your personal collection. Exceptions include reference books, anthologies and hardcover classics.
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Move stragglers to the main collection. The new space created by retiring unread books will be ready for books that are scattered in other rooms of your house. It's fine to keep books you are reading by your bedside, but move them into the main collection as soon as you are done.
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Keep your favorites and any book that you've read more than once. The bones of a personal library are well-loved reads. A home collection isn't special or meaningful without the books that have spoken to you throughout your life.
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Hold onto the classics. Old hardcover books not only will make your collection into a stunning display, but they will help you and any guests appreciate literary roots and traditions.
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Consider replacing paperbacks with hardbacks. A personal collection looks most impressive when it is stacked with hardback books. These books also are less likely to be damaged upon a second or third reading simply because they are sturdier than paperbacks.
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Donate exiled books instead of throwing them away. It takes a little extra work but not much. Children in many countries throughout the world are in need of books because their countries have been destroyed by civil war, corruption or poverty. Nonprofits such as Books for Africa and Books for Soldiers hold drives and send book shipments to those in need.
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