What to do with read books

fjon

What do you guys do with the books you've read and don't want to keep?
I've a fair pile of books and DVDs I've read/ watched once and I know i will never read again.
I don't really feel like going into Chapters and getting 50c per book, nor do I really want to drop a bag of them into Oxfam or the like.
I was wondering are there any charities/ organisations that would like books/ DVDs and actually make use of them around Dublin?
Let me know if anyone has given books to someone they would recommend.

Prenderb

Charity shops are great places to drop off books, everyone's a winner, the books get passed onto someone who wants to read them, you get rid, and the charity gets a couple of quid.

But if it's not for you how about checking with something like a local nursing home who might like to stock a library? Or are there such things as adult literacy clubs who could do with them? (I found this http://www.nala.ie/support-us/better-world-books)

hooplah

Where do you live? Your local library might take them, we used to take them in the ILAC Centre when I worked there. Probably best to ring beforehand though.

fjon

Thanks guys, these are both ideas I hadn't thought of.
I will use charity shops but would rather give them to someone who would use them rather than sell them. I don't know, I prefer the idea of someone reading the books rather than then sitting on a shelf in a shop for months or years.

Wyldwood

Our local library has a table where you can leave books and others can take them freely. Great idea for books you won't read again.

Reekwind

Put them on a shelf. Look at them occasionally. Feel smug.

fjon

Reekwind wrote: »

Put them on a shelf. Look at them occasionally. Feel smug.

Already do too much of that!

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

I felt the same about giving books to charity shops until I went into the Oxfam shop on Parliament St. It's solely for books so the only people going into it would be people who actually want a book. I don't know why but I liked that idea better than giving them to one of these brick a brack charity shops that are full of rubbish.

Don't know where you live but there's a cafe in Smithfield in Dublin that has book shelves where you can read a book while you're there. If you find one you like you can take it home with you as long as you swap it for another one. They probably wouldn't want you arriving in with a box full but one or two would be fine. You might find something else you wanted to read and get it for free.

Stheno

I advertise them for free on adverts, always get piles of offers and collected the next day.

Have two blue ikea bags of books ready to go at the minute

fjon

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I felt the same about giving books to charity shops until I went into the Oxfam shop on Parliament St. It's solely for books so the only people going into it would be people who actually want a book. I don't know why but I liked that idea better than giving them to one of these brick a brack charity shops that are full of rubbish.

Don't know where you live but there's a cafe in Smithfield in Dublin that has book shelves where you can read a book while you're there. If you find one you like you can take it home with you as long as you swap it for another one. They probably wouldn't want you arriving in with a box full but one or two would be fine. You might find something else you wanted to read and get it for free.

The Oxfam sounds good. I don't live near town, but it might be worth a trip over given the amount of books I have.
I've used Adverts a lot for free stuff, but have been screwed around a lot and would prefer to leave it as a last resort.

Travel is good

Book Crossing is a good way of ensuring that your books are recycled. There is a Book Crossing shelf in the Long Stone pub, Townsend St. Dublin 2 (near Pearse st. Garda station & Screen cinema), there is also a shelf in Blanchardstown library.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=88954208

I also saw this in the local community paper:

Ballymun Book exchange runs on the 1st Thursday of every month in Ballymun Civic Centre between 9.30am and 1pm. The next exchange takes place on Thursday June 5. The idea is to bring a book and exchange it for another, free of charge. The aim is to help and encourage more people to read. For more info. or to make book donations, contact the Education section of Ballymun Whitehall Area Partnership on 01-8423612 or e mail: bookexchange@ballymun.org

cookiecakes

Maybe see if your local hospital would like them? They usually have a mobile library that they bring around to patients and they can be poorly stocked at times.

ivytwine

There's a meet-up group in Dublin called Book Swap which meets once a month to swap books?

Mountainsandh

I'm not in Dublin, but got rid of 8 boxes of books in a few days with an ad on Freecycle.
I got a good few replies so just divided up the 8 boxes between a few people. It's great to feel you're making a few people's day. A young man came on the bus from a neighbouring town and filled up two sports bags of fiction for his wife, times are hard, and he said she was always saying how costly her reading habit was. I can relate to that. Some Mums got books for an informal stay at home Mums' book club. Others got a few for charity book sales.

LynnGrace

Some great ideas here. I've often handed books into the local charity shops, but would gladly give them to some of the places mentioned here too.
Am due a big clear out one of the days.

prq

If it's a book I think will reread, I'll keep it.
If not, I give it to a friend who may have shown interest, or donate to a local charity.

MagicMarker

I give all my read books to me, you should do the same OP.

Sulla Felix

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I felt the same about giving books to charity shops until I went into the Oxfam shop on Parliament St. It's solely for books so the only people going into it would be people who actually want a book.

It's a great bookshop, but you'll also see books on the kerb being left for recycling. The recycling bags they use are clear plastic.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Sulla Felix wrote: »

It's a great bookshop, but you'll also see books on the kerb being left for recycling. The recycling bags they use are clear plastic.

Really? I never noticed. Could be when people drop in big bags or boxes there's some stuff they can't resell?

kylith

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Really? I never noticed. Could be when people drop in big bags or boxes there's some stuff they can't resell?

Yeah, unfortunately they'd get a lot of books they can't sell because of their condition, or that won't sell for some reason, and they recycle them.

The destruction of books is an emotive topic (there have only been two I've ever had that I have put in the recycling bin with relish*) but second hand bookshops and charity shops have to be practical.

*one was an evolution-denying book and the other was the only Dan Brown novel I've ever read.