De-Cluttering Personal Challenge

A library in the area had a display of books on organization.  Looking back, my guess is it was aimed at those with New Year resolutions.  All I know is that I was drawn in, and ended up checking out The Clutter-Busting Handbook: Clean It Up, Clear It Out, and Keep Your Life Clutter-Free by Rita Emmett.  So I've been reading it and feeling inspired.  I don't really expect my life to become clutter free.  However, I do hope to at least make the one area of my life where I am clutter-central (my books) a little more manageable.  This will mean, for at least part, donating.

So... do you have any ideas about where I can donate?  I do have some obvious (to me) options... the local library, the local Goodwill, or a Reading Tree box.  (I'm afraid online giveaways aren't really an option... packaging and postage cost money I can't really afford.)  But do you have any more creative or personal ideas?  I figure the more personal and creative, the more motivated I might be to actually give the books up. =)

Book Hoarding ...

My place can get pretty bad, er, messy. To the point that my mother will come help me clean it (that sounds pathetic, I know). And lately she's taken to making comments like, "Are you sure you're not a hoarder?" I've assured her not - even had her watch the show Hoarders to make my point.

But then I started thinking about my book collecting, and how, among book lovers, I've "heard" people proudly proclaim themselves "book hoarders." Some, from what I've seen and read, are "worse" than me. Others, I'm definitely "worse." And I'm always wanting more! So I thought I'd share, and you can tell me... are you a book hoarder? =)

[Note: My place has been cleaned recently, the books spread out more as time goes on.]

First, the bookshelves in my room (the paperbacks are triple stacked - deep - and the hardbacks are double)...

Then there's the boxes and totes in the closet...

Books that have stacked up on the computer desk...

Swap (paperbackswap) books...

Whatever library books I have checked out...

Sitting at the table with me =) ...

Table books...

The books in my china cabinet (mostly bible books, travel books, and my autographed books)...

[Note: The china cabinet isn't usually open; the cats were very interested in sniffing things out.]

Ups, Downs, and aallll Arounds...

This is a description of my TBR books. I have a new (my 4th) bookshelf that is supposed to help me organize these. Unfortunately, I have yet to get it to my place. At least part of this is due to the books lying practically everywhere and blocking the route to the corner reserved for the new bookshelf. BTW, "reserved" probably isn't accurate as there is a tote of books there as well. I can't walk across the bedroom at night without a light on for fear of stumbling, slipping and slidding over books. I keep stacking them up.... and up.... and the cats (and me, too, I admit) keep knocking them down and down. Hence, the aall around in my title. =)

This is another problem with books. Storage. How to keep them accessible and yet out of the way? How to not be overrun and bombarded (seriously, I can't count the number of times I've been trying to grab one—only to have a pile rain down on my head) by them?

And if anyone happens to read this and wants to share solutions, please feel free. Because bookshelves, boxes, totes, and stacks aren't cutting it for me.