What did you do with your paper books?

[Helen]

Betsy, you are brave, I can feel myself going in that direction too.

[C.S. Daley]

I still have shelves and shelves of paper books. I didn't replace any of them on my Kindle. I switch back and forth depending on my mood. I however buy very few paper books anymore. I imagine in the distant future that the only books left in my house will be my autograph collection.

[Colby]

I still read paper books as well as kindle books. I just use my kindle if I can buy the books cheaper on it :)

[James]

I kept a all of my favorites and donated the rest to my local public library.


Jim

[Ashley]

Helen wrote: "I want my kindle to display those beautiful letters at the start of a page. Wonder if Amazon could hire monks."

OMG Helen...that's classic! ;)

[Helen]

Wouldn't it be beautiful.

[Elie]

Bookmooch. The best and fairest swapping site I've found. I've given away hundreds of books and only replaced about 50 of them. I still have a use for paper books, but thanks to the kindle it is much smaller than it was.

And if you do check out bookmooch, feel free to friend me "eharriett."

[mookie]

i kept the ones that i love (like fight club, lotr and beowulf). the rest of the paper books got donated.

[Chun-Yin]

Kept all of my paper books - to me, the Kindle is really just another "bookshelf" and Kindle books aren't different to my paper copies, so no reason for me to get rid of them. I still undergo the policy of buying paper copies of new books which I love reading, while anything else would be purchased onto my Kindle.

[Katrina]

I've kept some of my favorites, but I've mostly been getting rid of them. Right now there are three boxes' worth sitting in the basement waiting to be taken to my sister and her kids.

[Madge]

I will never, ever part with paper books totally! I love them far too much lol. I mostly use my Kindle for books I don't have, that I can get cheaper for it than in a physical form. I only got the Kindle because I was running out of space for my books. I still have plenty on shelves I haven't read (and just bought several more), but the Kindle is certainly convenient for things that my husband already had in ebook format, as well as classics because many of my copies have very tiny print, and my vision isn't so great. I will definitely continue to purchase physical books. I think I've only paid for one or two books for my Kindle, because there are many that were free, or more expensive than purchasing in physical form.

[Simon]

Ate them.

[Lisa]

My husband built me a custom bookcase for behind the door in my office. I love books. I love the Kindle too. What I do is the ones I can part with I give to libraries or ACLF/nursing homes (especially the romances my MIL gives me that I don't read).

My daughter 7, is addicted to reading too,(and has several hundred) so when she finishes books I urge her to go through and donate some to her school, which she does. She recently donated about eight Junie B. Jones books, Some Magic School Bus ones, etc...

[Clare K. R.]

Simon wrote: "Ate them."

Mmm... fiber.

[Heather]

I read the eBook and if I really like it, I buy a print book. There is a place for both.

[Lisa]

Elie wrote: "Bookmooch. The best and fairest swapping site I've found. I've given away hundreds of books and only replaced about 50 of them. I still have a use for paper books, but thanks to the kindle it is mu..."

I had never heard of this site, but after you mentioning it I headed over there. Looks really interesting, so I will be sorting some more paperbacks out over the next few days and adding them too. I have some on readitswapit, some on bookcrossing and the rest can go on bookmooch (apart from the keepers that is). Thanks for the tip.

[Estelle]

I keep all my paperbacks. Even with my Kindle, I still buy paperbacks. Bcos i like to keep a copy of my fav author books... Like many of you, i have alot of paperbacks that i havent get the chance to read.

[sonya]

Sharon wrote: "I have loads of paper books that I have yet to read but want to and so I was wondering, when you got your Kindle did you rebuy all your paper books in Kindle version, or did you just go for differe..."

I didn't get rid of all my paperbacks. Why not just read the paperbacks and donate them? My kobo doesn't offer some of the books I have in print, so I kept those.

[sonya]

a kobo is a borders ereader; they were last to come out with an ereader. now they have like 5 i think.

[sonya]

Anita wrote: "I have kept many of my paperback books, especially the ones I haven't read yet. I don't see any need to re-buy them on Kindle, especially as many of them actually cost more on Kindle than what I p..."

def. not!

[sonya]

Shannon wrote: "I was a little overzealous about this topic. I found free PDF's of my old paperback books and converted them to work on my Kindle. Mainly because it takes a lot less computer space then it takes sh..."

Where did you trade your books for cash?

[sonya]

Shannon wrote: "Shirley wrote: "I donated mines to the Good Will store and sold some of the back to Amazon. I have some PDF books on my Kindle but I had a hard time getting the font the right size. Help!!"

I co..."
what about the books which are DRM; it said I could not convert those into a new format?

[sonya]

Deb wrote: "HI All !! I work in a psych hospital where some our patients are there over a month. We are trying to start up a "library" where they can pick a book to read...and we are looking for donations if a..."

where do you live, deb?
i'll send some over.

[Katrina]

Simon wrote: "Ate them."

*Snickering*

[Helen]

Made me laugh too! Put some of mine on Green Metropolis, no biters yet though.

[Lee]

I have hundreds of books and will keep them even as I embrace the new Kindle technology!

[Lia]

Wish I would have kept all my paperbacks, Kindle or not. I gave a lot away after I read them. Later I wished I had them to read again. Guess that's a nice option with kindle.

[Maja]

I love books and I kept all of mine. I don't think I will be getting rid of them. They are a torture when we move, but having them on my shelves is somehow worth it... They are all the decoration I need. :)
I was against Kindle when it first came out saying it will never replace ''real'' books, but once I got it, I fell in love!
But even now nothing can really replace the feel and the smell of the real book.
So mine are staying put. :)

[Sydney]

I'm keeping mine. Since I'm only 13, I have to keep my books for my younger sister who is 10. And I can't take my kindle to camp, (Bummer!) so I'm keeping my books for camp and stuff.

[Helen]

Every so often I read one of my many TBR DTBs, every time since becoming a kindler, I wonder for ages 'what is that smell!' I never even noticed the smell before. I don't like it!

[Amy]

Keeping mine also. I do plan to still buy paper books, but only for the series and authors I dearly love.

[Bree]

I'm keeping all my paperbacks. I've only re-bought the classics (Great Expectations, Pride and Prejudice, etc.) because I read those so often and my paperbacks are falling apart.

[Ben]

Once Ion releases its digital book product, I will scan them, and turn them all into ebooks. I will donate them to a charity after that. I never will buy a paper book again. I love e-reading!

[Joanna]

I will never get rid off my hardcover books...I love my kindle and I love my books too ! I switch...one hardcover ....and than kindle....just enjoying reading .

[Pam]

I still have all of my books. I may decide to get rid of some of them, but my absolute favorites I will keep. ;)

[E.J.]

I can never bring myself to give or throw away old paperbacks so have kept them all. I must also admit that there are some books I have yet to read that I really want to own a paperback copy of. It's a bit like music, nothing beats being able to actually hold it in your hand and see it stacked on your shelves.

[Helen]

Have to say, I avoid hardbacks and when I've ended up with them quickly read and get rid.

[Mark]

Over the past few years i have been de-cluttering my life. I sold my collections of books and Dvd on amazon Marketplace.

i didn't know it at the time, but apparently its a mid-life crisis sort of thing that men do at my age LOL. Anyway, I have gone from a serious collector of things like books and DvDs to a bit of an aesthetic.

Still, there are some sets of hardbacks that will only leave this house over my dead body, and even some paperbacks as well. i used to keep everything, then i would keep books i thought of as "best of the best" -- meaning books i felt likely to re-read.

Now though, I have only my best hardbacks and a ton of stuff on my kindle and in my iPod and computer. Many of the books are ones I re-purchased after selling the paperbacks and hardbacks on Amazon marketplace.

[Karen B.]

I had to get rid of a lot of books this spring while cleaning; but I will always havde bookcases with some paper books on them. My Harry Potter books are like old friends that I visit and revisit. But then there are my "mind" classics like Jane Eyre and having that on my Kindle does it dimish it at all. Also now that I have several "signed" copies of books,I can't and wouldn't want to get rid of those.

[Kris]

Helen wrote: "Have to say, I avoid hardbacks and when I've ended up with them quickly read and get rid."

I'm with you on this. I prefer paperbacks.

[[deleted user]]

I think a room with a bookcase full of books in it, says something about the person.

[Helen]

It's funny how the kindle has changed so many of us.

[Jillian]

i filled a closet along with two long hanging book selves with my few hardbacks and MANY paper backs. i love the kindle bc i have like 70 books on their tht without it i wouldnt have!

[Bedtime Booknerd]

i still have all of my paperbacks...dont get me wrong i love my kindle but i sometimes miss reading a paperback...

[Lindsay]

I only buy books on my Kindle that I don't own in paper... except Harry Potter, but that was a matter of traveling convenience.

As for my paper books, I have shelves and I still love the feel of them. Sometimes the Kindle's not good enough for the reading experience.

[Joe]

Lindsay wrote: "As for my paper books, I have shelves and I still love the feel of them. Sometimes the Kindle's not good enough for the reading experience."

As I always say, I love the feel of actually turning the page. I would like to have a Kindle (I currently use a kindle app on my phone), but I can't ever imagine it replacing an actual book for me. It would definitely give me more space around the house though.

[Kiti]

Still have my favorites, although those are mostly hardbacks. The rest I donated to the local library.

[Patricia]

Since I had books and piles of books everywhere, I quite unexpectedly found myself suddenly wanting to only keep those I really, really loved for one reason or another. I have taken many cartons to Half-Price Books or the Salvation Army, and have eliminated a lot of cheap, falling apart bookcases. I do have a few cartons of paperbacks in my closet--my complete collections of mystery series that I will want to reread, that aren't available on Kindle yet. But my bookcases and shelves hold books that I want to possess and caress, not books that are here simply because I once bought them.

I mostly buy Kindle books now, and then if I really love them, may buy them in hardcover. Hardcover purchases that happened after I read them on Kindle include The Thirteenth Tale, Leviathan, Behemoth and Goliath, Lolita, Middlesex. (It helps when the book itself is beautiful, but that isn't the deciding factor.)

And I'm now acquiring hardcovers of books I truly love--To Kill a Mockingbird, for example--that I didn't have before. I'm building a "library" of special books instead of simply having "lots of books."

[Lindsay]

Joe wrote: "Lindsay wrote: "As for my paper books, I have shelves and I still love the feel of them. Sometimes the Kindle's not good enough for the reading experience."

As I always say, I love the feel of act..."

It really is best for travel purposes. I even just bring it to school to read during my planning period. Also, it's easier to read multiple books if you keep two in the Kindle and read one actual book or something.

[Joe]

Lindsay wrote: "It really is best for travel purposes. I even just bring it to school to read during my planning period. Also, it's easier to read multiple books if you keep two in the Kindle and read one actual book or something. "

Now that makes a lot of sense for me. I always read many at once. Thanks.