Hi! I’m in a bit of a dilemma. I’ll spare the details on the disaster of a life that got me into this predicament but I have a collection of old books that my mom was very proud of once upon a time. She was a collector and she passed on her love of collecting and books to me. As much as I would LOVE to keep the books I just don’t have the space or resources to store them properly. I only just recently managed to get into a stable living environment after years of being homeless/keeping what few belongings I had left in a family member’s storage unit.
The books themselves are not in the best condition. It’s a large collection and I haven’t been through all the boxes to tell if the entire 18-book series is in there, but I know some of them are badly damaged while others are in much better condition. I don’t think the books themselves are worth anything, like I said they’re not in the best condition, and I could just throw them away, but it breaks my heart to even think of doing something like that.
A friend suggested I keep them and try to learn how to book bind so I can fix the damaged ones but again I don’t have the space or resources to store them much less rebind them with proper leather covers like they’re meant to be.
I’m willing to just give them to someone for free even if they do end up being worth anything. I just don’t feel comfortable throwing books away, especially my mom’s books. I guess what I’m looking for is any advice on what I can do with them that isn’t just tossing them into a dumpster or keeping a bunch of giant boxes in my tiny bedroom.
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For reference, they’re by Rafael Sabatini and it’s the autograph edition. I haven’t counted or looked in all the boxes yet so I don’t know if the whole set is in there.
by drakarifire
2 Comments
Recycle. There’s very little demand for damaged books.
Not only is there little demand for damaged books, depending on the type of damage they can be downright toxic. Please wear a mask and gloves to handle them if they are mildewed, moldy water damaged or very dusty.
As a retired librarian, I’ve accepted that books are not immortal. Have some kind of little ceremony for yourself that recognizes their role in your mother’s life, and let go. .