What's the proper way to get rid of books?

BurningnnTree@lemmy.one to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world – 80 points –

I mean it's bad juju to throw books in the trash right? What's the proper way to get rid of them? (with the least amount of effort)

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I don't have a direct answer, but I will say be careful about giving them to Goodwill or what-have-you, or at least check first. I donated a mound of great contemporary books and the guy receiving them said they throw out anything that has marks on the page side or any wear on the cover.

Not to say all thrift shops toss them, but some do.

Edit: Look for local "free libraries"! Some cities will have random little boxes put up around neighbourhoods, and those won't get scrapped.

Although i think it's great that secondhand places are concerned about the condition of items, i feel like it's gotten a bit ridiculous.

I've gotten brand new things straight from the manufacturer that were in poorer conditon than some of the things they've turned down. And I'm not really comfortable using craigslist or facebook marketplace or the like so i end up feelling bad about tossing perfectly fine stuff.

I think a lot of the secondhand places have problems in both directions. On one hand, it's as you say. On the other hand, I've seen places that charge more than new prices for some things. One secondhand store I visited was in the same parking lot as a walmart. I looked at the t-shirts they had for sale (not fancy ones or anything) and they cost more than the brand new ones at the walmart.

Sounds like they are pickier than a Peruvian money changer.

Goodwill is also … objectionable, to say the least. And many alternatives fund insidious “missionary” work or anti-choice women’s housing. Check your charities closely to make sure they align with your values, whatever they may be.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodwill_Industries

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/goodwill-head-who-makes-164000-fired-disabled-workers-after-minimum-wage-hike/

https://socialistworker.org/2017/09/25/why-goodwill-goes-bad

https://www.cracked.com/article_33357_15-impressively-evil-things-goodwill-has-done.html