Things are quite exciting for me at the moment as I've managed to land myself a very nice job and so I have to move away from my childhood home once again. With this comes the inevitable task of packing, which always seems to coincide with me finally realising that I need to throw away a lot of things that for years I have convinced myself I still need. Yes, my name is Ellie Rees and I'm a hoarder. A book hoarder in particular.
Like most people who love books the idea of throwing them out feels like a crime and so the only other option I have is to either sell them or give them to charity. Either way, I have to part with them and its one of the toughest break ups you can go through. If I had my way I would have kept every single book I've ever owned in an underground library but it's very hard to find houses with that kind of special feature and my mum would only turn in to a lounge, anyway. However, I've been going through a lot of the books that I had as a teen today just to double check that I was certain about giving them away. I haven't read them for years but books like Louise Rennison's Georgia Nicholls series and numerous Jacqueline Wilson books were staples for me growing up and I re-read them numerous times. I understand how many people like me would want to hold on to them no matter what, convince themselves that they'll give them to their children one day or even read the books themselves. But I've realised that as much as I want a massive underground library one day, passing on a story is something very special and unique. It's not like giving someone a piece of jewelry; a book has the potential to change how someone thinks or views the world and, quite often, the reason we can't part with a book is because it has affected us so much. So I've given myself a rule; if I think about giving the book away and too many memories come flooding back or the idea truly upsets me, then I keep it BUT if I feel that I can give the book away, hoping that someone else will gain something from it, then I put it in the charity bag. Some books like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (the first novel I ever read) or Harry Potter (the book that affirmed my love of reading) or One Day (a book with a character that I identified with like no other) I know that I couldn't give away even though I could quite easily buy another copy. Your copy of a book that influenced you so much is always going to be tied up with those emotions unlike the crisp copies you'll see in Waterstones. And I think that's great, books are all about emotions, but if you can bring yourself to part with a good book, even if it's just to lend it to someone, who knows what you'll be sparking. Otherwise I suggest an e-reader, they're easier to store and no one will expect you to lend them your copy of a book.
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