What do you do with books you bought but never finished reading because they were badly written? I feel guilty about giving them to friends or family. It's like handing out burnt cookies when I'd just throw them away. My 'bad books' are currently languishing my bookshelf. I can't decide what to do about them.
I give them to goodwill, but I choose my books carefully these days and rarely buy any unless I have read the reviews. There are lots of places to donate books and if it was expensive, but it on ebay and resell it. Many people do, or sell it on Amazon for some extra money if they are in good condition.
I give them to places like Goodwill, too. Just because I don't personally like a book or think that it's poorly written, doesn't mean that someone else might not appreciate it.
Well look at it this way, one man junk is another man's treasure. So give them away and make space on your bookshelf for some good reads. Any book you have will be loved by someone, in fact it can even help someone who wants to improve their reading so never see it as a waste.
I must admit it is really hard to finish a book when it's badly written or the characters just annoy you to death. I've been through that a couple of times already. But once I read a book, there's no way I could ever stop. It's like I always tell myself, "You started this, finish it then." After reading it, I'll make a book review about it and rant everything I don't like about the said book. Hehe. That's just the way I am.
I don't really read novels nowadays, it's been more than a decade since I read one. Nowadays I prefer to read practical books like how-to books and books that cater to my specialized interests. If ever I didn't find a book well-written, then I'd just keep it and give it as a Christmas gift to someone who might like it. Or I'll sell or trade it online.
I have to second Sidney, above. I do not read novels these days, and have not for a very long time. It is either me reading the audiobook version of a book, which is not really reading but listening. Or it is me reading online fictions, as opposed to actual published works. Bad book stay where they are, for now. But no doubt they will get given to charity shops.
I once bought a book titled "The 9th Wave." The book was so dull that though I tried to force myself to read a chapter each day, I gave up after some time. But since the book still looked new, I gave it to someone as Christmas gift. I doubt that I'll ever buy a "bad" book again . . .
I usually just donate them or I give them away online on sites like Listia. I also add a disclaimer that it just wasn't for me and list the condition of the book. I also give old books to my library and they sell books at their book sales.
Goodwill, definitely. I take them there because I constantly remind myself that everything is subjective. I might think the book is bad, while other people might enjoy it. The important thing is that we are reading.
A lot of libraries will take donations of used books, as well. I usually donate my books to either the library or donation stores like every one else said. If it is a new book that you didn't like, I would definitely see if your local library would take it. It is hard to get newer books at the library as every single copy has about ten holds on them. I also think that it was pretty funny that this thread was right above the thread for selling old books for money. The titles just go hand in hand.
I have a neighbor that also likes to read, and she and I share books back and forth. Not so much anymore because we both use a Kindle and read e-books; but we used to do it a lot. When we had one that we didn't like, we just told the other person about it, and if they wanted to try reading it, then we gave it to them. Sometimes, I just take books to the thrift store, or put them on Craigslist for free and let someone pick them up. Again, e-books are a great idea, because you can just delete them. Plus, I do not spend money on an e-book unless I have read the reviews, or have some other reason to be sure that it is worth the cost of buying it.
This. I would offer it to someone else who loves to read, explaining first that I didn't care for it, or I'd donate to a charity shop or the library, or post them on Listia or a used book site. As someone else stated, another person might enjoy it, even if I did not. I have to add one disclaimer though. If I am reading something and decide to stop because it is just vile, I won't give it away either. If it's something so evil or bad that I can't read it then I certainly don't want to send it off to someone else. I can only recall one time that this happened, and I trashed the book (which would usually be inconceivable for me), but it belonged in the trash.
Cut it up and use it an art project. If it is hard covered, it could be painted over and used as a journal. If it is soft cover, it's pages could be used for paper mache'. The words could be cut out of it for creative journaling.
When the bad book is physical, I donate it to goodwill or slap a bookcrossing sticker in it and wild-release it. When it's digital, I delete it from my kindle.
Im a crafter and I cant cut up a book to craft with so I cant throw them away either. I just donate them to thrift stores at churches or other organizations. Someone else may like it. Everyone has different tastes.
This is one reason why I donate books to the local charity shop. They sometimes clean out their books and give some away free. I take some of the damaged ones with aged pages and use those for craft projects. If it's damaged and missing pages anyway, why not. Otherwise, I wouldn't really want to tear up books. Since I take a few of the freebies, I like to donate some useable books in return. Hopefully, they can sell them and make up for the ones they ended up giving away.
I go to thrift shops and sell them. Prior to getting rid of a book, I have the tendency to read snippets, just to know whether there are redeeming aspects. I could always change my mind, you know. If I find nothing to convince me the book is worth keeping or isn't really as bad as I previously thought, then off I go to the seller. Even if I get but half a dollar for selling a bad book, it's still a better bargain than putting up with a story that cannot benefit me.
I cany get myself to destroy a book but you're right. If it's already damaged, why not? Going to have to check out the thrift store and ask if they have any they plan on throwing away. Thanks for the tip!
