Book collections are a challenge to downsize. If you're like me, ALL books are important. I've been an avid reader all of my life. As a kid, it was not uncommon for me to be reading 5 different books at once. And I always participated in my yearly school fundraiser for Multiple Sclerosis. The more books I read, the more money I'd make to give to the great cause.
With that said... how do you scale down your book collection to make more room in your home? The best place to start is to get rid of the books that you no longer have any attachment to. Books that you've never read and probably never will; books that you've read but probably will never read again; books that you've read but weren't any good; and books that you could easily check out from the library if the desire were to surface.
Ok, with that done, now go back through your collection and get rid of any books that have lost their value because they're out of date (i.e. old encyclopedias). Then, lastly, pick out any books that no longer interest you that you'd enjoy giving to friends or family (i.e. travel or golf).
Remember, be tough on yourself and be realistic. Are you really going to go back and read your old college text books?
You should only have left the books that are most important to you. The books that you'd take with you to a deserted island. As long as you have enough space to store them, you're good to go. If not, go through the process again.
On your bookshelves, organize your important books by categories and then by size. Categories may include: Fiction, Gardening, Baseball, Music Legends, etc. Fiction can be organized by author for easy retrieval.
It's okay to lay large books flat on your bookshelves and intermingle family photographs and art statues for visual appeal.
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