I have what I consider to be a pretty stellar selection of books in my home. However, the older I become, the less I read. That’s due in part to my eyesight capabilities declining over the years and also due to more responsibility I have taken on with multiple jobs. Instead of having so many books on hand collecting dust, I have decided that I would prefer to have more organization and space in my home.
7 Places To Donate Used Books Locally
Goodwill – This is a place where I buy and donate used books pretty often. I love that you can drive up and the Goodwill employees will get them out of the back of your car for you. It’s easy and convenient if you are in a hurry. The staff will even give you a tax receipt if you would like to use this donation for a write off.
Salvation Army – Our local Salvation Army also has a store that you can donate to. I am not sure that I have ever donated books there, but I know that you can.
Local Libraries – I recently donated some books to our local library. However, I typically only donate new releases that I have reviewed on the blog so that they will more likely be able to use them on the shelf. I think that our local library also accepts used books to sell in their fundraisers though, as well. Call yours to see what they will accept before you make the trip. I know that our library also offers tax write off receipts so, if you are interested, make sure to ask about that, too.
Little Free Library – Last week I donated about 100 books to Little Free Library. I was trying to think about how I could donate used books and also practice social distancing and I remember hearing previously about Little Free Library. I looked online and found 4 listed for my town. So, I went to the addresses listed and filled the cute little libraries full of books. I also found a book for my daughter in one of them. The only thing I did not like about Little Free Library was that one of the boxes only had GPS coordinates listed for it’s address. As someone who can barely read a map, let alone understand how to locate Longitude and Latitude coordinates, there was no way I could find that one. Because of this I was only able to donate to 3 of the 4 local locations.
Schools & Daycare Centers – I know that many schools and daycare centers are not currently in session, but they are a great place to donate age appropriate books. I know that many of my area school’s English teachers have quite the collection of books in their classes to loan students that the teachers often purchased on their own. Get in touch with one of them and see about about making a donation. I am sure they would greatly appreciate it.
Shelters & Hostels – Each shelter and hostel is different so you will need to contact each one individually to see if they accept book donations. I know that I have donated books to a women’s shelter in my area before as well as to a hostel, so I know that many do take them.
Senior Care Facilities – Many seniors still enjoy reading very much. For those living on a fixed income, books can be quite expensive. You can help by donating books that you have already read. Check with your local senior care facilities and see if they are accepting donations.
Where else can you donate used books? Have you been cleaning and organizing your bookshelves lately, too? I would love to hear about your ideas and progress. Let us know in the comments below or on social media!
Need more motivation to do something constructive? Check out my friend Pam’s post to learn how to make a Kitchen Windowsill Herb Garden or our post on how to make a cute hanging wood shelf for your plants!
