In the interests of efficiency and sanity, and of course with the benefit of
Hindsight, it would probably have been a better idea to finish the cull before the Garage Sale. Which is interesting at least from the perspective that October is Mental Health Month.
But the truth of the matter is there was so much junk in front of this book case, we couldn't get to the lower shelves - which is why all the upper shelves are neat and approximately "Dewey-ized". OK, it's just the sports books that are close together, but hey! This is my home library and I'll put books together on the basis of their size if it suits my mood at the time. I know that will sound rash and dangerous to some of my colleagues, but I'm standing firm on this one. Let them take me to court if it upsets them! We live in dangerous times, and I feel like I'm up to the challenge, at least on the matter of home library organisation.
But I have digressed. Is anyone surprised? Hidden on the lower shelves were the "resources" that were a bit iffy the last few times I was culling. Favorite picture books from my children's early years - fairly poor condition, but would these be something my children might like to pass on down to their children? Books I had picked up at sales (some at 90% of their RRP like "
101 Things for Bright Boys to Do"), with the intention of including them in the Day Job library - but given the rejection of the application for reimbursement for the last
Ripley's Believe it or Not (at less than $20), now headed elsewhere.
What are the culling guidelines for a professional library, as opposed to a home library? Frequency of use? Condition? Likelihood of future use? Bias? Currency? Relevance to the curriculum (school and academic libraries?) From my personal perspective, biggest difference is that of sentimental value - which should count for zilch in a professional library, but it's up there with the biggies in a Home Library Collection.
