Ep 57 | KonMari Books Category: Building a Library of Joy

Books form the second signature KonMari Method category. We discuss sorting, organizing, and discarding books and all the challenges and joy along the way.

If you are just starting out, or want a refresher on how categories work in the KonMari Method, listen to: Episode 1: KonMari 101 and: Episode 9: Tidying by Location is a Fatal Mistake These two episodes of the Spark Joy podcast will give you the background you need, in addition to reading Marie Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up , to tackle the books category.

Books are special and cherished items for many people, but there’s no denying the fact that physical books can take up a lot of room. Plus, in many cases, once the book is read, the actual book is placed on a shelf and is never used or read again. How can you approach books in such a way that honors the contents, respects the value and importance of books but also enables you to surround yourself with only the things that spark joy?

We want to hear from you! Tell us your burning tidying questions or share stories about how KonMari has impacted your life. Find us at www.sparkjoypodcast.com and click “Ask Spark Joy” to leave a question or comment for a chance to be featured on next week’s show.

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In this episode, you’ll enjoy:

Joy Checks:
Karin: I practiced KonMari gift giving for my 5th wedding anniversary! I got my husband a returnable gift, in case it doesn't bring him joy...and it's something that is designed to honor books, which totally bring him joy!

Kristyn: I was invited to The Jam TV morning show in Chicago to talk about the KonMari paper category.
Tips from For the Love of Tidy on How to Cut Down Paper

• Book Subcategories:
  -General Books
  -Practical Books
  -Visual Books
  -Religious Books
  -Sentimental Books

• How to sort books you have already read.

• How to sort books you haven't started or started, but haven't finished

• The challenges involved in letting go of books:
  -Our attachments to books
  -Our desire to honor the contents of books
  -Our attraction to the beauty of books as objects
  -Concerns about discarding them properly
  --Listen to Spark Joy Episode 21 on this issue: Book Review: The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning

• Options for disposing of books properly:
  -donations
  -selling
  -recycle

• Summer Brennan's blog post on the challenges of letting go of books: On the Heartbreaking Difficulty of Getting Rid of Books

Gems:
“Do I really need to take all these books down from their shelves?”

“You should use subcategories to view each book in relationship to other similar books, but remember you are evaluating each book on its own merits.”

“The goal is not to overwhelm you with the piling part of KonMari…”

“Who are you keeping these books for?”

“It’s important to honor your books with joy, keep them visible, especially those that are being kept to read 'someday.'”

You can find Karin Socci at The Serene Home
You can find Kristyn Ivey at For the Love of Tidy