If you love home organization or Netflix, you’ve probably heard of Marie Kondo. This tidying-up expert has transformed households across the world by asking one simple question: Does it spark joy? Rather than view living spaces with disdain and focusing on what to remove or change, Marie focuses on what we love and need to live the life we envision for ourselves. 

A while back, I went through my entire house using Marie Kondo’s principles and rid myself of excess stuff: clothes, kitchen supplies, towels, unneeded duplicates and even keepsake items. But I drew a hard line at weeding through my books.

Um, no. 

But I did find Kondo’s principles helpful as I sorted through my own bookshelves and found a process that helps me minimize my book collection WITHOUT hurting my reading heart. 

Here are the steps we’ll talk about inside this episode:

  • Know Your Why
  • Remove & Sort
  • Review the Books You’ve Read
  • Review the Books Your Haven’t Read Yet
  • Reorganize & Reshelve
  • Donate the Books Forward

I’ve created this handy decision tree to make the process as easy as possible. If you’d like a version to download and print, just click the image below!

What strategies work best for you as you minimize YOUR bookshelves? Share your comments below! Plus, I’d love to see the ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures of your bookshelves and/or library!

Share in the comments below or tag me on your favorite social media platform at @AffinitoLit!