I will be moving soon and need to get rid of some books . This happens each time I move, but this time the cull is especially harsh because I am moving overseas. I enjoy owning books and is hard not to get sentimental over some of the volumes that have influenced my thinking.
I have been triaging my books into "not very valuable", "not at all valuable", and "effectively negative value" piles. Items in the first 2 categories are being sold off or given away, but the last category contains books that are not worth even the space they take up. Old programming manuals (so long, Mastering php4) and the like; I know I am better off without them but I still felt like a book-burning Nazi as I tossed them in the recycling bin this morning.
If anyone is interested there are some TradeMe auctions active.
Here is a sample of what is on offer:
The Conquest of Gaul by Julius Caesar Julius Caesar's own account of what a great guy Julius Caesar is, as he rampages around Gaul aided by his best buddy Brutus. Filled with epic battles.
History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides More epic battles, on land and on the sea (and occasionally underground). History is usually written by the victor, but sometimes it is written by the general that arrived late and was exiled by his own people.
Tycho and Kepler by Kitty Ferguson One is a nerdy maths teacher, the other a millionaire playboy astronomer with a golden nose and a pet moose. Together they team up to fight crime and figure out orbital mechanics. Mostly the latter.
The Bounty by Caroline Alexander Join the officers and crew of The Bounty on its 2 year mission to seek out new breadfruit and new breadfruit-related industries, to boldly go where only a few people (except for the pacific islanders, who don't count) had gone before. SPOILER ALERT There is a mutiny.
Life on Earth by David Attenborough A whirlwind tour around the planet's life forms. This book and the various TV series Attenborough presented inspired me to study zoology at university. It is not his fault that I wasn't any good at it.
I haven't even started on my scifi novels yet.