I hate to say it, and I hate even more to do it, but it's time to weed out the library again.  I do it twice a year or so, and last time I failed so spectacularly that after the weeding was "done," I still couldn't even get the new batch of books onto shelves.

I've tried (apparently with limited success) to be quite strict with myself by asking the following questions:

  • Do I now have a better book on the subject? I used to keep every Middle Eastern/North African book simply because there weren't all that many.  But nowadays, when we get 3 books on Morocco alone in a single year, we're spoiled for choice.  
  • Did I really only keep it because it was pretty?  I'm a sucker for design.  I'm always amazed how many books I've kept around simply because the layout was attractive, even though the recipes might have been meh.
  • Did I really only keep it because the author was famous?  I used to get really excited whenever there was a new book by Mark Bittman or Lidia Bastianich or Mario Batali.  Although I still like these authors, they publish so prolifically, and there's so much overlap between one book and the next, they start to feel more like a commodity than a keeper.  Besides, at this point each of these authors would have to have their own shelf.
  • Does it sell for less than $6 on the used-book market?  This is a funny question.  But I ask it because it helps me let go.  I figure that if I really really want this book back someday, I can replace it pretty easily from half.com.  Also, when a book starts selling for such a low price, it's often an indicator that it didn't end up offering much to its readership - further reducing the likelihood I will later discover a gem of a recipe in it.
  • Is it indexed on EYB? It's really true, isn't it?  The books that are indexed here on EYB (or to be Indexed Soon) are measurably more valuable to us than the ones that aren't.  Someday soon, they might yield something we actually use!  It could happen today! when we're just randomly recipe-searching "pomegranate molasses"!

These questions get me some of the way there.  But clearly it isn't enough.  Can you help?  What do you ask yourself when you're cleaning out books?  And do you ever break your own rules?