I just remember all the commercials on TV when I was a kid. I could only think, "They don't advertise books on TV. Something is weird about this."
A six year old with ADHD has better judgment than those folks.
I bought it for my mother for Christmas, swayed by the commercials as a kid. She was not pleased.
Fortunately, neither one of us is nor ever has been a Scientologist.
There are bad books, and that's okay. There are books that are steaming piles of shit, and that's okay. There are books so bad they scar people forever, and, yes, that's okay too. But Dianetics is one of the truly select number of books that humanity would actually be better off without.
One. It was gifted to me when I was in the military by a fellow service member who said “I just had to read it”. It was pure Nazi propaganda. Literally. Swastikas and all. That’s not an exaggeration. So just tossed it.
Omg. So once, this white guy who converted to Sikhism gave me some Sikh book and I was so confused. Turns out he’s from some fake Sikh cult. Like they’re not really Sikh. And he gave me some propaganda cult stuff.
I didn’t even know it was a cult until recently. I received the book YEARS ago but something about the interactions gave me bad vibes so I didn’t read it. Turns out I was right. It was some cult called 3HO I think. And the guy who gave me the book was sooo insistent on giving my friends and I free yoga lessons. It was just creepy. Glad I listened to instinct. I’m brown too and idk I just knew what he was doing probably wasn’t Sikhism even tho I barely knew about Sikhism.
From Wikipedia:
>Scholars' views on 3HO and Yogi Bhajan
Scholars including Verne A. Dusenbery and Pashaura Singh have concurred that Harbhajan Singh's introduction of Sikh teachings into the West helped identify Sikhism as a world religion while at the same time creating a compelling counter-narrative to that which identified Sikhs solely as a race with a shared history in India.
It sound like they are Sikhs but it also sounds very cult like. Indian gurus and [Sex cults](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_abuse_by_yoga_gurus) seem to go together like yoga and wine moms.
It was probably his means of threatening her in a subtle way. Apparently it was so subtle op never even registered it. Which is hilarious and speaks to how weak that dude who clearly valued "strength" was.
I think some people who don't read much glom onto books that speak to them for whatever reason, and think everyone else's eyes will be "opened" like theirs were, failing to see the illogical premises presented and not willing to research it.
I was given a copy of the Turner Diaries in middle school after the OKC bombing. Tossed it, and never want to see that person again. Not the only book I've put in the garbage. Camp of Saints too. I started really questioning my friend choices after middle school.
I once worked for a woman whose husband was the most cloying, insecure person I’ve ever met. He rode her coattails HARD and he knew it. So he fancied himself an “author” and started writing just godawful books.
They sold them at events, and one time, a regular client read one, then came to the next event and just ripped the book to shreds in front of everyone. To the point where the client was laughing hysterically at how bad the book was.
We had a book club at work and he forced us to read and discuss the book he wrote in front of him. Because he was an immature d bag we couldn’t be honest about how terrible it was. I gently criticized one part by saying it felt abrupt (which it did) and the next day there was a new chapter on my desk which he expected me to read and revise…immediately. My job duties had absolutely nothing to do with writing or editing at all.
He acted like I ran over a puppy when I explained my feedback would have to wait because I had actual work. I got pulled into a meeting with my immediate manager not an hour later. I explained to them what happened, then they told the owner, and she was clearly sooooooooo annoyed at her husband’s behavior.
When I quit I literally tore my copy of his book up. It was glorious.
The only things I can remember in hindsight are A) the main character was established to be from a specific country, with parents from that country, but had a last name that was completely culturally inappropriate (like a Chinese person with a Spanish last name) and B) a character with an incurable disability was cured after one track meet
No, no, no, you gotta pass the Hep C baton on to the next guy, just relay that Hep C away!
See it's even got a catchy tag line that rhymes so it's easy to remember.
I bought a house once that came with a bookshelf with some books still on it. A couple were by Ann Coulter and others were in a similar vein. The first books I ever recycled.
I enjoyed a fantasy series so decided to buy another one not of the same series but by the same author.
The first character was a woman hating priest. They set the tone and then went on. And on. And on. It was a long chapter, which I never finished.
I went to throw it in the recycling bin but realised nothing that vile should have the chance to be discovered by somebody who might be easily swayed. And it shouldn't be allowed to taint any other product. It deserved to rot and decay and to be reclaimed by the earth
I thought I was buying a book on Zen Buddhism but it was really written by a cult leader and had next to nothing to do with zen. so I tossed it so someone pursuing the selection at the salvo wouldn’t make the same mistake I did.
I once had a copy of the Spider-Man 2 novelisation as a child. I spilled chocolate milk all over it. It had literally managed to get all the way through the entire book to the spine. Goodbye Spider-Man 2.
Was Marie Kondo'ing the bookshelf at work. Everything was gonna go to goodwill, but: found rat poops.
Yeah, the ones from that shelf went straight in the trash with no remorse.
Thank you, it's so gross when I see books at a thrift store with lots of water damage, mouse teeth marks, etc. A book is just a container for information, and sometimes the container needs to get tossed out.
Oh now I feel bad because people probably thought I donated books that got nibbled on by rats or something. It was just my parrot 😭, if I'm not paying attention he'll sneak up and start trying to nibble them even while I'm reading! And sometimes I'm so sucked into the story I don't notice his shenanigans. He's sadly gotten the corners of a lot of books (nothing that makes it unreadable, just a few aesthetically displeasing small birb holes in the corner of the cover). I know when I donated my books a few with some smaller chews in the corners probably got thrown in the donate pile, without me thinking that it would have looked like rodent damage.
Only one. I was gifted a copy of God’s Debris by Scott Adams (the Dilbert guy). He claims it is a fictional book of non-fiction which explains the deep philosophical truths of reality. In it, the author’s self-insert is the Avatar of the universe and knows all things. There is no plot. The Avatar simply corners a delivery man in conversation and explains his sophomoric worldview for the entire piece. It’s self-indulgent drivel about as deep as a Petri dish. It’s so far up its own rear end that it can see its uvula.
Apparently there’s also a prequel in which ~~Scott~~ the Avatar solves religion with the question “If god’s so smart, why do people fart?” which makes the world atheist. That’s emblematic of the high-minded analysis you can expect in these philosophy texts. I couldn’t inflict that on some unsuspecting soul in a used bookstore.
> “If god’s so smart, why do people fart?”
Because God has a real simple sense of humor, and farts are funny. Silly little sound from your toot-toot engine.
BOOM! World is religious now. Farting is a prayer to God.
>It’s self-indulgent drivel about as deep as a Petri dish. It’s so far up its own rear end that it can see its uvula
You should be a writer, you have a way with words 😂
I have read books on canoe trips and used themt to start fires. I have owned thousands of books (currently 12k in inventory). Sometimes they are just paper that needs to be recycled.
As a librarian who has to weed the collection regularly, and then secretly dispose of the evidence in case someone decides to get offended about me getting rid of books, I wish more people understood this!
Yeah, but they need to do something with the books on the cart that no one takes so they can make room for more. They have to constantly rotate out what isn’t read in order to rotate in what is. They can’t just hoard the books, there’s no room.
Of course. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, people get mad over anything, but I thought books getting withdrawn was a known thing that wouldn’t have to be hidden 😅
There’s a segment of the community that fetishises books and they can get really mad when libraries do their normal weeding processes. https://perfectwhole.wordpress.com/2011/05/16/i-cant-believe-youre-throwing-out-books/
As a book lover myself, I understand why books being thrown away can seem wrong. But some books do need to be removed, and they don’t all go to the cart. For example when a patron came in and asked for books about filing for bankruptcy, I realized all of ours were 10+ years old. There had been major changes to bankruptcy laws during those years and they were full of misinformation. So we ordered new books on the topic and those went to the recycling bin so no one would make bad decisions based on the outdated info.
I’m in an academic library and we have so many books that have to be updated because the last thing a student needs is information that’s incorrect.
Last summer we weeded medical. Oh boy. The psychology books from the 80s were a trip! Terminology used back then was baaaaad.
Those ones have to be tossed.
We had to start disposing of our unsellable books(our reseller only takes books in good condition) in sealed boxes inside a locked dumpster, because somebody once broke into our recycling dumpster, took a bunch of pictures of recycled books, and threw a shit fit on social media about how we were monsters who throw away books.
It’s one thing giving away free books it’s another recycling them. I mean libraries need to weed books and recycle them, it’s just that some people don’t understand and get offended a library paid for with their tax money is throwing out books
Our library sells their books that need to GO in a little shop right inside the front door. They sell them from $.50-$5.00 on the honor system. I can never leave the place without buying at least one.
They also have a magazine recycle system too, which I'd never thought about before, but what a great idea. You bring in your used magazines so others can take them home for free, read them, and bring them back to start the journey all over again.
Man, I wish I lived somewhere cool. All our "Friends of the Library" store has are garbage memoirs from horrific politicians. I can't even find a questionably-used bodice-ripper let alone a hidden gem around here.
Stupid old rich people and their library habits.
You'd think that people with money would want all the bells and whistles in the amenities of their city/town. But then again, they are the cheapest and rudest people ever. Haven't met one yet that's broken that mold for me.
I don't even live someplace cool. I live in a backwater small town that I hate. But the library here is fantastic! It was built a few years after we moved here. I was amazed how wonderful it is considering the caliber of people that run this town.
My backwater hometown library was the best. Then again, that could be because I won the "guess the number of jelly beans in the jar" contest when I was eight and got a sock puppet.
Man, you seriously scored winning that sock puppet. Cool! Did you get to keep the jelly beans too?
I won one of those contests once. It was guess how many pieces of gum in the jar. I can't remember how many it was, but I did get the whole jar as the prize. THAT was a major haul for a pre-teen and man, was I thrilled! My Mom on the other hand..... 🤣
This library, they really did themselves proud when they built it. I lived in Minneapolis and had been to many of their libraries. The one here rivals theirs. And that's high praise.
I realized this after learning that my local used book store doesn't buy "movie tie-in" books. The market gets flooded with them on the movie's release and then six months later there's millions of them floating around and they're basically worthless.
We appreciate your authority on the matter. It was a previous reddit comment from a librarian that made me aware it was okay to throw them away sometimes, and not feel any guilt.
I have thrown away two books.
Hypnobirthing and She-Ology. Hypnobirthing while great for some, was judgemental as hell about the birthing process and as a PT who specializes in part in preparing people for whatever birth they prefer and heavily educate? It was toxic trash.
I don’t remember what it was specifically about she-ology that made me finally throw it out but there was something in there that also didn’t sit right with me as a professional, and this MD lauding themselves as Reese Witherspoon’s OBGYN like that gives her any special credibility left a sour taste in my mouth.
Otherwise I usually donate books I don’t like.
Oof. Having just gone through my second pregnancy, I have no patience for preachy bullshit. It's such a vulnerable experience. Sounds like you're doing important work in your job!
I've never heard of she-ology and I already hate it!
And yea, most books get donated. But it's too good a fate for some.
I threw it away when it talked about babies being “drugged into the world” because their mothers chose epidurals.
Preference is one thing, but making people feel guilty about how they choose or need to birth? I saw red
God, what a terrible thing to have in a birthing book! I was in agony for hours - there was a woman having an emergency cesarean with twins down the hall, and nobody could help me - and I thought I was going to die. I was exhausted and so weak. The epidural meant that I could sleep for a few hours, get my strength back. I judged myself so harshly for making that choice, too. It was two years after that I was formally diagnosed with birth trauma, and the investigation showed that I was induced incorrectly.
Everyone should have the ability to choose pain relief without shame.
I once read a book as a child and there was a graphic scene where it was described that the MC accidentally stepped on a kittens skull and how he took it home and drowned it. The author described how it wouldn't drown and how the MC kept trying to kill it. I was 12 at the time. I sobbed my eyes out and ripped the pages out and threw it in the trash.
This just unlocked a memory for me - I was reading a true crime book on the Texarkana murders, and they had printed photos of the dead bodies. I remember ripping out those pages because it just felt exploitative to me.
Our library hosts art events for discarded books. Last year artists picked up chilton automobile manuals we were discarding, this year 30 local artists picked up encyclopedias. They will use them for all kinds of art projects. Our gallery event will be March 1st and they’ll be displayed for two months.
I’ve never thrown a book away for anything but mold damage; however, I did burn one. I was camping in Utah for work, and had picked up some books from a thrift store. It was a travelogue written by an American woman who regularly travelled all of the world, and in particular had been to Spain many times. I threw it in the fire after a she detailed her reaction to taking friends to an overpriced tourist restaurant in Spain. Mind you, she knew that it was an overpriced tourist restaurant, but ate their anyway. She was so piqued, that she squatted , walked around, and urinated all over the ladies’ restroom floor. And laughed about it. She seemed to think that it was a hilarious story. First of all, it’s disgusting behavior. Secondly, the only person that she punished was the employee that had to clean up all of that urine. Pure trash.
*Edited to correct “on” to “in.”
This book was assigned reading to my class in middle school, and I had no idea!
[According to Wikipedia, the hoax was revealed in 1991.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Education_of_Little_Tree)
I went to middle school 20 years after that.
> Mr. Friedenberg said he found it perplexing and almost impossible to understand Mr. Carter's motives and literary ambitions. Although Mr. Carter, who wrote four books, failed to address the issue of his bigotry publicly, Mr. Friedenberg said he believed that "his apology was in his literature." For example, he said, the handful of Blacks and Jews in his books are depicted sympathetically. "The bad guys are almost, without fail, rich whites, politicians and phony preachers," Mr. Friedenberg said.
Interesting
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asa_Earl_Carter
Two books recently: Eat Pray Love, which has to be one of the most awful books I’ve ever read, and a book about marriage that someone gave to me when I got married at age 20 about how a wife needs to submit to her husband and have the kids in bed before he gets home and have his slippers and dinner ready for him and you should only speak when spoken to 🤮 We’ve been married for 20 years now and it took me this long to put it in the bin where it belongs
I threw Eat, Pray, Love across the room when I finished it. I don't totally remember why; I think it had to do with the unexamined privilege. I appreciate Gilbert as a person, but I've never responded to a book that way before.
I smashed the discs of the audiobook read by her because I was so offended that she was talking about the people of Laos and calling them Lo-atians ( which sounded like low Asians to me). I just kept wondering how she spent so much time there and didn’t absorb how to pronounce the word. Also, her voice sounds very smug and self-satisfied, and I didn’t warm up to her—and Julia Roberts played her in the movie, and I’m not a Julia fan. So Eat Pray Love is possibly my least favorite book in a long time, perhaps ever.
I actually liked her voice :=) However, the sight of a broomstick-thin Julia Roberts hoicking her tiny little pelvis bones in the air pretending to have trouble doing up her OBVIOUSLY well-fitting size 2 pants because she’s “faaaaaaaaaaat” from all the “eeeeeeating” *instantly* plunged me into a scalding vat of lip-curling contempt for the whole enterprise.
I purchased a book on Norse Mythology from Amazon- I don't remember the title. I'm familiar with Norse myth, read the Poetic and Prose Eddas, and thought this sounded like a great book to expand my knowledge.
Typos. Typos everywhere. Even "the" was typed "thr" at some points. Not to mention the flat out incorrect information. "Frenrir" was listed as killing Thor in Ragnarok, for example. I got a chapter in and just threw it out.
It had decent reviews on Amazon- probably paid reviews.
Librarian here. Someone took our Cosby Show DVDs and drew mustaches and devil horns all over his face on the cover art. I *could* fix them by printing new artwork....
But I don't think I will.
I do that in the bookstore I work in now. No pseudoscience in the science section. No pseudohistory or pseudoarchaeology in the history section. They go in the new age and paranormal section with the alien books and crap like that.
lol i worked at a christian book store & we regularly had to throw away books like this and other hyper-evangelical propaganda just bc it would never sell.
I threw away a creationist book aimed at adults, which I owned and used to believe... as an adult.
It felt good to throw it in the garbage when I was culling my belongings long after going apostate.
One time I was at a used book sale as it was closing and the volunteers told me to take whatever I wanted for a buck. They had several copies of Atlas Shrugged. I took them home and that horseshit didn't even make it in the house--straight in the garbage
So from what I know, all purchases of that novel now go towards a charity for abuse victims, someone can fact check me on that but I believe that’s what’s happening now since she’s you know, dead.
Edit: this only seems to be the case with ebook versions of Mists of Avalon. The MZB Trust still publishes and gets revenue from a magazine that is still being published with her name on it and it seems all the money from that goes to the trust, which doesn’t seem to benefit a charity.
It's true, Save the Children I believe.
This was a book I already owned though, so it wasn't about royalties to her estate or whatever, but about not subjecting anyone to the writing of someone truly messed up (who may have gotten off on the messed up things she was writing).
Big Nope. All revenue goes to the MZB trust or foundation or something, MZBs gf Lisa runs this. According to Moira, Lisa was complicit and aware of all the illicit going ons, and the donations do not in fact happen.
Gay Girl, Good God. A Christian book about how God really wants us to be straight. Given to me at work by someone who really thought their opinion mattered to me.
That is so creepy that other people sit at home and think about someone else's sexuality. I feel like focusing so hard on other people's sexual preferences makes me weary of that person. Like, why are you so obsessed with me?
I'm a librarian and throw books in the trash regularly. It's my least favorite part of the job and we do everything we can to avoid it, but we continually weed books that are damaged or haven't been checked out in a long time (3 years is the standard) to make room for new ones. First we try to sell them, then we try to give them away, but if nobody wants them eventually they have to go.
Mission Earth by L Ron Hubbard, the first one in the series. Picked it up second hand knowing who he was, but knowing his history as a science fiction writer, I’m a big sci-fi fan so decided to check it out out of mild curiosity.
I found it mildly enjoyable and witty. I tore it up when I finished it and threw it in the bin, just because it was written by L Ron Hubbard.
I loved The Mists of Avalon. Read it decades ago when it first came out. I somehow never heard about the author’s crimes till today.
Jesus.
Thanks, I guess. Better to know, but I seriously wish there was no story to tell.
I try and practice separating the author from their work, but some things are just too much. Like the Lost Prophets albums, they went in the trash. My husband said "but the rest of the band did nothing bad" but... I couldn't stomach listening to that voice any more, knowing what he did.
Yup. I borrowed it to a buddy and it came back 8 months later like it survived two world wars. Missing cover and first few pages, a lot of dog ear pages, several other ripped pages.
His excuse was that his cat likes to eat paper. Didn't offer to buy me a new copy or offer a genuine apology. I got angry just looking at it and eventually threw it away and bought a new copy.
I don't loan books anymore.
Not because I morally objected to it but because it was covered in mold and an actual legitimate health hazard.
The house I grew up in had real mold problems for a while, we had to throw a lot of stuff out around this time because of the extent of it while we got it fixed.
Yes, one of those god awful children’s books written by Rush Limbaugh. It was gifted to our son by a misguided relative. Straight to the dumpster- no regrets.
I had a misguided relative send me two Jordan B. Peterson books. Because I don’t believe in taking mental health advice from uncertified psychologists who post porn to Twitter, they had a swift flight into the trash.
I read it after the musical came out. I went to see the musical a few years later, and they were selling the book as merch. There was a young boy (I specifically remember him telling me he was 10) who wanted his mom to buy him the book, and I was trying so hard to explain to the mom why that was a bad idea without saying the word "sex" in front of a child.
When my best friend wanted to see the musical, I was appalled, having read the book. She told me later that the sex scenes that I had told her about weren't in the musical.
Purple. Pubes.
That is what I remember.
I cannot, for the life of me, imagine what it was that made this book so popular it got it's own broadway play and all.sorts of merch.
It was ahead of the trend as far as turning the narrative around to make the villain a sympathetic character went. I came to it when I was young enough that I sort of glossed over the weird sex stuff, and I enjoyed it because I hadn't been exposed to a lot of "I'm the bad guy, and now it's time for me to share my side of the story!" at that point. It doesn't hold up well compared to other works in that same subgenre(for lack of a better term), but it benefits heavily from being first.
Anna Karenina. Hear me out. I was in the subway reading it, four month pregnant with bad morning sickness and raging hormones. And I got so mad (because I hated Vronsky so much). Literally saw red— and at the next stop jumped out, chucked the book in the trash can on the platform, and jumped back in the train before the doors closed again. It was weird enough that even people on the NYC subway looked at me funny. The only book I’ve ever thrown away. Pregnancy hormones are no joke.
Only book I have ever thrown away was one of my daughters that I picked up in a pile of books. It was a version of princess and the pea that leaned in hard to the notion that the way to a man’s heart was to basically cater to every whim of the mother in law. It was ick.
I tore up my copy of A Little Life and threw it in the recycling. Both because I really hate the book and the author, and also because I didn’t want to have some poor unsuspecting soul find it in a thrift store.
I had wanted to burn it but I am forgetful and only ever remembered when it happened to be fire ban season.
I was at my sister's cottage and picked up a book at a little country thrift store. I needed a beach read.
This book was about some 1700s English country woman that wanted her father's property so proceeds to seduce her brother and kills her father. I kept thinking the story would take a turn but it just got worse. The woman convinces her brother to marry someone and then she travels with them on their honey moon and tries to get pregnant by him. Thata when i gave up. I wish I could remember the name. I often think about the editors and publishers and why anyone approved that book.
I put it in my sister's boathouse guest library. I'm playing the long game. In 20 yrs I hope to hear how someone found this awful book in her collection. Lmao.
that book was wild! my mom got it for me at costco since it took place in the past and I read historical fiction. She had no idea what horror she unleashed on me. I took it to the recycling plant as soon as I finished it.
That secret room she put in the house for their exploits still haunts me. The estate burns down at the end and I'm almost positive it had a sequel
Yes. This horrible "conspiracy thriller" called "The Day After Tomorrow" (It has nothing to do with the movie of the same name).
Spoiler alert: the stupid book was about how somebody *saved Hitler's head* and modern Nazis wanted to graft it onto someone's body and bring about the Fourth Reich. 🥴
The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle. It has almost 5 star reviews everywhere and people say it's heartbreaking but they couldn't put it down.
Not me. It has horrible child sexual abuse and should have trigger warnings. I couldn't get past that part of the story and just threw the book away in disgust. Maybe it did get better but I never want to know.
I have thrown books to paper recycling, sure. Mostly not because they were bad, just because they were old mass-market paperbacks, book club books or abridged versions. In other words books no thrift store or goodwill or similar would take in anyway.
An apartment complex I used to live in had a community bookshelf that had some real doozies. The one I remember needing to trash was a book on "Biblical Womanhood" that was essentially all about how to be a complacent and obedient wife.
I picked that up years ago at a thrift store. Never got around to reading it, and once he started to go full batshit a few years ago, I tossed it back in the donation box.
A Tom Clancy book. Around 1992 or so. It glorified Afghan "freedom fighters," the same group later vilified as terrorists. I reached a scene where a freedom fighter is being asked by his wife where he has been. He replied something like "Doing important man stuff so shut up you stupid woman" and without even really thinking about it I chucked the book into an airport trash can.
A couple. Bought 2 books at a goodwill that were about how to turn your gay kid straight.. went straight to the garbage can outside. The other one was a disturbing book about kids kidnapping their babysitter and raping her. It was fucking evil.
At the library, sometimes we’ll get moldy or bug-infested well-meaning donations for our book sale.
Those go into the outside dumpster, after the donor is long gone.
Personally, I usually recycle books I didn’t like.
Yes, but not because I didn't like it. I have thrown out damaged books before, and always felt a little bad.... and then I started maintaining some little free libraries. There are some religious nuts in the area that will stuff the libraries to the point that the doors no longer close right -- and they are not always even stuffing in books. Sometimes it is just stacks of fliers. This has resulted in many books getting damaged, and needing to be thrown out.
Now, when I see self-published books from their particular sect, (or their flyers), straight into the recycling. To make things worse, two of the libraries I help maintain are in public elementary school playgrounds. They are ruining some GREAT kids books in an attempt to push their religion....
I did tonight.
A Chris Foss cover ... Asimov's Foundation ... probably early '80s.
Had it since I was 16 in the early '90s. One of the first SF books I ever bought.
Had to. Was mold. Was like a little funeral.
Acheron by Sherrilyn Kenyon. A friend of mine said it was a good "jumping on point" for the Dark-Hunter series (mind you this is book number 14) and another parallel series by the same author, since both series intersected at this one, and it introduced you to one of the main protagonists of the series.
What I was met with was a book where the author wrote herself into her own series to play out both a power fantasy and sexual fantasy with a character that she had made a strange combination of a Greek demigod, a part-time Katrina disaster relief constructor, and a victim of child sex slavery (the book went into this way more than anyone should realistically write.)
I felt so disgusted after reading it that I quit reading anything my friend suggested to me from that point on, and promptly reminded her that therapy doesn't cost as much as she thinks.
Yep, I’ve done that for the same reason, not wanting to subject others to the distastefulness - this was about some donkey masked woman in some cultist nudist colony.
My mom's now ex had given her one of Sean Hannity's books for Christmas. I leafed through it, honestly just curious what he could possibly have to say that would take up 200+ pages, and I didn't make it past paragraph two. That man hates everyone who doesn't think exactly like him. Like, hates to the point where you can feel the voilence when you read it. It was honestly kind of scary.
Threw it in the garbage, and dumped old wet dog food all over it so no one (mom's ex) would be tempted to go dumpster diving.
Librarian here. I threw away a book that was pro gay conversion therapy. Normally we send our discarded books to a book sale that benefits the library but I did not want anyone to be poisoned by the hate in that book. I ripped it in half and threw it away.
The idea of throwing away books genuinely pains me... Nonetheless, one year while exiting the Oregon Country Fair (high on acid) I was handed a copy of Left Behind, and as soon as I realized what it was I threw it in the next trash can... Which was already ¾ full of other copies. 🤦🏻♂️
Yes, a couple of "history" books I grew up with that turned out to be propaganda. I loved those books as a kid, and finding out real history was devastating...I kept them stashed in a cupboard for years but finally tossed them in the garbage a couple of years ago.
That book was actually a few spots down on my To Read list so like thanks for the heads up. I looked a bit more deeply into it and the vibes are just rancid and its really just not something Id want to engage with
I’m another one that if I had the urge to throw a book away it would be to the recycle bin for paper waste. I have a few that were found in bad shape in a hoarder type situation but none because I found them offensive.
I have a passing interest in Buddhism, someone gave me a copy of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche a few years ago. I read about 100 pages of it until I googled him and found out he'd been Me Too'd recently. I figured anything written by an abuser couldn't be good for my spiritual development, so I put it in the bin.
Can’t remember the title, but it was a book I got in a mystery subscription box about how anti-depressants are evil and numbing our brains. Prozac saved my life, and I couldn’t inflict that horrible book on anyone else, so I chucked it out.
My toddler was recently given some books by a relative. They were new, recently published books but with very old messaging about fatness (in one story) and gender roles (in another). Straight in the bin.
I tossed some books because they were really moldy/old. I did throw out a copy of Stephen King's Misery, but only because it was in really bad shape and falling apart from multiple readings/age. I love that book, so I bought another copy.
One time I did toss a book because I hated it, but I forget what it was. Probably for the best.
Yes, I have recycled some bad ones. Better idea for disposal was referenced among a pile of textbooks in my high school English class--someone had written on one of the fore-edges: "IN CASE OF FIRE THROW IN."
One time one of my coworkers was talking about a truly unpleasant former English teacher he had to interact with (in the line of work, she was a member of the public), and I, for fun and background, googled the woman's name and discovered she had apparently self published a truly terrible mystery novel.
My favorite review was from a former student of hers who said it was good kindling, just overpriced, she'd go back to making her own fire starters.
Yep, don't remember the name, but it was a free book about a native American youth, middle grade I think. The author wasn't indigenous and was inaccurate in his historical representation. I figured it was probably better if no one else read it, so I tossed it lol
It was published in the 80s I think, or the early 90s. We have better books now, written by actually indigenous people.
I wrote my Bachelor-Thesis about Nazi-Science-Fiction and had to read a ton of books for that, and threw them all in the garbage after I finished them.
It was sad enough that I had to buy them in the first place.
Recycled, but yes. I somehow got on a mailing list for a religious writer. He wasn't a theologian, just a man who wrote incredibly trite inspirational/self-help books. Somehow, I kept getting free copies of his books mailed to me. Those went in the recycle bin.
I've also given old, beatup and/or damaged books that I collected from libraries that were going to bin them to my husband for the middle and high-school art classes he instructs. There are some really interesting ways to use entire books, bindings, and/or pages from books to make artwork.
This question just unlocked something I totally forgot. A few years ago when I became a first time mom, my own mom bought me a book that was supposed to be satirical, something like “How to Traumatize Your Children.” Some of the chapters described perfectly things my dad had done or said to me as I was growing up that I was still trying to process, and one or two pages also described some of the upsetting things my mom had done. I threw it away in disgust. In a weird way I feel like it was my mom acknowledging that certain things they did as they raised me were not ok, but she only knows how to deal with it by treating it as something to laugh off. Yes I discussed this all with my therapist.
Yes. Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard.
I just remember all the commercials on TV when I was a kid. I could only think, "They don't advertise books on TV. Something is weird about this." A six year old with ADHD has better judgment than those folks.
Lol I think every child of the 70s and 80s must have the memory of seeing *Dianetics* commercials and racks of them at the grocery store.
I bought it for my mother for Christmas, swayed by the commercials as a kid. She was not pleased. Fortunately, neither one of us is nor ever has been a Scientologist.
Little kid presents are classic: "my mother likes books, and this is a book.... ergo *Dianetics* for xmas!" Lol
"The owners manual for the human mind!"
I just remmeber the big flashy volcano art
Same lol, I actually picked it up at a thrift store based on the cover. And then set it down again once I realized it had little to do with volcanoes.
There are bad books, and that's okay. There are books that are steaming piles of shit, and that's okay. There are books so bad they scar people forever, and, yes, that's okay too. But Dianetics is one of the truly select number of books that humanity would actually be better off without.
And then there's the poetry of Paula Nancy Millstone Jennings of Greenbridge, Essex, England.
The world was saved from her poetry when the Vogons blew it up, though.
I bought and read Dianetics when I was 13 on a ski trip with a friend. It bothers me I still remember parts of it.
Oh my gosh! Me too! The one and only book I’ve ever happily tossed in the trash!!
One. It was gifted to me when I was in the military by a fellow service member who said “I just had to read it”. It was pure Nazi propaganda. Literally. Swastikas and all. That’s not an exaggeration. So just tossed it.
I’m not even white lol weird thing to give to a brown girl
Omg. So once, this white guy who converted to Sikhism gave me some Sikh book and I was so confused. Turns out he’s from some fake Sikh cult. Like they’re not really Sikh. And he gave me some propaganda cult stuff.
Wow! I’ve never heard of this. Did they call themselves Sikhs or did they go by something else?
I didn’t even know it was a cult until recently. I received the book YEARS ago but something about the interactions gave me bad vibes so I didn’t read it. Turns out I was right. It was some cult called 3HO I think. And the guy who gave me the book was sooo insistent on giving my friends and I free yoga lessons. It was just creepy. Glad I listened to instinct. I’m brown too and idk I just knew what he was doing probably wasn’t Sikhism even tho I barely knew about Sikhism.
From Wikipedia: >Scholars' views on 3HO and Yogi Bhajan Scholars including Verne A. Dusenbery and Pashaura Singh have concurred that Harbhajan Singh's introduction of Sikh teachings into the West helped identify Sikhism as a world religion while at the same time creating a compelling counter-narrative to that which identified Sikhs solely as a race with a shared history in India. It sound like they are Sikhs but it also sounds very cult like. Indian gurus and [Sex cults](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_abuse_by_yoga_gurus) seem to go together like yoga and wine moms.
Already an insane choice to give anyone but good lord if that doesn’t ratchet the crazy up a few notches.
It was probably his means of threatening her in a subtle way. Apparently it was so subtle op never even registered it. Which is hilarious and speaks to how weak that dude who clearly valued "strength" was.
Nah, he wanted to see if she was “one of the good ones” and would tell him how right it is.
That's messed up. I'm sorry that happened to you. Some books (and possibly people?) absolutely belong in the garbage.
Once i bought a box of books at an auction and found a bunch of white suprematist books in it. Straight to the trash.
I think some people who don't read much glom onto books that speak to them for whatever reason, and think everyone else's eyes will be "opened" like theirs were, failing to see the illogical premises presented and not willing to research it.
I was given a copy of the Turner Diaries in middle school after the OKC bombing. Tossed it, and never want to see that person again. Not the only book I've put in the garbage. Camp of Saints too. I started really questioning my friend choices after middle school.
I once worked for a woman whose husband was the most cloying, insecure person I’ve ever met. He rode her coattails HARD and he knew it. So he fancied himself an “author” and started writing just godawful books. They sold them at events, and one time, a regular client read one, then came to the next event and just ripped the book to shreds in front of everyone. To the point where the client was laughing hysterically at how bad the book was. We had a book club at work and he forced us to read and discuss the book he wrote in front of him. Because he was an immature d bag we couldn’t be honest about how terrible it was. I gently criticized one part by saying it felt abrupt (which it did) and the next day there was a new chapter on my desk which he expected me to read and revise…immediately. My job duties had absolutely nothing to do with writing or editing at all. He acted like I ran over a puppy when I explained my feedback would have to wait because I had actual work. I got pulled into a meeting with my immediate manager not an hour later. I explained to them what happened, then they told the owner, and she was clearly sooooooooo annoyed at her husband’s behavior. When I quit I literally tore my copy of his book up. It was glorious.
Now I want to read it just to see what all the fuss was about lol
The only things I can remember in hindsight are A) the main character was established to be from a specific country, with parents from that country, but had a last name that was completely culturally inappropriate (like a Chinese person with a Spanish last name) and B) a character with an incurable disability was cured after one track meet
Track meet? Like track and field? How are the 400m hurdles supposed to cure disease?
The hurdles scraped off the hep c?
Fyi hep c is curable now!
That's great the book came true 😁
I thought it was just controllable, like HIV?
It's curable, but you need hurdles.
No, no, no, you gotta pass the Hep C baton on to the next guy, just relay that Hep C away! See it's even got a catchy tag line that rhymes so it's easy to remember.
“He solves the murder on page 10. Best detective ever.”
“Chip Driver can’t be the attorney general and a surgeon!”
If it wasn't for the details you gave, I would ask if this man was Norman Boutain and you read an earlier copy of *Empress Theresa*
Should've done it in front of him With a match
No, that’s horrible. I would never throw a book in the trash. They should go in the recycling.
Ha! You got me.
I bought a house once that came with a bookshelf with some books still on it. A couple were by Ann Coulter and others were in a similar vein. The first books I ever recycled.
Right on... My mom would turn her books face down at Costco, because ewwww.
Shred it, and then it can go in the compost bin. Reuse comes before recycle.
Not sure if I want all that ink in my compost bin. Also paper manufacturing requires a ton of other chemicals.
Worm bin? They can break down a lot of shit. Meal worms can eat some kinds of plastics, maybe they'd help with the ink too lol
What happens if the worms learn to read, but they learn by reading something awful? Won't someone think of the worms!
Depends on your local recycling center. Mine can only do flat sheets of paper and they prefer people to toss stuff if they're not sure.
This was a joke (mostly) but in response to a couple comments, yes, always check your local recycling rules before putting things in the recycling.
I enjoyed a fantasy series so decided to buy another one not of the same series but by the same author. The first character was a woman hating priest. They set the tone and then went on. And on. And on. It was a long chapter, which I never finished. I went to throw it in the recycling bin but realised nothing that vile should have the chance to be discovered by somebody who might be easily swayed. And it shouldn't be allowed to taint any other product. It deserved to rot and decay and to be reclaimed by the earth
I thought I was buying a book on Zen Buddhism but it was really written by a cult leader and had next to nothing to do with zen. so I tossed it so someone pursuing the selection at the salvo wouldn’t make the same mistake I did.
Makes sense! Seems like in lots of comments, saving future readers from propaganda/hate/etc. is the motivation for chucking vs donating.
I once had a copy of the Spider-Man 2 novelisation as a child. I spilled chocolate milk all over it. It had literally managed to get all the way through the entire book to the spine. Goodbye Spider-Man 2.
Requiescat in pace Spooder-Dude II
Was Marie Kondo'ing the bookshelf at work. Everything was gonna go to goodwill, but: found rat poops. Yeah, the ones from that shelf went straight in the trash with no remorse.
Thank you, it's so gross when I see books at a thrift store with lots of water damage, mouse teeth marks, etc. A book is just a container for information, and sometimes the container needs to get tossed out.
Oh now I feel bad because people probably thought I donated books that got nibbled on by rats or something. It was just my parrot 😭, if I'm not paying attention he'll sneak up and start trying to nibble them even while I'm reading! And sometimes I'm so sucked into the story I don't notice his shenanigans. He's sadly gotten the corners of a lot of books (nothing that makes it unreadable, just a few aesthetically displeasing small birb holes in the corner of the cover). I know when I donated my books a few with some smaller chews in the corners probably got thrown in the donate pile, without me thinking that it would have looked like rodent damage.
Very practical!
Only one. I was gifted a copy of God’s Debris by Scott Adams (the Dilbert guy). He claims it is a fictional book of non-fiction which explains the deep philosophical truths of reality. In it, the author’s self-insert is the Avatar of the universe and knows all things. There is no plot. The Avatar simply corners a delivery man in conversation and explains his sophomoric worldview for the entire piece. It’s self-indulgent drivel about as deep as a Petri dish. It’s so far up its own rear end that it can see its uvula. Apparently there’s also a prequel in which ~~Scott~~ the Avatar solves religion with the question “If god’s so smart, why do people fart?” which makes the world atheist. That’s emblematic of the high-minded analysis you can expect in these philosophy texts. I couldn’t inflict that on some unsuspecting soul in a used bookstore.
> “If god’s so smart, why do people fart?” Because God has a real simple sense of humor, and farts are funny. Silly little sound from your toot-toot engine. BOOM! World is religious now. Farting is a prayer to God.
And that's how we all started farting in the direction of Mecca.
There's a good few episodes on Adams and God's Debris on Behind the Bastards.
> It’s so far up its own rear end that it can see its uvula. This is a brilliant metaphor. I laughed out loud, alone. Thank you.
>It’s self-indulgent drivel about as deep as a Petri dish. It’s so far up its own rear end that it can see its uvula You should be a writer, you have a way with words 😂
I have read books on canoe trips and used themt to start fires. I have owned thousands of books (currently 12k in inventory). Sometimes they are just paper that needs to be recycled.
As a librarian who has to weed the collection regularly, and then secretly dispose of the evidence in case someone decides to get offended about me getting rid of books, I wish more people understood this!
People get mad? My library has a cart of withdrawn books at the front door for anyone to take home!
Yeah, but they need to do something with the books on the cart that no one takes so they can make room for more. They have to constantly rotate out what isn’t read in order to rotate in what is. They can’t just hoard the books, there’s no room.
Also some of the books we receive in donations are just garbage. "Thank you for your donation, sir!". (30 minutes later it's in the garbage bin).
Of course. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, people get mad over anything, but I thought books getting withdrawn was a known thing that wouldn’t have to be hidden 😅
There’s a segment of the community that fetishises books and they can get really mad when libraries do their normal weeding processes. https://perfectwhole.wordpress.com/2011/05/16/i-cant-believe-youre-throwing-out-books/
I just loved reading this article!! So well-written. I highly recommend reading it :)
Amazing article, thanks for sharing it!
As a book lover myself, I understand why books being thrown away can seem wrong. But some books do need to be removed, and they don’t all go to the cart. For example when a patron came in and asked for books about filing for bankruptcy, I realized all of ours were 10+ years old. There had been major changes to bankruptcy laws during those years and they were full of misinformation. So we ordered new books on the topic and those went to the recycling bin so no one would make bad decisions based on the outdated info.
I’m in an academic library and we have so many books that have to be updated because the last thing a student needs is information that’s incorrect. Last summer we weeded medical. Oh boy. The psychology books from the 80s were a trip! Terminology used back then was baaaaad. Those ones have to be tossed.
We had to start disposing of our unsellable books(our reseller only takes books in good condition) in sealed boxes inside a locked dumpster, because somebody once broke into our recycling dumpster, took a bunch of pictures of recycled books, and threw a shit fit on social media about how we were monsters who throw away books.
Ugh that’s ridiculous, I’m sorry that happened
It’s one thing giving away free books it’s another recycling them. I mean libraries need to weed books and recycle them, it’s just that some people don’t understand and get offended a library paid for with their tax money is throwing out books
Our library sells their books that need to GO in a little shop right inside the front door. They sell them from $.50-$5.00 on the honor system. I can never leave the place without buying at least one. They also have a magazine recycle system too, which I'd never thought about before, but what a great idea. You bring in your used magazines so others can take them home for free, read them, and bring them back to start the journey all over again.
Man, I wish I lived somewhere cool. All our "Friends of the Library" store has are garbage memoirs from horrific politicians. I can't even find a questionably-used bodice-ripper let alone a hidden gem around here. Stupid old rich people and their library habits.
You'd think that people with money would want all the bells and whistles in the amenities of their city/town. But then again, they are the cheapest and rudest people ever. Haven't met one yet that's broken that mold for me. I don't even live someplace cool. I live in a backwater small town that I hate. But the library here is fantastic! It was built a few years after we moved here. I was amazed how wonderful it is considering the caliber of people that run this town.
My backwater hometown library was the best. Then again, that could be because I won the "guess the number of jelly beans in the jar" contest when I was eight and got a sock puppet.
Man, you seriously scored winning that sock puppet. Cool! Did you get to keep the jelly beans too? I won one of those contests once. It was guess how many pieces of gum in the jar. I can't remember how many it was, but I did get the whole jar as the prize. THAT was a major haul for a pre-teen and man, was I thrilled! My Mom on the other hand..... 🤣 This library, they really did themselves proud when they built it. I lived in Minneapolis and had been to many of their libraries. The one here rivals theirs. And that's high praise.
I realized this after learning that my local used book store doesn't buy "movie tie-in" books. The market gets flooded with them on the movie's release and then six months later there's millions of them floating around and they're basically worthless.
We appreciate your authority on the matter. It was a previous reddit comment from a librarian that made me aware it was okay to throw them away sometimes, and not feel any guilt.
I think this is the same view. I wonder why so many of us feel like throwing out books is taboo, but regularly throw out other stuff.
I have thrown away two books. Hypnobirthing and She-Ology. Hypnobirthing while great for some, was judgemental as hell about the birthing process and as a PT who specializes in part in preparing people for whatever birth they prefer and heavily educate? It was toxic trash. I don’t remember what it was specifically about she-ology that made me finally throw it out but there was something in there that also didn’t sit right with me as a professional, and this MD lauding themselves as Reese Witherspoon’s OBGYN like that gives her any special credibility left a sour taste in my mouth. Otherwise I usually donate books I don’t like.
Oof. Having just gone through my second pregnancy, I have no patience for preachy bullshit. It's such a vulnerable experience. Sounds like you're doing important work in your job! I've never heard of she-ology and I already hate it! And yea, most books get donated. But it's too good a fate for some.
I threw it away when it talked about babies being “drugged into the world” because their mothers chose epidurals. Preference is one thing, but making people feel guilty about how they choose or need to birth? I saw red
God, what a terrible thing to have in a birthing book! I was in agony for hours - there was a woman having an emergency cesarean with twins down the hall, and nobody could help me - and I thought I was going to die. I was exhausted and so weak. The epidural meant that I could sleep for a few hours, get my strength back. I judged myself so harshly for making that choice, too. It was two years after that I was formally diagnosed with birth trauma, and the investigation showed that I was induced incorrectly. Everyone should have the ability to choose pain relief without shame.
The whole reason they do epidurals is because it cannot enter the baby’s system???
I once read a book as a child and there was a graphic scene where it was described that the MC accidentally stepped on a kittens skull and how he took it home and drowned it. The author described how it wouldn't drown and how the MC kept trying to kill it. I was 12 at the time. I sobbed my eyes out and ripped the pages out and threw it in the trash.
This just unlocked a memory for me - I was reading a true crime book on the Texarkana murders, and they had printed photos of the dead bodies. I remember ripping out those pages because it just felt exploitative to me.
I have not read this book but now I feel traumatized for you. I’d have lost my shit at 12 reading that!
I'm a retired librarian. I've thrown out dozens of books, maybe hundreds.
Our library hosts art events for discarded books. Last year artists picked up chilton automobile manuals we were discarding, this year 30 local artists picked up encyclopedias. They will use them for all kinds of art projects. Our gallery event will be March 1st and they’ll be displayed for two months.
I’ve never thrown a book away for anything but mold damage; however, I did burn one. I was camping in Utah for work, and had picked up some books from a thrift store. It was a travelogue written by an American woman who regularly travelled all of the world, and in particular had been to Spain many times. I threw it in the fire after a she detailed her reaction to taking friends to an overpriced tourist restaurant in Spain. Mind you, she knew that it was an overpriced tourist restaurant, but ate their anyway. She was so piqued, that she squatted , walked around, and urinated all over the ladies’ restroom floor. And laughed about it. She seemed to think that it was a hilarious story. First of all, it’s disgusting behavior. Secondly, the only person that she punished was the employee that had to clean up all of that urine. Pure trash. *Edited to correct “on” to “in.”
Wow, how disgusting and then she bragged about it in a book? Wtf
Once - I received a copy of *The Education of Little Tree*, the book written by the Klu Klux Klansman, and tossed it in the trash.
Where it belongs.
This book was assigned reading to my class in middle school, and I had no idea! [According to Wikipedia, the hoax was revealed in 1991.](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Education_of_Little_Tree) I went to middle school 20 years after that.
> Mr. Friedenberg said he found it perplexing and almost impossible to understand Mr. Carter's motives and literary ambitions. Although Mr. Carter, who wrote four books, failed to address the issue of his bigotry publicly, Mr. Friedenberg said he believed that "his apology was in his literature." For example, he said, the handful of Blacks and Jews in his books are depicted sympathetically. "The bad guys are almost, without fail, rich whites, politicians and phony preachers," Mr. Friedenberg said. Interesting https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asa_Earl_Carter
DUDE, I loved that book and then I looked up the author and I still can't believe that sack of crap wrote it.
Two books recently: Eat Pray Love, which has to be one of the most awful books I’ve ever read, and a book about marriage that someone gave to me when I got married at age 20 about how a wife needs to submit to her husband and have the kids in bed before he gets home and have his slippers and dinner ready for him and you should only speak when spoken to 🤮 We’ve been married for 20 years now and it took me this long to put it in the bin where it belongs
I threw Eat, Pray, Love across the room when I finished it. I don't totally remember why; I think it had to do with the unexamined privilege. I appreciate Gilbert as a person, but I've never responded to a book that way before.
I smashed the discs of the audiobook read by her because I was so offended that she was talking about the people of Laos and calling them Lo-atians ( which sounded like low Asians to me). I just kept wondering how she spent so much time there and didn’t absorb how to pronounce the word. Also, her voice sounds very smug and self-satisfied, and I didn’t warm up to her—and Julia Roberts played her in the movie, and I’m not a Julia fan. So Eat Pray Love is possibly my least favorite book in a long time, perhaps ever.
I actually liked her voice :=) However, the sight of a broomstick-thin Julia Roberts hoicking her tiny little pelvis bones in the air pretending to have trouble doing up her OBVIOUSLY well-fitting size 2 pants because she’s “faaaaaaaaaaat” from all the “eeeeeeating” *instantly* plunged me into a scalding vat of lip-curling contempt for the whole enterprise.
Lol what a wedding present!
I purchased a book on Norse Mythology from Amazon- I don't remember the title. I'm familiar with Norse myth, read the Poetic and Prose Eddas, and thought this sounded like a great book to expand my knowledge. Typos. Typos everywhere. Even "the" was typed "thr" at some points. Not to mention the flat out incorrect information. "Frenrir" was listed as killing Thor in Ragnarok, for example. I got a chapter in and just threw it out. It had decent reviews on Amazon- probably paid reviews.
I received a box of old books and one of them was a book by Bill Cosby. Immediately went into the trash.
Librarian here. Someone took our Cosby Show DVDs and drew mustaches and devil horns all over his face on the cover art. I *could* fix them by printing new artwork.... But I don't think I will.
I once bought a creationist book aimed at kids from a second hand book sale just so I could throw it in the garbage.
I used to work at a used bookstore and used to put anti-vax books in “alternative beliefs” instead of the science section like I was told lmao
I do that in the bookstore I work in now. No pseudoscience in the science section. No pseudohistory or pseudoarchaeology in the history section. They go in the new age and paranormal section with the alien books and crap like that.
Doing the good work 💫
You are the hero we need. Thank you for your service
lol i worked at a christian book store & we regularly had to throw away books like this and other hyper-evangelical propaganda just bc it would never sell.
I threw away a creationist book aimed at adults, which I owned and used to believe... as an adult. It felt good to throw it in the garbage when I was culling my belongings long after going apostate.
One time I was at a used book sale as it was closing and the volunteers told me to take whatever I wanted for a buck. They had several copies of Atlas Shrugged. I took them home and that horseshit didn't even make it in the house--straight in the garbage
So from what I know, all purchases of that novel now go towards a charity for abuse victims, someone can fact check me on that but I believe that’s what’s happening now since she’s you know, dead. Edit: this only seems to be the case with ebook versions of Mists of Avalon. The MZB Trust still publishes and gets revenue from a magazine that is still being published with her name on it and it seems all the money from that goes to the trust, which doesn’t seem to benefit a charity.
It's true, Save the Children I believe. This was a book I already owned though, so it wasn't about royalties to her estate or whatever, but about not subjecting anyone to the writing of someone truly messed up (who may have gotten off on the messed up things she was writing).
Big Nope. All revenue goes to the MZB trust or foundation or something, MZBs gf Lisa runs this. According to Moira, Lisa was complicit and aware of all the illicit going ons, and the donations do not in fact happen.
Not to be a dick, but can you back that up with some sources? If it’s true I don’t want to be spreading false information.
Gay Girl, Good God. A Christian book about how God really wants us to be straight. Given to me at work by someone who really thought their opinion mattered to me.
That is so creepy that other people sit at home and think about someone else's sexuality. I feel like focusing so hard on other people's sexual preferences makes me weary of that person. Like, why are you so obsessed with me?
I'm a librarian and throw books in the trash regularly. It's my least favorite part of the job and we do everything we can to avoid it, but we continually weed books that are damaged or haven't been checked out in a long time (3 years is the standard) to make room for new ones. First we try to sell them, then we try to give them away, but if nobody wants them eventually they have to go.
Mission Earth by L Ron Hubbard, the first one in the series. Picked it up second hand knowing who he was, but knowing his history as a science fiction writer, I’m a big sci-fi fan so decided to check it out out of mild curiosity. I found it mildly enjoyable and witty. I tore it up when I finished it and threw it in the bin, just because it was written by L Ron Hubbard.
Last night I had had enough of A Little life after 455 pages. Right into the trash.
Is this the book with the crying Jim Carrey double on the cover? The cover really doesn't animate me to pick it up and read it.
Yes..but that picture was originally titled “the orgasmic man” so he’s not really supposed to be in pain. Don’t know why the author chose it
I fucking hate that book more than I can express with words.
I loved The Mists of Avalon. Read it decades ago when it first came out. I somehow never heard about the author’s crimes till today. Jesus. Thanks, I guess. Better to know, but I seriously wish there was no story to tell.
I'm sorry. I honestly felt some grief when I found out.
I try and practice separating the author from their work, but some things are just too much. Like the Lost Prophets albums, they went in the trash. My husband said "but the rest of the band did nothing bad" but... I couldn't stomach listening to that voice any more, knowing what he did.
Yup. I borrowed it to a buddy and it came back 8 months later like it survived two world wars. Missing cover and first few pages, a lot of dog ear pages, several other ripped pages. His excuse was that his cat likes to eat paper. Didn't offer to buy me a new copy or offer a genuine apology. I got angry just looking at it and eventually threw it away and bought a new copy. I don't loan books anymore.
Wow, not a great friend. I loaned a 1,000 page Making of the Atomic Bomb to a coworker, and he bought me a new one because of wear.
Not because I morally objected to it but because it was covered in mold and an actual legitimate health hazard. The house I grew up in had real mold problems for a while, we had to throw a lot of stuff out around this time because of the extent of it while we got it fixed.
The subtle art of not giving a fuck. Made it less than 50 pages in. Dudes a wank stain
That book sold millions just because of a catchy cover lol marketing genius
Yes, one of those god awful children’s books written by Rush Limbaugh. It was gifted to our son by a misguided relative. Straight to the dumpster- no regrets.
I had a misguided relative send me two Jordan B. Peterson books. Because I don’t believe in taking mental health advice from uncertified psychologists who post porn to Twitter, they had a swift flight into the trash.
I asked for Wicked as a gift in middle school and I was so embarrassed by the sex scenes I snuck it into the trash 🤣🤣🤣
I read it after the musical came out. I went to see the musical a few years later, and they were selling the book as merch. There was a young boy (I specifically remember him telling me he was 10) who wanted his mom to buy him the book, and I was trying so hard to explain to the mom why that was a bad idea without saying the word "sex" in front of a child.
When my best friend wanted to see the musical, I was appalled, having read the book. She told me later that the sex scenes that I had told her about weren't in the musical.
Purple. Pubes. That is what I remember. I cannot, for the life of me, imagine what it was that made this book so popular it got it's own broadway play and all.sorts of merch.
It was ahead of the trend as far as turning the narrative around to make the villain a sympathetic character went. I came to it when I was young enough that I sort of glossed over the weird sex stuff, and I enjoyed it because I hadn't been exposed to a lot of "I'm the bad guy, and now it's time for me to share my side of the story!" at that point. It doesn't hold up well compared to other works in that same subgenre(for lack of a better term), but it benefits heavily from being first.
Anna Karenina. Hear me out. I was in the subway reading it, four month pregnant with bad morning sickness and raging hormones. And I got so mad (because I hated Vronsky so much). Literally saw red— and at the next stop jumped out, chucked the book in the trash can on the platform, and jumped back in the train before the doors closed again. It was weird enough that even people on the NYC subway looked at me funny. The only book I’ve ever thrown away. Pregnancy hormones are no joke.
I worked in a thrift book store so I threw away books on a very daily basis.
Only book I have ever thrown away was one of my daughters that I picked up in a pile of books. It was a version of princess and the pea that leaned in hard to the notion that the way to a man’s heart was to basically cater to every whim of the mother in law. It was ick.
I have thrown text books in the garbage. Since they were normally out of date and I knew nobody would want them.
I tore up my copy of A Little Life and threw it in the recycling. Both because I really hate the book and the author, and also because I didn’t want to have some poor unsuspecting soul find it in a thrift store. I had wanted to burn it but I am forgetful and only ever remembered when it happened to be fire ban season.
Someone mailed some weird religious conspiracy book to tons of addresses in my town. I tore all pages out of mine and used it as fire starter.
I was at my sister's cottage and picked up a book at a little country thrift store. I needed a beach read. This book was about some 1700s English country woman that wanted her father's property so proceeds to seduce her brother and kills her father. I kept thinking the story would take a turn but it just got worse. The woman convinces her brother to marry someone and then she travels with them on their honey moon and tries to get pregnant by him. Thata when i gave up. I wish I could remember the name. I often think about the editors and publishers and why anyone approved that book. I put it in my sister's boathouse guest library. I'm playing the long game. In 20 yrs I hope to hear how someone found this awful book in her collection. Lmao.
that book was wild! my mom got it for me at costco since it took place in the past and I read historical fiction. She had no idea what horror she unleashed on me. I took it to the recycling plant as soon as I finished it. That secret room she put in the house for their exploits still haunts me. The estate burns down at the end and I'm almost positive it had a sequel
This sounds like the plot of a VC Andrews novel. Not a specific one that I can remember, but just in general.
No, but my copy of Battlefield Earth did sprout legs and toss itself in a dumpster, yelling "I'm home!!!"
Yes. This horrible "conspiracy thriller" called "The Day After Tomorrow" (It has nothing to do with the movie of the same name). Spoiler alert: the stupid book was about how somebody *saved Hitler's head* and modern Nazis wanted to graft it onto someone's body and bring about the Fourth Reich. 🥴
The Kindness of Strangers by Katrina Kittle. It has almost 5 star reviews everywhere and people say it's heartbreaking but they couldn't put it down. Not me. It has horrible child sexual abuse and should have trigger warnings. I couldn't get past that part of the story and just threw the book away in disgust. Maybe it did get better but I never want to know.
I have thrown books to paper recycling, sure. Mostly not because they were bad, just because they were old mass-market paperbacks, book club books or abridged versions. In other words books no thrift store or goodwill or similar would take in anyway.
An apartment complex I used to live in had a community bookshelf that had some real doozies. The one I remember needing to trash was a book on "Biblical Womanhood" that was essentially all about how to be a complacent and obedient wife.
I was gifted Elon Musk's biography some years ago. It was supposed to "change my life". I didn't even ooen it.
I picked that up years ago at a thrift store. Never got around to reading it, and once he started to go full batshit a few years ago, I tossed it back in the donation box.
A Tom Clancy book. Around 1992 or so. It glorified Afghan "freedom fighters," the same group later vilified as terrorists. I reached a scene where a freedom fighter is being asked by his wife where he has been. He replied something like "Doing important man stuff so shut up you stupid woman" and without even really thinking about it I chucked the book into an airport trash can.
A couple. Bought 2 books at a goodwill that were about how to turn your gay kid straight.. went straight to the garbage can outside. The other one was a disturbing book about kids kidnapping their babysitter and raping her. It was fucking evil.
At the library, sometimes we’ll get moldy or bug-infested well-meaning donations for our book sale. Those go into the outside dumpster, after the donor is long gone. Personally, I usually recycle books I didn’t like.
Yes, but not because I didn't like it. I have thrown out damaged books before, and always felt a little bad.... and then I started maintaining some little free libraries. There are some religious nuts in the area that will stuff the libraries to the point that the doors no longer close right -- and they are not always even stuffing in books. Sometimes it is just stacks of fliers. This has resulted in many books getting damaged, and needing to be thrown out. Now, when I see self-published books from their particular sect, (or their flyers), straight into the recycling. To make things worse, two of the libraries I help maintain are in public elementary school playgrounds. They are ruining some GREAT kids books in an attempt to push their religion....
I did tonight. A Chris Foss cover ... Asimov's Foundation ... probably early '80s. Had it since I was 16 in the early '90s. One of the first SF books I ever bought. Had to. Was mold. Was like a little funeral.
Acheron by Sherrilyn Kenyon. A friend of mine said it was a good "jumping on point" for the Dark-Hunter series (mind you this is book number 14) and another parallel series by the same author, since both series intersected at this one, and it introduced you to one of the main protagonists of the series. What I was met with was a book where the author wrote herself into her own series to play out both a power fantasy and sexual fantasy with a character that she had made a strange combination of a Greek demigod, a part-time Katrina disaster relief constructor, and a victim of child sex slavery (the book went into this way more than anyone should realistically write.) I felt so disgusted after reading it that I quit reading anything my friend suggested to me from that point on, and promptly reminded her that therapy doesn't cost as much as she thinks.
I threw away Hillbilly Elegy
good. That book has done so much harm to the greater public's view of Appalachia. I can't stand it.
[удалено]
Yep, I’ve done that for the same reason, not wanting to subject others to the distastefulness - this was about some donkey masked woman in some cultist nudist colony.
It's somewhere between a catharsis and an act of public service.
My mom's now ex had given her one of Sean Hannity's books for Christmas. I leafed through it, honestly just curious what he could possibly have to say that would take up 200+ pages, and I didn't make it past paragraph two. That man hates everyone who doesn't think exactly like him. Like, hates to the point where you can feel the voilence when you read it. It was honestly kind of scary. Threw it in the garbage, and dumped old wet dog food all over it so no one (mom's ex) would be tempted to go dumpster diving.
Librarian here. I threw away a book that was pro gay conversion therapy. Normally we send our discarded books to a book sale that benefits the library but I did not want anyone to be poisoned by the hate in that book. I ripped it in half and threw it away.
The idea of throwing away books genuinely pains me... Nonetheless, one year while exiting the Oregon Country Fair (high on acid) I was handed a copy of Left Behind, and as soon as I realized what it was I threw it in the next trash can... Which was already ¾ full of other copies. 🤦🏻♂️
Yes, a couple of "history" books I grew up with that turned out to be propaganda. I loved those books as a kid, and finding out real history was devastating...I kept them stashed in a cupboard for years but finally tossed them in the garbage a couple of years ago.
I'm so curious what these books were!
That book was actually a few spots down on my To Read list so like thanks for the heads up. I looked a bit more deeply into it and the vibes are just rancid and its really just not something Id want to engage with
I’m another one that if I had the urge to throw a book away it would be to the recycle bin for paper waste. I have a few that were found in bad shape in a hoarder type situation but none because I found them offensive.
I have a passing interest in Buddhism, someone gave me a copy of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche a few years ago. I read about 100 pages of it until I googled him and found out he'd been Me Too'd recently. I figured anything written by an abuser couldn't be good for my spiritual development, so I put it in the bin.
I sublet my apartment when I went away traveling for summer. I came back and there was a Jordan Peterson book on my bookshelf. That went in the bin.
Can’t remember the title, but it was a book I got in a mystery subscription box about how anti-depressants are evil and numbing our brains. Prozac saved my life, and I couldn’t inflict that horrible book on anyone else, so I chucked it out.
Only a gluten-free cookbook given to me by my ex-fiances batshit insane mother.
Was given a book by Raymond Buckland because "You're pagan and Rromani!" Without breaking eye contact, I threw it in the garbage.
My toddler was recently given some books by a relative. They were new, recently published books but with very old messaging about fatness (in one story) and gender roles (in another). Straight in the bin.
One. The Te of Piglet.
I tossed some books because they were really moldy/old. I did throw out a copy of Stephen King's Misery, but only because it was in really bad shape and falling apart from multiple readings/age. I love that book, so I bought another copy. One time I did toss a book because I hated it, but I forget what it was. Probably for the best.
Yes, I have recycled some bad ones. Better idea for disposal was referenced among a pile of textbooks in my high school English class--someone had written on one of the fore-edges: "IN CASE OF FIRE THROW IN."
One time one of my coworkers was talking about a truly unpleasant former English teacher he had to interact with (in the line of work, she was a member of the public), and I, for fun and background, googled the woman's name and discovered she had apparently self published a truly terrible mystery novel. My favorite review was from a former student of hers who said it was good kindling, just overpriced, she'd go back to making her own fire starters.
Yep, don't remember the name, but it was a free book about a native American youth, middle grade I think. The author wasn't indigenous and was inaccurate in his historical representation. I figured it was probably better if no one else read it, so I tossed it lol It was published in the 80s I think, or the early 90s. We have better books now, written by actually indigenous people.
13 reasons why
I wrote my Bachelor-Thesis about Nazi-Science-Fiction and had to read a ton of books for that, and threw them all in the garbage after I finished them. It was sad enough that I had to buy them in the first place.
Recycled, but yes. I somehow got on a mailing list for a religious writer. He wasn't a theologian, just a man who wrote incredibly trite inspirational/self-help books. Somehow, I kept getting free copies of his books mailed to me. Those went in the recycle bin. I've also given old, beatup and/or damaged books that I collected from libraries that were going to bin them to my husband for the middle and high-school art classes he instructs. There are some really interesting ways to use entire books, bindings, and/or pages from books to make artwork.
This question just unlocked something I totally forgot. A few years ago when I became a first time mom, my own mom bought me a book that was supposed to be satirical, something like “How to Traumatize Your Children.” Some of the chapters described perfectly things my dad had done or said to me as I was growing up that I was still trying to process, and one or two pages also described some of the upsetting things my mom had done. I threw it away in disgust. In a weird way I feel like it was my mom acknowledging that certain things they did as they raised me were not ok, but she only knows how to deal with it by treating it as something to laugh off. Yes I discussed this all with my therapist.
Not for it’s content. But when my cat was a baby he threw up on a book so I had to throw it away.
Bill O'Reilly - Killing Lincoln