I’m still trimming down the stacks of books that need to be packed and readied for shipment to NYC; the interesting thing is that I’m trimming the stacks not by reading, but by being confronted, daily, with the question of, “do I want to read this? Whether I want to or not, will I read this?”

Today, I delivered an enormous bag to the public library; an email alert went out earlier in the week that they’re in financial trouble for the end of the year, and were soliciting donations of books for a pre-holiday book sale to support the library system. I brought them a large selection of books, mainly hardcover, in great condition—many of them still unread. Here’s the thing, though; better that tehy be read by omeone who will love and appreciate them, better that they bring a few pennies to the library, better that they do some good rather than clutter up the floor as I mull over them indecisively. I haven’t any recommendations to share, which is more telling than anything else I could say, about those which I delivered this morning.

I have a much-diminished “to read” list now, listed below. If anyone out there has been dying to read something on this list, drop me a note—I’d be happy to organize a read-and-discuss-a-long of a few volumes.

• Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, kept, 02.16.09
• Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, kept, 02.27.09
• Douglas Adams, Life, the Universe and Everything
• Douglas Adams, So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
• Douglas Adams, Mostly Harmless
• Susanna Clarke, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
• Richard Dawkins, The GOD Delusion
• Kiran Desai, The Inheritance of Loss
• Karina Gore Schiff, Lighting the Way: Nine Women Who Changed Modern America
• Lady Gregory, Irish Myths and Legends
• Sara Gruen, Water for Elephants
• Gregory Johnson, Put Your Life on a Diet: Lessons Learned From Living in 140 Square Feet
• Jumpa Lahiri, The Namesake
• Jumpa Lahiri, Interpreter of Maladies
• Ian McEwan, Atonement
• Bill McKibben, Wandering Home
• Azar Nafisi, Reading Lolita in Tehran
• Sena Jeter Naslund, Ahab’s Wife, or, The Star-Gazer
• Melany Neilson, The Persia Cafe (passed, 01.18.09)
• Irene Nemirovsky, Suite Francaise
• Michael Reynolds, The Young Hemingway
• Susan Sontag, The Volcano Lover
• Lily Tuck, The News From Paraguay (tossed, 02.15.09)
• Jennifer Vandever, The Bronte Project (kept, 12.08.08)
• Sarah Waters, The Night Watch (kept, 12.28.08)
• Terry Tempest Williams, Refuge
• Jeanette Winterson, Lighthousekeeping (kept, 02.08.09)
• Marcus Zusak, The Book Thief