Attempting a TBR-Tackling Tactic

 I’m going to start out with the disclosure that I do not have an overly large pile of unread books at home, and that I don’t think this tactic will work well for a very large list. I wanted to share it anyway because even if it isn’t a bulletproof system, it has helped me see my reading of books in a new way and that’s actually what I’ve found to be so valuable from this exercise.

Historical note: I used to have a very large TBR (to-be-read pile/list) until I realized that it seriously stressed me out. I’ve tried many concerted efforts to read it down, but the most progress I ever made was when I went willy-nilly un-hauling books left and right – which I had called “donating” before the un-haul video became popular. It was so freeing to finally not have a huge pile of unread books suffocating me anymore.

The only problem was, I never stopped buying books. I wasn’t interested in reading a bunch of books that had gone stale for me anymore, but there were lots of other fresh books catching my eye. However, with the threat of that suffocating feeling from a giant TBR looming, I learned my lesson and have since kept the number of unread books at home below 20 (and this includes ebooks and audiobooks).

Modern era: I don’t feel like I’m suffocating anymore, but I do often buy a book when I don’t have the time to read it and it is left on my shelf, forlorn, for an indeterminate amount of time. So I came up with a [tiny-]TBR-tackling plan to take the “indeterminate” out of it: put a time-limit on any new books coming in.

I got this idea because I realized I was so much better at reading books when I had a reason to, like if they were due back at the library or I was meeting up with a book club. For me, both of those cases had hard-set dates – either I would get an overdue notice from the library or I’d be meeting with a group IRL to discuss the book. So I thought: what if I made myself “due dates” for all of the other unread books on my shelf? I would have to read them before they expired!

I had to determine how long to give myself to read each book. In other words, when would each of the books on my shelf “expire” or be “due”? My library typically loans books for 2-9 weeks, depending on if there is a long hold list for the item and/or if renewals are available. A digital loan lasts 3 weeks with a less likely chance of renewal. My genre book clubs each leave 6 weeks between each meeting to read the book (but I’m signed up for 3 clubs, so that gets split into 2 weeks for each book). So I settled on a generic 6 weeks per book and would deal with any further time constraints if/when they came up.

I gave myself some leeway at the start because there was no way I would finish ALL my unread books in a 6-week period. I started by finishing library books in their first 3 weeks. I gave myself 6 weeks for any newly acquired books. I spread out my club books based on their meeting date and “backlist” books across about 3 months, depending on how long it’s already been waiting on my shelf.

And I am happy to say that it’s been going well. I haven’t checked out any more library books because I’ve already got “due dates” coming up on my shelves. I’m always ready for my club meetings. I’ve been finishing books in a timely fashion! Until I didn’t.

I bought 2 hardcovers at the same time 6 weeks ago and I only got about 2/3 through one and I haven’t read a single page of the other. My mother had also lent me a book I didn’t get to in time. They have all “expired”. So what do I do? I must “return” them. I returned the book to my mother with no hard feelings. I wasn’t interested in reading it after all so I won’t miss it. And yet I’m not ready to give up on those new release hardcover books altogether… But I’ve got other due dates looming behind them! I can’t let my momentum stop now.

To semi-deal with those 2 “expired” books, I’ve returned them to the guilt-free not-to-do oblivion that is anywhere but my TBR shelf. They are now in a separate cabinet, out of sight and out of mind, so I can focus on the next upcoming book that’s due. I honestly don’t know what will happen to those books. Will I miss them or forget about them? Will I go back to them after I finish my current TBR? (Completely finishing a TBR without adding books faster than I can read them? Is that even possible?!) Will I rediscover them one day and add them back on my TBR with a fresh 6 weeks? Or will I find them again just to realize I’ve lost interest in them?

I’m not sure. And honestly, that doubt is what makes me prefer using the library than buying books in the first place. Instead of buying those 2 hardcovers 6 weeks ago, I could’ve borrowed and then returned them, with no guilt and full pockets. (And yet, I only know that because of the experience I lived with them. It was impossible to predict that when they were sparkling so brightly at me from the bookstore shelf.) Whether I read a book right away or let it lapse, think about it non-stop or forget it exists, the library is there for me. Sure there are hours of operation and wait lists, but since it’s all completely free for me, I consider it a fair trade-off. I suppose this whole exercise of applying due dates to my books is experimenting with the idea of making my home book collection more like a library.

I understand that everyone is not in the same position as me (whether it’s because of access to books, size of TBR, or reading speed/habits) and that this approach is not universally adoptable. But I decided to share it because of how it made me change the way I look at books I want to read. I only have so much time to read and if I only have so much time with each book, it makes me look closer and prioritize what I want or need to be reading. It also helps break down my larger TBR into smaller, more manageable chunks (i.e. I don’t have to worry about all of my unread books right now, only about these 3 due in the next month or whatever). Perhaps with a few tweaks, you can make this method work for you, too.

Now, what to call it?
– Expiration Desperation
– The Due Dating Game
– 6-Week Shelf-Life
– Read Before It’s Too Late!
– Reasonable Rate Reading