Is your TBR list out of control? Are you wondering how to reduce your TBR pile to a manageable level? TBR lists can quickly become overwhelming, as they often seem to have a mind of their own and seem to grow exponentially!
But never fear—the actionable steps and strategies here can help you tackle your TBR and get it back to manageable levels in no time. So read on to learn exactly what to do today to get your TBR list under control!
What is a TBR List?
Before we get started, what does TBR mean and what is a TBR pile? TBR stands for “To Be Read” and is simply a list of books that you hope or plan to read in the future.
For some people, a TBR is an actual physical collection of books sitting on their bookshelf waiting to be read, but for others it can simply be a written list of books they’re interested in reading. (You can learn how to start your own TBR here if you don’t have one yet!)
But one of the big dangers of a TBR list is that it is never-ending and can easily get out of hand. If you love books, then it’s likely that you frequently add new books to your TBR…which means you never get through the list because there are always more books to be read!
This brings us to another danger—since you never make it through your TBR, there may be books on your list that you wanted to read at one point but now you really don’t have interest in them anymore. This can especially be true if you’ve had a TBR list for years, because it’s entirely possible your taste has changed over the years and you won’t necessarily be interested in the same books is you were 3-5 years ago.
So if you find your TBR has gotten out of hand, it’s time to escape the overwhelm of a massive TBR by spending time culling your list until it only consists of books you actually want to read. So today we’re going to learn what steps you need to take to reduce your TBR list so you know that all the books on the list are ones you are still interested in reading!
Tips for Tackling Your TBR Pile
Ready to get started? The 9 tips here for tackling your TBR will help guide you through the process of reducing your to be read list, so read on and get started today!
1. Start By Organizing Your Books
When you’re ready to try to tackle your TBR pile, you may first want to consider organizing your TBR list and also organizing your books so you can actually see what books you own but haven’t read yet. If your home library situation is messy and without organization, then it’s entirely possible you don’t even know how many unread books are lurking on your shelves!
I have a free 14-day book organization challenge that you are welcome to join if you want to get a handle on a messy book situation. It takes you step by step through the process of decluttering your books, organizing them, cataloguing them, and more so you can enjoy a beautifully organized book space in your home! And as you go through this process, you can set aside books you haven’t yet read so you are ready to go through them and see which ones you want to keep on your TBR.
2. Out With the Old
Once you have all of your physical TBR gathered in one place (or your written TBR list in hand), it’s time to start reducing your to read list. And the best way to start this is to look at the books you’ve had on your TBR the longest.
Are there books you’ve bought or added to the list years ago but you haven’t yet read? If so, ask yourself if you are actually going to read them or if you’re just telling yourself you will at “some point” in the future. If you’re just telling yourself you will, then you need to realize that it’s okay to not want to read a book and to take it off your TBR…even if it’s a classic or a book that all your friends loved. The only question here is whether you actually want to read it!
If you don’t actually want to read the book, then it’s time to let it go. And after all, if you haven’t read it in the several years it’s been on your TBR, how likely are you to want to read it in the future? You’ll feel a lot better with a manageable TBR, and when you’re ready to let books go you can give them to family or friends, donate the books to a good cause, or even try to sell your books to make a little extra cash.
However, it’s also okay if some of the older books on your TBR are ones you do want to keep on the list. It’s possible that you’ve forgotten a gem of a book you were really interested in, and now that you remember it you do really want to read it. These books are welcome to stay on your TBR, but make sure that you do actually have plans to read them and aren’t just talking yourself into it!
Note that you can apply this strategy to all the books on your TBR, not just the oldest ones on your list. It’s likely that the older additions to your TBR will be easier to let go of since your tastes may have changed since you added them, but it can also be a good exercise to check in with your newer TBR additions to make sure you really plan to read them too!
3. Sort Through Your Maybe Pile
One of the things I talk about in my book organization challenge is that you will end up with a few different piles as you sort through your books. This is true of your TBR pile as well! I call these piles the “keep,” “maybe,” and “remove” piles.
You are sure to have many books on your TBR that are worth keeping, and you may even have some that are immediately and easily added to the “remove” pile. But you’re likely to also have quite a few that end up in the gray area known as the “maybe” pile. This is the hardest pile to deal with!
When you’re trying to decide whether a maybe book should be added to the keep or remove piles, there are a couple things you should do and ask yourself.
First, can you remember why you added this book to your TBR? Or can you remember who recommended it? If you have a connection the book or remember the reason you wanted to read it in the first place, that can help you decide if you want to read it in the future.
Next, if you’re still trying to decide about keeping it or not, look up a summary online and maybe read a few reviews. Goodreads can be an excellent place to do this. Then ask yourself: Does the book summary sound interesting? How is the book’s rating? Do other readers have good things to say about it?
Lastly, if you’re still not sure whether to keep it or not, try reading the first chapter or the first 20-50 pages. Does it interest you enough that you want to read it in the future? If so, keep it! If not, add it to the remove pile.
4. Date Your TBR Books
Now that you’ve gone through your TBR and sorted books into your “keep” and “maybe” piles, it’s time to take it to the next step of managing your TBR: dating your books!
Ok, so I’m not talking about taking your books on a date here; instead, I’m talking about recording the date you added each book to your TBR. When wondering how to reduce your to read list, this really is a game changer.
Of course, you may not remember the specific date you added all your past TBR books onto your list, and that’s okay. For the purposes of getting your TBR under control, we’re going to consider today the day you added all your previous books…and in the future you’ll record the actual date for any new books added.
So grab your physical books and add little date slips dated from today, or note the date on your TBR list tracker so you have a record to look back on. Then, you’ll want to set a reminder to go through your TBR in about 6 months (or a year if you prefer).
Once the 6 months is up, it’s time to look through your TBR and see if you have any books still on your TBR that are dated from 6 months ago. If you do, it’s time to take them off your list and let them go!
Why? Well, if they’re still on your TBR this means they are not as important to you as other books that you’re actually reading. It also means you’ve probably been telling yourself you’ll read these books “someday”…which is how you end up with a bloated TBR full of a bunch of books you’ll never actually read.
These “someday” books may be books someone told you that you “had” to read, they could be classics you’re not interested in, or they could really be any other type of book that you wish you liked to read but in reality don’t actually care about. So instead of letting them linger on your TBR unread, use this date system to help you identify these “someday” books and let them go when the time comes (or use it as motivation to actually read them before the 6 months is up).
If it makes it easier to let these books go, remind yourself that if you ever do change your reading habits or for some reason want to read a book you took off your list, you won’t have a hard time to find it again between libraries and online or local bookstores!
5. Be Careful About New Books You Add
If you love reading books but love discovering or buying new books just as much, then it can be easy for your TBR to get out of control before you know it. So it’s important to be sure you are actually interested in a new book before you add it to your list!
To do this, you should vet each title by reading summaries of the books you’re interested in and (if you’re not opposed to it) read a few spoiler-free reviews as well. As mentioned earlier, Goodreads is a great place to do this. Book blogs like this one are also an excellent source of book recommendations or reviews.
Once you know the quality of the book and whether the content actually interests you, you can add it to your TBR. However, if the quality or content looks subpar or like you may not actually want to spend time reading it, then you will want to skip adding it to your list.
But if you really struggle with this area of adding too many new books to your list, then you may also want to follow the “one in, one out” rule where if you add a book to your TBR then another book has to go (either by getting rid of it, or by reading it). Alternatively, you could set a book buying ban for a month, 3 months, a year, or whatever length of time you want so you have time to read through your TBR before you’re allowed to add new books to it!
6. Keep a Written TBR
While I like to have a shelf set aside just for my TBR books (as explained in my post about bookshelf organization), I also find that it’s easier to control my TBR when I keep a written list. This may be a helpful method for you too, if you find your list gets out of control quickly!
In my TBR list, I like to record a few details to make sure I know what the book is about, when I added it, etc. This makes it easier for me to pick out a new book to read from my TBR, because I have all the information at my fingertips and don’t have to re-look up summaries before deciding what to read next. Here’s what I like to record:
- Book title
- Author name
- Date added to TBR
- Why I want to read this book
- Who recommended this book or where I discovered it
By filling out these simple details for each of the books on my TBR, you set yourself up for success at managing your list and actually enjoying reading the books you add to it.
Want an easy way to track your TBR? Check out this printable TBR list tracker!
7. Read the Books on Your List
And, of course, when you’re wondering how to get through your TBR list, one of the easiest ways is to actually read the books on your list! If you read through a pile of books on your TBR, then that pile is removed from your TBR and you’ve already reduced your list just by reading!
Reading the books on your TBR is a pretty simple concept, but one that is worth remembering now that you’ve combed through your TBR to make sure all the books there are ones you actually want to read. Even better if you decide to read multiple books at the same time!
You’ve done the work, and you know you’re interested in these books, so get out there and read them. After all, that’s exactly what a TBR is for—to be read! 🙂
If you’re having trouble making time to read, consider scheduling in reading time to make sure you get some reading in each day (learn how to set reading goals here!). Or, you may also enjoy the accountability of joining a reading challenge with other people or on your own. But however you kickstart your reading, actually reading the books on your TBR is the best way to reduce it.
Stuck in a reading slump and don’t want to read anything on your TBR? Check out these 25 tried and tested ways to get out of a reading slump!
8. Listen to Audiobooks
Of course, sometimes the reason your TBR keeps growing is because you simply don’t have enough time to read. If this is part of the problem for you, then I highly recommend you give audiobooks a try.
Listening to audiobooks is perfect because you can do other things at the same time, like commuting to work, doing housework, exercising, etc. In fact, check out these 28 things you can do while listening to audiobooks!
So if you’re super busy and your TBR keeps growing, audiobooks can be a great way to manage your TBR and help reduce it while still getting everything else in your life done!
9. Regularly Check in on Your TBR
Now that you’ve culled your TBR and made sure it’s in good shape, you can simply sit back, relax, and read! But if you want to keep it in good shape, you’ll need to regularly check in on it to make sure it’s not getting out of hand.
As mentioned earlier, it can be a good idea to set reminders for yourself for 6 months from now or a year from now to go through your list. At that time, you can repeat the strategies in this article to make sure you’re keeping your TBR list healthy and manageable! But for now, congratulations on getting your TBR list under control…and happy reading!