Maybe a local children's hospital would be interested in the children's books.

This is so strange. I posted this, then edited it, and it disappeared. So I re-wrote it and posted again. The second post showed up and stayed. And now this original post has appeared. Crazy. Thanks for the idea, LucyStar.

Libraries around here won't take paperbacks.

A nursing home may want the adult books.

Agree with nursing home. Also, maybe a women's or homeless shelter for the children's books. The Trollope and Alcott-it may be more difficult to find a home for those. You may need to donate to Salvation Army, Vietnam Vets, or something similar.

Regarding your friend being unsettled, I'm not even dying and it is unsettling trying to take care of all my things and pare down. Have you ever heard of Betty Brigade? A friend told me about it, they helped her parents downsize when a health crisis necessitated a move to assisted living. Maybe your friend could get some help from them? I looked into it in my area. Perhaps you could be the liaison. I already asked them about books, they help with those if I ever need it. http://bettybrigade.com/

graywings, I'm sorry to hear about your friend.

I faced a similar situation after my father died from a terminal illness. He was a book collector and book buyer, and we had thousands to re-home after he died. He had a number of collections -- dictionaries, botanical books, and also a Trollope collection : ) . I was able to give some of those away to interested groups, but it was tough and took a lot of time. And this was nearly 10 years ago, when the preference for e-books was not as strong and Marie Kondo's book wasn't a glimmer in anyone's eye. I've served on our local library's board for many years and can confirm that libraries as a rule aren't particularly interested in such donations.

I would contact the Trollope Society in the USA (by email, Facebook, Twitter, etc) and tell them you have books to give away, for free. Maybe some members near you will be interested. The Louisa May Alcott and children's books, and even the Trollope books, might be of interest to home schoolers, especially the ones who prefer a more literature-based approach. See if you have a local homeschool support group -- your library might know, because they (we) tend to be heavy library users.

I'd also see what you can advertise online, whether through Craigslist or local neighborhood Facebook groups.

Your friend is lucky to have you helping.

You might try senior centers, ours has an active library. Also places like active adult retirement homes (different from nursing homes) almost always have a library. You might try some continuing care communities around you. Libraries around us have rather strict requirements of donations mostly interested in current items. You might have a job filling her requests. Paperbacks deteriorate much more quickly than paperback and once the paper gets brown, people are less liable to take them. Good luck.

Thanks for all the responses. BeckySharp, I was able to find the UK Trollope group on Facebook. Will look again for a US version.

I pinkmountain, my friend has been paring down for some time now. She did a major purge before moving into assisted living, so she is in good shape with getting rid of the excess. Now she is designating where and to whom certain special and meaningful items will go either soon or after she passes. I can do or arrange to have done the physical packing/moving/shipping. These three groups of books have special meaning to her and I don't mind spending the time to see whether I can accommodate her wishes.

Thanks again!

Thanks, BeckySharp! I shared some of your comments with my friend.

I would reach out to schools for the children's books. Beyond the library, a teacher might love to have them as a classroom set or they might be able to suggest a good place for them. There are many children whose families cannot afford books, and a donation there could turn on a reading habit for many children. A senior living complex (active or independent lifestyle as well as assisted living) might be good for the adult books.

Just an observation: My friend is in a senior living complex. In all the times I have been there, I have never seen anyone in the library area. It's possible there is more going on than I see. But I suspect the non-readers don't use it for obvious reasons and the readers source their books elsewhere, as my friend does.

I love books and have far too many in my house. But I'm in my early 50s and have needed reading glasses for about 10 years now, so I do enjoy eBooks -- Kindle purchases as well as Overdrive from the library system online -- especially being able to change the font or increase the type size. I suspect a lot of older folks are increasingly doing the same.

When your friend says she wants the books appreciated, does she mean actually used, read, potentially mishandled while being read or kept in a pristine state by another collector (whose family will some day be in your position of trying to unload the books)? To honor her wishes it’s important to understand what her vision of appreciated means.

Good luck. You are very kind to help her with this project.

I'm assuming she wants the books to be read and kept together as collections. Perhaps in conversations over time, she will be more specific. My
objective is to settle her mind, so I don't want to ask questions.