Reading = Happiness
Reading is one of my favorite hobbies and I love books. But I also love sharing my books. Before we downsized, we had a huge book library. After a lot of thought and consideration, we decided to donate the majority of our books to the local library. With that in mind, I’d like to tell you about Living Small.
I purchased Living Small sometime last year and loved the book. But, it’s been sitting on my shelf and needs a good home. I’d like to give the book away to one of you.
If you want the book, please leave a comment on this post by October 15th. Then, I’ll throw the names in a hat and announce the winner on the 16th. 
Here is a short description of Living Small:
This book is a survey of small houses from early settler cabins to the tiny house movement of today. The houses include frontier shelters, squatter houses, Cracker houses, farmhouses, bandboxes, shotguns, bungalows, and tiny houses. The book shows how these houses were built and served the special needs of their owner-builders. Each chapter starts by showing the house in the context of its construction, the kind of resources that were available to its owners, and how their construction was shaped by both their purpose and historical situation…
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
What a lovely idea — giving away a book that you’ve loved! It sounds great. I’m always looking for inspiration for small & simple living. I also need to build a replacement for a lovely old driveshed at the back of my property that’s about to fall down. Unfortunately, it can’t be saved, but I’d like to replace it with something creative/useful/sustainable. (I also gave away most of my library when I moved to my tiny hamlet heritage house.)
Cool blog, keep doing what you’re doing.
As someone who will eventually need to downsize things as well, it is nice to have some ideas on what to do. I also have a large collection of books. Donating them to a library might be a good thing to do. Keep up the good work.
Thats so awesome that you want to share the book after you’re done with it! I love reading through those types of books for inspiration. It sounds like its really neat also, “from the frontier to modern day,” I also love seeing how people used to live. (I’m a bit in love with olden times) Anyway, I LOVE your blog and thanks for being part of my daily inspiration!
Looks like an interesting book. The author has several other books available also. Not being a home owner at present, but thinking I may be in the future, this would provide inspiration. It’s always nice to plan out what you want beforehand, rather than wishing you had done things differently later.
I love books, too! I’ve really downsized our collection, also, but still have a ways to go. Some are really hard for me to get rid of, b/c they are hard to find now, or out of print.
Thanks to all who left comments and thank you for reading RowdyKittens. It’s so hard to part with good books, but I’m excited to give this one away.
You are fast becoming my new blog crush what the gorgeous and minimal layout and the bribes gifts to your readers! You. Rock.
@Hayden – U are a sweetie! Thank u.
@Chris – Thank you. I’ll check out the book you mentioned. It sound intriguing.
@Kate – I love B&N. I don’t buy a lot of books anymore. Most come from the library, but I’m a sucker for bookstores. Big and small. It’s hard to walk in without buying anything. But I’ve gotten a lot better at saying no to my book wants in the last year.
I just finished the book “The Bones of Plenty” about a young farming family in North Dakota during the depression. Sad, but well written. And from my local library.
You have a wonderful idea for lightening the load and bringing a smile to someone else. I’ll have to try the same.
Tammy…that sounds like a fun book! If I don’t win, I will have to check it out at Barnes and Noble! (One our favorite family outings is an afternoon trip to B&N, browsing and gleaning all sorts of wonderful ideas.)
Love your blog!
Love the give a book away idea, along with the library donations. I live small, very small, on a very small island. But I’m always looking for ways to get more space out of the small, so hoping if I get the book something new will pop up. We’ve only had a library a little over a year here (up until then, we all just shared books, still do – each store and bar has a free book shelf), so if I get it, I’ll donate it to our library when I’m done. Pass it on!
Tammy, thanks for the good work on the blog. I have included it on my opening iGoogle page, and I’m always interested in the new things you post… It seems counterintuitive to be hoping for another possession so that I might be able to easier downsize my possessions, but if it works…
Cheers,
Joe
That sounds like an interesting book and I would love to read it. Thank you for your generosity.
Hi Tammy and Logan;
I am happy to discover your blog recently through mnmlist.com
Simplicity has been a great topic of interests of me in recent years that include blog reading, purging my belongings, and appreciating beautiful space that’s not cluttered with stuff. It is refreshing!
I moved from Asia about 10 years ago and my hometown is still new to the concept of flea markets and freecycle which I took great advantages of living in US. My mom got so inspired when I shared with her she is starting her own “club” (among her friends) of purging, decluttering and they will have their first flea market in a few weeks!
@Karen – Thank you.
It’s great to hear that your mom is so enthusiast about the downsizing process. I’ve been trying to get my mom to downsize some of her stuff for the last few years, but haven’t had any luck. 
@MJ – It’s so great that folks share books on the island. I’m also happy to hear that you have a new library. Very cool! You might want to check out WorldCat.org. This might increase your book borrowing possibilities.
Thanks for reading.
Like your site, I’d like to see/read what others are doing with small homes….then pass the book on to someone else.
And my 500 ft2 home will be ready for insulation next week..only two more windows to move this week !!
Life is good…………………………..
Joe – So cool! You’ll have to send me photos once our house is finished. I’d love to see the finished product. Thanks for reading the blog.
I’m now on the List of Potentials! Yay! Honestly though, I’m going to probably go to BandN today and look for it. If I get to be the Chosen One, I’ll do the same, and pass it on to the next person.
Phil
Fantastic Phil! I’ll add your name to the list.
Very exciting! Can’t wai to see who wins!
Due to life’s everchanging situation, I found myself living small and recently even smaller, moving towards having “nothing, nowhere, never unless it is timely, important, amusing, relevant, or capable of engaging my imagination”.
To that end, my own library is non-existent. I read a book and take what knowledge I can from it, and send it on its way to the next beneficiary.
I have been following your site for a while now and find inspiration in your efforts and writings. Thank-you for sharing!
Thanks for your kind words Leonard. I appreciate the support. Thank you for reading! And good luck on your downsizing adventures.