Lending Books Versus Book Swaps

It’s my last day as host and I hope that if you find any of my prompts interesting that you’ll go ahead and give them a go, but, if not, on the plus side you get a reprieve from me after this! The next host up is Amanda @ Between the Shelves.

[Thank you to Sam & Clo for putting this event together!]

So! Yesterday we talked about bookish resources we could access and what’s possible or not possible for us depending on where we are, but one way that seems international is having friends you can book lend with or book swap (the closer they are to you the better, because, shipping is not about that life when it’s international lol).

I’m looking forward to seeing which one you prefer and why or if you like or dislike both equally, lol whatever floats your boat guys! So I’ll do the pros and cons for both sets!

Book Lending:

Pros:
– Lending books to friends means -theortically- you get them back!
– If you don’t like the book it’s no money lost, you just return it to your friend
– It lets you see what your friends like to read, and could lead you to read a book you wouldn’t normally and really enjoying it!
– This point above goes both ways! You can lend books to your friends that you love and share that love!
– If you don’t like the book, you just return it to your friend, no muss or fuss.
– Again, money saving!

Cons:
-Sometimes lending a book means that this book is out of your hands for as long as your friend has it, and sometimes, it happens, you trust the wrong person and there that book goes forever.
– If your friend lends you a book that they love and you hate, there may be a small awkward moment there!
– Sometimes your friends may have the opposite reading tastes and that means there may not be as much to exchange.
– Your friends could accidentally mess up your book, I mean, accidents do happen! [Though unless it’s special edition or just special personally it should be easily replaceable, still a bit of a hassle though.]

Book Swapping:

Pros:
– You may have some unwanted books in your collection and your friends may want them and to get rid of their books they don’t want, with luck their books will be ones that interest you and you get some great adds to your shelf!
– You don’t have to feel guilty if you accidentally mess up the book you received in the swap, it’s yours, you don’t have to replace it right away unless you want to and you don’t have to worry about ruining a friend’s book
-If you love the book, that’s it! You get to keep it! So you don’t have to reluctantly return it at the end of the day.
– Did I mention this one is also a great way to save money?
– This is perfect to get rid of books that you no longer want but that your friend may like to have so in a way it can make it easier to part with a book knowing that it’ll have a great home with your friend and that you’ll get a book you want in exchange

Cons:
– The book looks great, you’re excited to add it to your shelf, you read it. Crap. You hated it, and now you’re stuck with it.
– Doesn’t really save money if you don’t enjoy the books you get in swaps and end up having to go buy books you actually want.
– You may regret swapping a certain book, you could realize how badly you actually wanted to keep it later.
– This only works if your friend has books you want and vice versa!

Final Verdict:

Due to my clumsiness which we’ve discussed and my unease of having someone else’s property under my dome of responsibility, I have to say I’m in favor of book swapping! Also, I’ve had two people fob off with my books before, I trust very few now lol.

What about you all, if you had to pick, book lending or book swapping?

Have you had a bad experience with either? Or a great one?