Books, in particular, speak strongly to our sense of self. We might own a book because we read it in the past and have fond memories of enjoying it or of the time in our life that we read it. Books we bought but haven't read yet represent our past self who chose to buy that book, the present self who still owns it, and the future self who will read it. If you bought "Infinite Jest" a decade ago but still haven't worked through it, getting rid of it signals that you're giving up. You are eliminating that future self who is absolutely going to read and understand "Infinite Jest."

Source: Los Angeles Times January 11, 2019 00:56 UTC