The Gentle art of Swedish Death Cleaning : : how to Free Yourself and Your Family From a Lifetime of Clutter

Locations
Call Number: 648.5 Ma, Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta
On Shelf At: Downtown Library

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	648.5 Ma	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	648.5 Ma	4-week checkout	Due 04-05-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	648.5 Ma	4-week checkout	Due 04-06-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	648.5 Ma	4-week checkout	Due 05-11-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	648.5 Ma	4-week checkout	Due 05-14-2024
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	On Hold Shelf
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	On Hold Shelf
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	Due 05-21-2024
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	Due 05-23-2024
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	Due 05-15-2024
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	Due 05-13-2024
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Nonfiction / Home & Garden / Decorating & Organizing / Magnusson, Margareta	4-week checkout	Due 04-29-2024

Death cleaning is not sad -- Death cleaning is as much (or more!) for you as for the people who come after.
In Sweden there is a kind of decluttering called döstädning, dö meaning "death" and städning meaning "cleaning." Margareta instructs readers to embrace minimalism, and suggests which possessions you can easily get rid of (unworn clothes, unwanted presents, more plates than you'd ever use) and which you might want to keep (photographs, love letters, a few of your children's art projects). Digging into her late husband's tool shed, and her own secret drawer of vices, Margareta introduces an element of fun to a potentially daunting task. Along the way readers get a glimpse into her life in Sweden, and also become more comfortable with the idea of letting go.

REVIEWS & SUMMARIES

Library Journal Review
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Summary / Annotation
Author Notes

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Nice little book about purging submitted by godzilla on August 31, 2018, 8:07pm While this doesn't bring anything new to the world of organization and simplifying, it may help some start thinking about what they want to happen to their stuff after death. Helpful for those that hadn't thought about it or those who don't know where to start.

A gentle read submitted by 3kidsgrimm on August 31, 2019, 10:51pm This was a very approachable book. The advice is sweet on how to make choices about things to keep and not, allowing for some sentimentality but ever practical. While it is being written as if to give advice to those nearing the end of their time on earth, the advice does give one some things to think about on the journey to that point.
And it truly is s gentle read. The advice is given in such a mild way that it doesn’t feel like you’re being pushed to a “this is the only way to do things” approach.

And, apparently if your looking for some interesting recipes, there are those too!

gentle, sweet, but nothing new here! submitted by 21621031390949 on July 2, 2020, 5:52pm Short, little book that might be a good motivator for someone in need. Aside from a few concrete suggestions and as many judgments, however, it's pretty short on substance. But then again, how much is there to say beyond:
You have more stuff than you need,
Don't leave it until you die and make your kids hate you for leaving them with a mess,
Just get started.

Having just inherited a 3400 square foot home full of stuff that needed to be "death cleaned," I think I could write a more substantive and useful book. Maybe I will once I get rid of all my parents' stuff.

Gentle and Interesting submitted by sdunav on August 1, 2020, 12:51pm Some of my favorite quotes:

"A loved one wants to inherit nice things from you. Not all things from you." pg. 40

"Save your favorite ***** - but throw away the other fifteen! There's no sense in saving things that will shock or upset your family after you're gone." (pg. 79)

Speaking of her deceased husband: "His snickarbod (Swedish for "toolshed") gradually became what I believe today is called a "man cave." In Swedish we also now sometimes call it mansdagis, a male kindergarten, which makes me smile and feels like an entirely appropriate word." (pg. 82)

"You cannot know the places your objects will go after you are gone and that could be wonderful to contemplate." (pg. 118)

Good Book submitted by ann_arbor on August 2, 2021, 7:33pm Inspiring book. The author gives some good examples of giving away items to others. Such as sharing the tools, that had belonged in her late husband's shed, with the neighbors for repairing and making items.

Great concept submitted by emaelshaikh on August 25, 2022, 1:17pm But needs specification

Gentle and Pleasant Book submitted by denisemw on August 11, 2023, 9:32pm Very quick read, with words of wisdom. May get you in the mood to organize, de-clutter, and re-home at least some of your possessions. I hope that when “I am aged between eighty and one hundred“ that I will have the energy and drive to write a book.