Cryptic crossword clue
Bare minimum of instructional books — effectively treat as one 2,3,10

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 17 letter word IN THE ALTOGETHER

I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
I
N
Â
 
T
H
E
Â
 
A
L
T
O
G
E
T
H
E
R

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Bare" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case bare = in the altogether.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

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