I Love Library Book Sales
On finding great books & how we can show up for our libraries when donating
I was attempting to make weekend plans with a friend on a drizzly Sunday. We were talking about trekking down to a lovely little bookstore that’s an easy road trip (and worth the membership fee to get 20% off books). The curation is stellar. The booksellers are always ready to strike up conversation about reading and their thoughts about the books on shelves. It’s good for my soul and not always great for my pocketbook, and I love every minute of it.
Shortly before firming up our plan, I threw a wrench into things with an alternate option. A local library was advertising a book sale, and it was on a Sunday. MY WEEKEND DAY OFF. I rarely get to go to library book sales in the area because they are always on Saturdays, and I’m at my own little library shuffling patrons through picking out books for weekend reads. Thankfully, my dearest friend is just as voracious of a reader as I am, and she was game. Off we went with tote bags in hand.
Library book sales are some of the purest sources of joy that I know, thanks to the goodwill of patrons donating their finished books to be used by the library for circulation or to raise funds to add different books to circulation (or library programming, special projects—whatever staff see fit). Libraries always price to sell, and this sale was no different from others. Hardcovers were $2, softcovers $1 and it went on from there. I get the good fortune of adding to my collection for a nominal fee AND I get to support local libraries. It’s a win-win for everyone.
Well, maybe except for the staff that sometimes have to deal with the not-so-great books that we all think might past muster for being a part of a library book sale. Whether it’s people thinking they’ll pull a fast one on me and I won’t notice the science experiment growing out of the side of a 1976 tax help manual, or that some still hold on to the idea that every single book is sacred, I’m here to dispel a few things and share how we all can be great supporters of libraries and their sales that raise crucial funds for their services.
How-tos for donating to library book sales
Ask yourself the question: is this a book that, while no longer of use to me, can be used by the library or someone else?
Sometimes we’re ready to move on from books, but the books we want to part with are really old, not of popular use anymore, or are from a time when it was common to purchase a TIME series collection of 48 volumes. Libraries will probably not be able to add them to their collection, and they’ll probably be passed over at a book sale. Now that’s not to say that all vintage books are bad books, and library staff are certainly able to help decipher what is acceptable for a sale and what is better off being taken to a recycling center.
No, really—we do not accept books that are not free of mold, dust, mildew or other residues.
We really don’t, and I really get grumpy when I walk up to the library book drop to find a box of saran-wrapped mold that looks more like it spent time in the second half of Sylvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic than it did in a building with the correct amount of humidity. Please don’t bring me boxes of books that will make me gag and sneeze. Just please.
Make sure libraries are currently accepting donations.
Libraries can sometimes get too inundated with donations and we don’t have room to store more. We’d love to take those donations off your hands, but there are times when we are at capacity. You can safely store them in a climate-controlled space and wait for us to open donations up again or find a alternate drop off site for books your ready to part with.
Check to see what your library doesn’t want.
There are some pretty standard things libraries really don’t want: dictionaries, almanacs, old prep guides, travel guides and books that are out of date quickly. Textbooks from your college class in 1990 don’t belong there either. No, we do not take VHS. Sometimes libraries also limit how many boxes you can bring in so they are not inundated with a large donation they’re unable to handle. I’ve sent truck beds away before—after allowing them to drop off the maximum of three boxes.
Follow the guidelines libraries have about book donations.
As amazing as book sales are, they are a lot of work and the more we can work together to make sure they are a success and not a headache, the better. Libraries may have drop-off dates, ask for donations to be placed in clean cardboard boxes, or be sorted by type. It’s always a good idea to either call ahead or check the website for what the library is looking for. Staff will be so, so grateful!
It’s okay to recycle books.
Just place that old softcover with the torn jacket in the blue bin. It will be okay, I promise. It’s true—softcover books that are not fit for resale can be recycled regularly. For hardcovers that need to be recycled, check your town or county’s waste management site to see if they have locations for dropping off books. Hardcover books have to be stripped from the covers as the pages are recyclable, but the cover is not. (Another reason I love paperbacks.)
I really do love library book sales, even though I’ve dealt with a few frustrating challenges in my seven years as a library director. Nevertheless, I am eternally grateful to all the community members who drop off books that help fill out our collection. When they can’t, these book sales help me tackle an array of wish-list projects for the community that is ever-long and always growing. I also love seeing community members get an opportunity to lay claim to the joy of owning treasured tomes to enjoy and consider. For what are library book sales if not another avenue to create more equitable access to owning books?
I spent $22.00 on Sunday for the bag of treasures I found at the library book sale. When I got home I sat around for the next hour, pouring over pages and thinking about what book I should read next. I found a couple of books for my daughter as well, including a book of fables written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel. We got to enjoy that together in the late afternoon light.
It was a day of pure delight.
Love a good library book sale. I also like looking at the ‘orders awaiting collection ‘ shelves to see what other people are reading.
Great advice! As a sometime donated book-sorter, I cheer this post! 😅