The books are organized, the warehouse is quiet and volunteers are relaxing. But that won’t be the case Saturday.
The semi-annual Friends of the Library book sale, 430-B N. Main Street, kicks off at 9 a.m. when a bagpiper leads the charge inside.
The sale offers an estimated 600,000 to 700,000 items — books, movies, artwork and more — to the public. It gives readers an opportunity to find inexpensive books, Susan Park, president of Friends of the Library, said. Prices for most items range from 25 cents to $4.
“Maybe it’s not pristine,” she said. “But instead of paying $26 for a book, you might only pay $2.”
This year’s October sale received a large collection of books about India, she said.
The sale will be open until Wednesday, when all remaining items will cost 10 cents.
Books are categorized on tables by subject matter or genre, such as fiction, children’s books, religion and art.
Ann Hemme, a volunteer, said the organization doesn’t really keep track of how many attend the sale. They tried to count one year but stopped after 700 people.
Donations for the sale are accepted year-round, and volunteers are responsible for sorting and pricing categories.
When volunteers Sue Roland and Jean Kaufman talk about the sale, their eyes light up.
“Everybody’s looking for the ‘magic book’— the book they’ve been looking for,” Kaufman said. “It’s like Christmas.”
A version of this story ran on page 3 on 10/25/2013 under the headline "Residents to book it to Friends of the Library sale"
