I was in highschool and relatively new to the city when I first heard about Edmonton Public Library’s Books2Buy. A friend of mine was gushing about cheap books for sale at the downtown branch. Generally, one visits a library to borrow books, and heads to a bookstore to purchase reading material. However, a few times a year the Edmonton Public Library hosts sales, allowing all Edmontonians to the opportunity to buy some cheap second hand texts to support library programs.
Thus, I headed to my first Books2Buy event several years ago. Armed with forty dollars, I stepped into the Stanley Milner library branch for the first time, unsure of what I would find. I entered the basement into a jungle of books – three rooms filled with tables covered in texts and surrounded by customers. A couple hours later, I emerged from the library with one hardcover, six paperbacks, thirty-two dollars in change, and a feeling of immense satisfaction.
A few years later, Books2Buy looks much the same as it did on my first visit, and I am still one of the many who can be found at these library events. On selected weekends, Books2Buy sales run all day Friday and Saturday, plus Sunday afternoons. Some customers will make multiple visits over the weekend. As books disappear, library staff and volunteers bring more out, keeping the tables stocked and giving customers a reason to return to the sale multiple times. What might one find on Saturday that was still in storage on Friday? I heard a few customers express an intention to make a visit every day of the sale.
The texts are organized by genre. For example, there is a table for romance (or several tables, depending on the size of the sale), another for mystery, and so forth. Non-fiction, informational, and foreign language books are also available.
The lack of alphabetical organizing makes it difficult for someone searching for a particular book, but the volume of texts for sale and the rapidness with which they are replaced would make it impractical for staff to spend their time carefully organizing the materials. Many people are not necessarily interested in searching for a particular book anyways, but are more interested in the thrill of looking through the stacks of books and finding a hidden treasure. Some will readily pick up brooks they’ve previously read and enjoyed, while others are on the hunt for something new. Some customers grab a box with the intention to buy any book they might possibly be interested, while others are more selective with their choices, perhaps shopping for hours and only buying a couple of items. Still, most people I encountered were carrying at least three or four items, and sometimes held a great deal more. Many are not only shopping for themselves, but also for friends and family. I heard a lot of statements like “I think dad would like this” or “what about this book for your sister?”
Genre fiction books are the most visible. At the Stanley Milner sales, these items are found in the first room. There are always customers circling these tables, carefully looking through the titles. Most of these items are paperback, but there are some hardcover copies as well.
Children’s materials are in the second room, including kids' books in foreign languages. These books are organized by type, such as board books and picture books. This gives some indication of recommended age. For example, board books are often for toddlers or very young children, and thin paperback novels are for older kids.
The third room at the Stanley Milner sale is stocked with audio and visual material for adults, nonfiction, how-to, history and academic texts, and classics. The DVDs and CDs are very popular with customers, while the literature and classics section, shown here, was nearly abandoned during my visits. The nonfiction and how-to materials seemed less popular than the fiction, but I also noticed that these sections seemed more social. Customers picking up books about their hobbies were excited to run into other people sharing their favourite pastimes, and sometimes could even make recommendations to each other.
Books2Buy has endured for several years, and these sales are still going strong. In fact, EPL has recently expanded Books2Buy into other branches across the city. The Capilano, Stranthcona, Millwoods, and Whitemud Crossing branches all play host to these sales.
One of the benefits of expanding the events to multiple locations is accessibility. Residents no longer need to travel downtown to buy books from the library, but can find Books2Buy events in their own neighbourhood. However, despite the newly added locations, the largest Books2Buy sale still take place at the Stanley A Milner Library. In fact, when attending a Books2Buy event at the Capilano Branch, I was surprised to see how small the sale was. Rather than offering three rooms filled with books, the branch had set aside a small corner of the library and the sale consisted of only three tables. The six or seven customers present were proof that these events were at least somewhat attended, but in contrast to the dozens of people who show up at Stanley Milner, it was evident that the downtown sale remains the most popular.
To find the time and location of the next book sale, you can check out this page on EPL’s website.
CDs, DVDs, and BluRays can also be purchased at Books2Buy, but the majority of the available materials are print texts. As these available have already circulated through the library system, worn covers are the norm, although the books available are still in a readable condition. All materials are sold as-is, so if you buy a book with ripped out pages or a scratched DVD, it cannot be returned. Still, most of the materials is in good shape. Books that are completely ruined are not for sale.
Moreover, just because the sale is stocked with secondhand materials doesn’t mean that all the books are old. I spoke Sharon Karr from EPL about how library decides to remove texts from their collection, as some of these books certainly end up in a Books2Buy sale. Karr noted that materials age at different rates, explaining that paperbacks may replaced after only a year. Other reasons that a text might end up in a Books2Buy sale include date and usage. EPL is always updating its collection, so if a text isn’t being used, it needs to be removed to make way for something else.
As the purpose of these sales is to clear out unwanted material, EPL offers texts at a very low price. Paperbacks, children’s books, audiobooks, and CDs all sell for one dollar, while hardcovers and DVDs cost two dollars. A special offer is available on Sunday, as customers can take an entire box home for only ten dollars. Despite the cheap prices, the quantity of books sold still allows for a considerable profit. According to EPL’s “Year in Review,” the nine Books2Buy events in 2015 raised over $100 000. The profits from these events are not funneled directly towards the budget, but are used to help fund library programs. In 2015, the money raised went towards Welcome Baby and EPL2go literacy vans. In 2016, all the funds will support the Stanley Milner revitalization project.
CONCULSION
Books2Buy offers a unique opportunity for the library to clear out space for new materials, do a little fundraising, and offer the public some cheap books all at once. Judging by the popularity and growth of these events, EPL has found success. I know I’ll continue to visit these sales, and will be watching how EPL continues to expand these events with interest.
Last Updated: Sept 5, 2016
