~Olia~
Sorry that I've been a bit lazy with updates. We need to review Enfield and Greenwich from June's "Junebilee" weekend.
On a related note we will have several sales to review in July: Newtown and Monroe (Monroe has not been listed on booksalefinder.com but will take place on from July 11-July 15 at Masuk High School).
Junebilee review coming soon!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Sunday, May 17, 2009
V for Vendetta: A Review
We have a guest book reviewer this week; some of her favorite books are by Danielle Steele and Jodi Picault. In the interest of full disclosure, she also loved the film version of this book.
~Olga~
V for Vendetta
by Alan Moore
10 Scrolls
"The verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive not in vain..."
I had already seen the movie when I wanted to read the book V For Vendetta. Although the movie was one of the best I have ever seen, the book filled in missing pieces between the lines that the movie failed to fully describe. This is one of the few times when the movie and book are neck and neck. This book really explained what Larkhill really was and what was done to those innocent people that the movie just briefly touched on. V being the most enigmatic character in a Guy Fawkes mask and though the mask stayed frozen in place with that smile, in the book you knew when his mood changed. The fascist gov't of "strength thru unity, unity thru faith" and all of its misdeeds against its public was a combination of what happened during WWII with Hitler and with the technological advances of the future. It's a scary thought that something like that can happen if the population at large lets it.
Though most of this book is action, the relationship that forms between V and Evey is touching as it evolves throughout the story. We see a freedom fighter who is as tough as nails, as strong and fast as superman, with unimaginable capabilities and a horrific past that put him on a collision course with destiny on Nov. 5th; a destiny that he formed for himself after his whole life was taken from him. Then all of a sudden he meets Evey, a scared young woman with her own troubled past just wanting to get by in the current world unnoticed, and everything changes. Though the plan to blow up Parliament and kill all of the Larkhill conspirators goes on without a hitch, something new forms within the strength and brute force; love.
V never thought that he would fall in love, let alone with Evey, but he did and it made his final grand scheme worthwhile because though he knew he was going to die, at least his heart and soul were full of a positive emotion and he knew that she loved him back. It's always sad when the main character dies in the end but in this case everyone knew that there really was no other way. He also knew that his and Evey's love would live on forever and what he did for his country would never be forgotten.
"Remember, remember,
the 5th of November,
The Gunpowder Treason and plot.
I know of no reason
Why the Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot."
~Olga~
V for Vendetta
by Alan Moore
10 Scrolls
"The verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive not in vain..."
I had already seen the movie when I wanted to read the book V For Vendetta. Although the movie was one of the best I have ever seen, the book filled in missing pieces between the lines that the movie failed to fully describe. This is one of the few times when the movie and book are neck and neck. This book really explained what Larkhill really was and what was done to those innocent people that the movie just briefly touched on. V being the most enigmatic character in a Guy Fawkes mask and though the mask stayed frozen in place with that smile, in the book you knew when his mood changed. The fascist gov't of "strength thru unity, unity thru faith" and all of its misdeeds against its public was a combination of what happened during WWII with Hitler and with the technological advances of the future. It's a scary thought that something like that can happen if the population at large lets it.
Though most of this book is action, the relationship that forms between V and Evey is touching as it evolves throughout the story. We see a freedom fighter who is as tough as nails, as strong and fast as superman, with unimaginable capabilities and a horrific past that put him on a collision course with destiny on Nov. 5th; a destiny that he formed for himself after his whole life was taken from him. Then all of a sudden he meets Evey, a scared young woman with her own troubled past just wanting to get by in the current world unnoticed, and everything changes. Though the plan to blow up Parliament and kill all of the Larkhill conspirators goes on without a hitch, something new forms within the strength and brute force; love.
V never thought that he would fall in love, let alone with Evey, but he did and it made his final grand scheme worthwhile because though he knew he was going to die, at least his heart and soul were full of a positive emotion and he knew that she loved him back. It's always sad when the main character dies in the end but in this case everyone knew that there really was no other way. He also knew that his and Evey's love would live on forever and what he did for his country would never be forgotten.
"Remember, remember,
the 5th of November,
The Gunpowder Treason and plot.
I know of no reason
Why the Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot."
Friday, May 8, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
The Heather Wells Series: A Review
~Caitlin~
I'm finally ready to review my first book, or in this case, books. One of the things that frustrates me personally when I read a review is that I can't judge a person's rating system. Does an 8 out of 10 mean the same to you as it does to me? Because of this, I'm going to briefly explain my thoughts behind ratings. To rate books on this site, we are going to use a scale of 1-10 Scrolls. Here's how I make my decisions.
1-3 Scrolls
The book was so uninteresting to me/ difficult to read that I either didn't or barely finished it.
4-5 Scrolls
The book was average. It probably is not something I will read again, but I might recommend it to someone else.
6-8 Scrolls
I would definitely recommend this book to another person and would probably read it again in the future.
9-10 Scrolls
I loved the book. I rate it so highly I feel everyone should read it and enjoy it as much as me. I will heavily suggest this book, frequently, to anyone who knows me.
I should also let you know what kind of books I enjoy. I love chick lit, romance novels, and humor books. Between my job as a nurse and going to school, I like to read things that aren't too heavy and that I don't have to think about too much. This is not to say I don't enjoy heavier, more serious book, I just don't read them as often and humor is a definite plus. And now, the review:
The Heather Wells Series
By Meg Cabot
7 Scrolls
I was going to review Meg Cabot's "Size 12 is Not Fat" when I finished it last weekend, but I decided to hold off until I finished the whole series instead. Luckily, Ridgefield happened to have the last book in the series, so I was able to read them back to back. The series starts with "Size 12 is Not Fat" and continues with "Size 14 is Not Fat Either" and "Big Boned." This was a murder mystery series about a teenage pop star after she was famous and now has to lead a normal life. Her ex is a self involved boy band member who she left when she caught cheating on her, but he still pops up from time to time just to make things more complicated. She lives with the ex boyfriends black sheep brother, Cooper, who she is madly in love with but who doesn't seem to think she's anything more than a friend. She works at the fictional New York College as an Assistant Dormitory Director(based on Meg Cabot's actual job at NYU). When students start to mysteriously commit suicide in her building, she's the only one who believes it's foul play and sets out to prove it. Tragedy seems to follow her, as all three books are set in a less than 1 year span, and each book involves a different murder and a different mystery.
This was a light read that was funny, moved fast, and made me want to keep reading the series. I loved Heather's though process, which is just as twisted and tangled as mine. I often jump from one topic to another in my head that makes sense to me, but probably not to anyone else. This was my first Meg Cabot book, and since I started it, I have picked up a few more. I will be reading them and reviewing them, probably after finals!
I'm finally ready to review my first book, or in this case, books. One of the things that frustrates me personally when I read a review is that I can't judge a person's rating system. Does an 8 out of 10 mean the same to you as it does to me? Because of this, I'm going to briefly explain my thoughts behind ratings. To rate books on this site, we are going to use a scale of 1-10 Scrolls. Here's how I make my decisions.
1-3 Scrolls
The book was so uninteresting to me/ difficult to read that I either didn't or barely finished it.
4-5 Scrolls
The book was average. It probably is not something I will read again, but I might recommend it to someone else.
6-8 Scrolls
I would definitely recommend this book to another person and would probably read it again in the future.
9-10 Scrolls
I loved the book. I rate it so highly I feel everyone should read it and enjoy it as much as me. I will heavily suggest this book, frequently, to anyone who knows me.
I should also let you know what kind of books I enjoy. I love chick lit, romance novels, and humor books. Between my job as a nurse and going to school, I like to read things that aren't too heavy and that I don't have to think about too much. This is not to say I don't enjoy heavier, more serious book, I just don't read them as often and humor is a definite plus. And now, the review:
The Heather Wells Series
By Meg Cabot
7 Scrolls
I was going to review Meg Cabot's "Size 12 is Not Fat" when I finished it last weekend, but I decided to hold off until I finished the whole series instead. Luckily, Ridgefield happened to have the last book in the series, so I was able to read them back to back. The series starts with "Size 12 is Not Fat" and continues with "Size 14 is Not Fat Either" and "Big Boned." This was a murder mystery series about a teenage pop star after she was famous and now has to lead a normal life. Her ex is a self involved boy band member who she left when she caught cheating on her, but he still pops up from time to time just to make things more complicated. She lives with the ex boyfriends black sheep brother, Cooper, who she is madly in love with but who doesn't seem to think she's anything more than a friend. She works at the fictional New York College as an Assistant Dormitory Director(based on Meg Cabot's actual job at NYU). When students start to mysteriously commit suicide in her building, she's the only one who believes it's foul play and sets out to prove it. Tragedy seems to follow her, as all three books are set in a less than 1 year span, and each book involves a different murder and a different mystery.
This was a light read that was funny, moved fast, and made me want to keep reading the series. I loved Heather's though process, which is just as twisted and tangled as mine. I often jump from one topic to another in my head that makes sense to me, but probably not to anyone else. This was my first Meg Cabot book, and since I started it, I have picked up a few more. I will be reading them and reviewing them, probably after finals!
On The Road- Avon, Newington, and Ridgefield, CT
~Caitlin~
Avon, CT
Overall: B-
Helpfulness of Staff: C
Book Condition: B+
Book Selection: B-
Value: B+
I guess the main problem I had with Avon was the lack of trade paperbacks and chick lit. Those are just the two sections that I gravitate to first. I look for trade paperbacks because they are more pleasing on my bookshelf than regular paperbacks, but still easily portable, as i often have at least one book on me almost everywhere I go. You never know when you're going to have a spare 5 or 10 minutes to devour a few more pages. Hardcovers are great, but they tend to take up too much room. The quality of the books that were there were pretty good though. Even the older books were in gently used conditions. I also really liked that they used paper bags (environmentally friendly and you can fit more). The booksale was disorganized; I contribute this to the fact that it was the last day of the sale. All in all, it was an ok book sale and I was able to fill up a bag, but it was not the best book sale I have been to.
Newington, CT
Overall: D+
Helpfulness of Staff: C
Book Condition: C
Book Selection: D
Value: D
This was not a great book sale. First, you had to pay at the door to get in (I HATE that), then you couldn't find the books. There was a room off to the side that we thought was all there was containing all fiction and mystery books. The signs for the rest of the sale were above eyesight... hint to designers, unless someone points it out, people don't often look for signs above their heads. Its the reason why we don't hang pictures on ceilings. The selection was mediocre. The only upside to this sale was that I was able to get some bigger cookbooks that I would normally not pick up at back book sales because they take up too much room.
Ridgefield, CT
Overall: A
Helpfulness of Staff: A
Book Condition: B+
Book Selection: A
Value: A
This was a pretty damn good book sale. We started out going on Saturday where the books were an average price of $3 for a hardcover, $2 for a trade paperback, and 50 cents for regular paperbacks. We were happily browsing, being cautious about putting stuff in our bags because it wasn't a bag sale. Then it happened. Darren overheard that Monday was a bag book sale! I bought the books I had already picked up, I had found a few books I was searching for and I just couldn't part with the rest in case they weren't there on Monday, and we cleared our schedules to be able to return. This sale was so good that not only did Olia and I fill up two bags each, we split a 5th. The books were in average to excellent condition, the trade paperback selection was excellent, and the "newer" books from Olia's previous blog were included in the bag sale. The staff was helpful and friendly, and they didn't care that we had overstuffed the bags, as we tend to do often. This is a sale I will be attending again and will be on the lookout for the next date.
Avon, CT
Overall: B-
Helpfulness of Staff: C
Book Condition: B+
Book Selection: B-
Value: B+
I guess the main problem I had with Avon was the lack of trade paperbacks and chick lit. Those are just the two sections that I gravitate to first. I look for trade paperbacks because they are more pleasing on my bookshelf than regular paperbacks, but still easily portable, as i often have at least one book on me almost everywhere I go. You never know when you're going to have a spare 5 or 10 minutes to devour a few more pages. Hardcovers are great, but they tend to take up too much room. The quality of the books that were there were pretty good though. Even the older books were in gently used conditions. I also really liked that they used paper bags (environmentally friendly and you can fit more). The booksale was disorganized; I contribute this to the fact that it was the last day of the sale. All in all, it was an ok book sale and I was able to fill up a bag, but it was not the best book sale I have been to.
Newington, CT
Overall: D+
Helpfulness of Staff: C
Book Condition: C
Book Selection: D
Value: D
This was not a great book sale. First, you had to pay at the door to get in (I HATE that), then you couldn't find the books. There was a room off to the side that we thought was all there was containing all fiction and mystery books. The signs for the rest of the sale were above eyesight... hint to designers, unless someone points it out, people don't often look for signs above their heads. Its the reason why we don't hang pictures on ceilings. The selection was mediocre. The only upside to this sale was that I was able to get some bigger cookbooks that I would normally not pick up at back book sales because they take up too much room.
Ridgefield, CT
Overall: A
Helpfulness of Staff: A
Book Condition: B+
Book Selection: A
Value: A
This was a pretty damn good book sale. We started out going on Saturday where the books were an average price of $3 for a hardcover, $2 for a trade paperback, and 50 cents for regular paperbacks. We were happily browsing, being cautious about putting stuff in our bags because it wasn't a bag sale. Then it happened. Darren overheard that Monday was a bag book sale! I bought the books I had already picked up, I had found a few books I was searching for and I just couldn't part with the rest in case they weren't there on Monday, and we cleared our schedules to be able to return. This sale was so good that not only did Olia and I fill up two bags each, we split a 5th. The books were in average to excellent condition, the trade paperback selection was excellent, and the "newer" books from Olia's previous blog were included in the bag sale. The staff was helpful and friendly, and they didn't care that we had overstuffed the bags, as we tend to do often. This is a sale I will be attending again and will be on the lookout for the next date.
Memories, Dreams, Reflections
~Olia~
Mel's post has inspired an idea in me, a life-long seeker of nostalgia. Very often we find inscriptions, photos and newspaper cutouts in the used books that we purchased. At some moment in time each item meant something to someone, and it's important to preserve those memories, even if they have been lost to the original owner. I plan to, and ask you to participate also, to catalogue each of these finds by posting a photo of the found inscriptions/insert and listing it along with a description of it and the title of the book from which it came. I encourage you to email these finds to Cait and I in that format, at 2bibliophiles@gmail.com. Please include your name and we will post each find in this blog.
Mel's post has inspired an idea in me, a life-long seeker of nostalgia. Very often we find inscriptions, photos and newspaper cutouts in the used books that we purchased. At some moment in time each item meant something to someone, and it's important to preserve those memories, even if they have been lost to the original owner. I plan to, and ask you to participate also, to catalogue each of these finds by posting a photo of the found inscriptions/insert and listing it along with a description of it and the title of the book from which it came. I encourage you to email these finds to Cait and I in that format, at 2bibliophiles@gmail.com. Please include your name and we will post each find in this blog.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
On the Road: Belchertown, MA
~Mel~
Belchertown, MA
Clapp Memorial Library
19 South Main St.
Belchertown, MA
Overall: A-
Helpfulness of staff: A
Book condition: B+
Book selection: B+
Value: A-
Several weeks ago I attended the final day of the Spring's Clapp Memorial Library Book Sale in Belchertown, MA. I must admit that I am partial to this sale. The library is my second home and the fundraiser goes to raise money for the Friends of the Library who run the library. The sale is absolutely immense. It takes up the entire basement of the library. There are three main places for the sale: rare or first edition books, newer books, and then the regular older books. The older books cost $1.00 each, down to 50 cents the last day of the sale, so you cannot beat the value. The prices on newer books do vary. I ended up picking up about 13 older books, from "chick lit." to the Da Vinci Code to mystery novels. The selection is impressive. I found all of the major authors represented and have found new favorites at past sales. My one warning is that the part of the basement where the older books are displayed is not really handicapped accessible (there are a few steps down) and it is a bit musty. I have never had a problem with the books themselves actually being musty.
One of my favorite things when reading used books is when I find inscriptions or notes in the books. When I was reading one of the books I picked up at the Clapp Memorial book sale, a note fell out. It said "To my wife, my lover, my friend." I love when books have had a life of their own. It reminds us that just as they become a part of our lives, we become a part of theirs.
Belchertown, MA
Clapp Memorial Library
19 South Main St.
Belchertown, MA
Overall: A-
Helpfulness of staff: A
Book condition: B+
Book selection: B+
Value: A-
Several weeks ago I attended the final day of the Spring's Clapp Memorial Library Book Sale in Belchertown, MA. I must admit that I am partial to this sale. The library is my second home and the fundraiser goes to raise money for the Friends of the Library who run the library. The sale is absolutely immense. It takes up the entire basement of the library. There are three main places for the sale: rare or first edition books, newer books, and then the regular older books. The older books cost $1.00 each, down to 50 cents the last day of the sale, so you cannot beat the value. The prices on newer books do vary. I ended up picking up about 13 older books, from "chick lit." to the Da Vinci Code to mystery novels. The selection is impressive. I found all of the major authors represented and have found new favorites at past sales. My one warning is that the part of the basement where the older books are displayed is not really handicapped accessible (there are a few steps down) and it is a bit musty. I have never had a problem with the books themselves actually being musty.
One of my favorite things when reading used books is when I find inscriptions or notes in the books. When I was reading one of the books I picked up at the Clapp Memorial book sale, a note fell out. It said "To my wife, my lover, my friend." I love when books have had a life of their own. It reminds us that just as they become a part of our lives, we become a part of theirs.
On the Road: Avon and Newington, CT
~Olia~
Avon, CT
Overall: B-
Helpfulness of staff: C
Book condition: B
Book selection: B+
Value: B+
On Sunday we made the hour trek to Avon for their bag sale. The sale was held in a senior center and was decently well organized by genre. When we first arrived slightly after noon, the large book room was incredibly busy with shoppers, but began to empty out after an hour or so. Unfortunately there were no trade paperbacks at this sale, (we love trade paperback for their aesthetic appeal and relative compactness, when compared to hard covers) however, there were many hardcover novels, children’s books, and nonfiction. When I sat down to blog about this sale it took me a few minutes to remember it; that describes this sale in a nutshell. I was able to get some beautiful children’s books to donate to Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (http://www.irisct.org/) as well as some books to release on bookcrossing.com.
We also saw, a person who we imagine is a book dealer or used book store owner, scanning book bar codes!
This was probably a wonderful sale on Saturday before all of the books were picked over (but this is great news for fund raising).
After an uneventful morning we moved on to the Newington sale…
Newington, CT
Overall: D
Helpfulness of staff: C
Book condition: C+
Book selection: D+
Value: D
When we arrived in Newington I should have known what would be in store when we were asked to pay $5 for our bags (small, plastic, grocery store bags) upfront. I’ve begun to believe that any sale that asks you to pay for a bag upfront has something to hide. To their credit they will issue a full refund if you fail to find a book to place into your bag, but that certainly complicates the situation.
When we first came in we thought that the sale was limited to one small room crammed with hardcover general fiction, mystery and large print books. It took a happy accident to find an additional (much larger) room housing nonfiction, as well as a third room devoted entirely to children’s book. We ran into our bar-code scanning friend here as well, but we failed to purchase much. Olia found “Hannibal” from the Thomas Harris series, but that’s where the excitement ended.
The one good thing that came out of this book sale is that we will now be grading each sale, on an A-F, traditional academic scale, based on the following criteria:
Overall
Helpfulness of staff
Book condition
Book selection
Value
Avon, CT
Overall: B-
Helpfulness of staff: C
Book condition: B
Book selection: B+
Value: B+
On Sunday we made the hour trek to Avon for their bag sale. The sale was held in a senior center and was decently well organized by genre. When we first arrived slightly after noon, the large book room was incredibly busy with shoppers, but began to empty out after an hour or so. Unfortunately there were no trade paperbacks at this sale, (we love trade paperback for their aesthetic appeal and relative compactness, when compared to hard covers) however, there were many hardcover novels, children’s books, and nonfiction. When I sat down to blog about this sale it took me a few minutes to remember it; that describes this sale in a nutshell. I was able to get some beautiful children’s books to donate to Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (http://www.irisct.org/) as well as some books to release on bookcrossing.com.
We also saw, a person who we imagine is a book dealer or used book store owner, scanning book bar codes!
This was probably a wonderful sale on Saturday before all of the books were picked over (but this is great news for fund raising).
After an uneventful morning we moved on to the Newington sale…
Newington, CT
Overall: D
Helpfulness of staff: C
Book condition: C+
Book selection: D+
Value: D
When we arrived in Newington I should have known what would be in store when we were asked to pay $5 for our bags (small, plastic, grocery store bags) upfront. I’ve begun to believe that any sale that asks you to pay for a bag upfront has something to hide. To their credit they will issue a full refund if you fail to find a book to place into your bag, but that certainly complicates the situation.
When we first came in we thought that the sale was limited to one small room crammed with hardcover general fiction, mystery and large print books. It took a happy accident to find an additional (much larger) room housing nonfiction, as well as a third room devoted entirely to children’s book. We ran into our bar-code scanning friend here as well, but we failed to purchase much. Olia found “Hannibal” from the Thomas Harris series, but that’s where the excitement ended.
The one good thing that came out of this book sale is that we will now be grading each sale, on an A-F, traditional academic scale, based on the following criteria:
Overall
Helpfulness of staff
Book condition
Book selection
Value
Saturday, May 2, 2009
On the Road~a quick addition
~Caitlin~
So, I am going to save my full response until after all the sales are over, but a quick addition that stood out to me:
I spent all the time we were at Ridgefield perusing the trade paperback section in search of a certain Meg Cabot book (which I found), and I definitely saw more than one copy of The Poisonwood Bible in new or gently used condition on that rack for $2. This makes the fact that it was also on the $5 rack double bad. Unless it happened to be autographed...then maybe not.
So, I am going to save my full response until after all the sales are over, but a quick addition that stood out to me:
I spent all the time we were at Ridgefield perusing the trade paperback section in search of a certain Meg Cabot book (which I found), and I definitely saw more than one copy of The Poisonwood Bible in new or gently used condition on that rack for $2. This makes the fact that it was also on the $5 rack double bad. Unless it happened to be autographed...then maybe not.
On The Road: Middletown and Ridgefield
~Olia~
Today was the opening day of the MAYHEM season. We opened the season slowly by attending two booksales, 3-2-1 in Middletown, CT and a large sale in Ridgefield, CT.
Middletown, CT
http://www.wesleyan.edu/library/friends/
Olin Memorial Library
Wesleyan Campus
252 Church St
We were very excited for the Middletown sale and we headed there first. It took us close to an hour via I-91 before we arrived on a picture-esque street in the heart of the Wesleyan community. None of us had ever been to the Middletown Public (Olin Memorial) Libary so we had no idea what to expect. Here, it is important to take a break and say how important book sales are to libraries in terms of fund raisers; please support your local library. That being said, if you are on the market for newer or gently used books, you may wish to avoid this particular sale. On Saturday May 02, the books here were on sale for $2 for a standard size grocery paper bag. Usually we end up using more than one of these bags and spring for a second and sometimes even third bag. Today, this was not the case. Most of the books at this sale were very dated. They may have had titles such as "The Coming of the Civil War: How to Deal with the Months Ahead" or "A Vaccine for Polio: Can It Be Done?" Unfortunately most books were dates from the 1960's, 1970's and early 1980's and did not seem to have much vintage value (we are not antique dealers, collectors or appraisers). Many of the older children's books were in poor condition, but the adult books, although older, and many lacking dust jackets, were in reasonable condition. Having found little, we stuffed dollar bills into the honor-system cash box and headed on I-691 to I-84 and greener pastures; ie Ridgefield.
Ridgefield, CT
472 Main St
203-431-8766
At one point while browsing this sale I thought to myself "the happiest moment of my life would be to come here on a bag sale event." We arrived in Ridgefield at noon and proceeded down Ridgefield's beautiful tree-lined streets to the Ridgefield Public Library. The sale was being held in the back parking lot in two huge, fully covered and sided tents. At first glance the prices were very average ($3 for a hardback, $2 for a trade paperback, $.50 for a paperback and so on) and some books had been specially priced (higher) but we'll get to that. Overall, this sale had one of the largest selections at a book sale all year long. Certain well-organized sections were better stocked than other, the trade paperbacks were almost book store quality and quantity, while the humor section left more to be desired. We could not find the children's section, but we assume it was inside the main library. We found out that this location will be hosting a bag sale on Monday so we will be returning to find some great deals. Although, as I mentioned the selection here was excellent, Olia got "The Nasty Bits" by Anthony Bourdain and "Everything is Illuminated" by Jonathan Safran Foer, some of the specially marked books were not...reasonable. For example, a table marked "new releases" and priced at $5 a piece, held paperback copies of Barbara Kingsolver's "The Poisonwood Bible," which was published in 1998.
Tomorrow we will be heading to bag sales in Newington, CT and Avon, CT and a library book store in Bristol, CT.
Today was the opening day of the MAYHEM season. We opened the season slowly by attending two booksales, 3-2-1 in Middletown, CT and a large sale in Ridgefield, CT.
Middletown, CT
http://www.wesleyan.edu/library/friends/
Olin Memorial Library
Wesleyan Campus
252 Church St
We were very excited for the Middletown sale and we headed there first. It took us close to an hour via I-91 before we arrived on a picture-esque street in the heart of the Wesleyan community. None of us had ever been to the Middletown Public (Olin Memorial) Libary so we had no idea what to expect. Here, it is important to take a break and say how important book sales are to libraries in terms of fund raisers; please support your local library. That being said, if you are on the market for newer or gently used books, you may wish to avoid this particular sale. On Saturday May 02, the books here were on sale for $2 for a standard size grocery paper bag. Usually we end up using more than one of these bags and spring for a second and sometimes even third bag. Today, this was not the case. Most of the books at this sale were very dated. They may have had titles such as "The Coming of the Civil War: How to Deal with the Months Ahead" or "A Vaccine for Polio: Can It Be Done?" Unfortunately most books were dates from the 1960's, 1970's and early 1980's and did not seem to have much vintage value (we are not antique dealers, collectors or appraisers). Many of the older children's books were in poor condition, but the adult books, although older, and many lacking dust jackets, were in reasonable condition. Having found little, we stuffed dollar bills into the honor-system cash box and headed on I-691 to I-84 and greener pastures; ie Ridgefield.
Ridgefield, CT
472 Main St
203-431-8766
At one point while browsing this sale I thought to myself "the happiest moment of my life would be to come here on a bag sale event." We arrived in Ridgefield at noon and proceeded down Ridgefield's beautiful tree-lined streets to the Ridgefield Public Library. The sale was being held in the back parking lot in two huge, fully covered and sided tents. At first glance the prices were very average ($3 for a hardback, $2 for a trade paperback, $.50 for a paperback and so on) and some books had been specially priced (higher) but we'll get to that. Overall, this sale had one of the largest selections at a book sale all year long. Certain well-organized sections were better stocked than other, the trade paperbacks were almost book store quality and quantity, while the humor section left more to be desired. We could not find the children's section, but we assume it was inside the main library. We found out that this location will be hosting a bag sale on Monday so we will be returning to find some great deals. Although, as I mentioned the selection here was excellent, Olia got "The Nasty Bits" by Anthony Bourdain and "Everything is Illuminated" by Jonathan Safran Foer, some of the specially marked books were not...reasonable. For example, a table marked "new releases" and priced at $5 a piece, held paperback copies of Barbara Kingsolver's "The Poisonwood Bible," which was published in 1998.
Tomorrow we will be heading to bag sales in Newington, CT and Avon, CT and a library book store in Bristol, CT.
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