Book Sale Offers Endless Reading Possibilities To

Young Readers: Event Returns July 1-5

By Nancy K. Crevier

If you are a young reader, count yourself lucky when the 31st Annual Friends of the Library Book Sale gets underway July 1. The book sale will feature nearly 18,000 books in the children’s section this year.

“We usually have at least 15,000 children’s books to offer,” said Friends’ member Denise Kaiser, who along with Sally Ingwersen has spent the last nine months sifting through the numerous young people’s books that have been left on the library’s door step. “This year, because there is no separate June book sale for the children to accompany the summer reading program kickoff, we will have even more books. Usually we sell about 3,000 books at the children’s sale. We’ve also gotten donations of children’s books numbering in the thousands since September.”

Occasionally, a children’s book that looks unique will catch the eye of the person sorting through donations. These books are looked up online to check their rarity. “Every so often we get a first edition, signed by the author. Then it goes to John Renjilian, who does the rare books, for further research,” Ms Kaiser explained. Truly rare children’s books are offered for sale in the rare book collection.

Other books are not rare, but do have value to collectors. A separate children’s collectible section holds those books, most of which are of interest to adults, rather than children. Adults look for particular authors, series, or illustrators, said Ms Kaiser.

Ms Kaiser and Ms Ingwersen also keep a sharp eye open for new books or out-of-print books in good condition. These books are offered to the C.H. Booth Library children’s collection first, before being placed in the book sale. A lot of what are considered classic children’s books are now out of print and difficult for the library to obtain at a reasonable cost, Ms Kaiser said. One example is Topsy-Turvy: Pictures to Stretch the Imagination by Mitsumasa Anno, which showed up in a box of donated books this year. The sorters recognized the book as one that is currently out of print, but that would be a valuable addition to the children’s library. Even though it is not in “new” condition, the edition is still in very good condition and can continue to bring pleasure to young readers, according to Ms Kaiser.

The children’s book section encompasses readers from newborn to young adult, said Ms Kaiser. “We have a nice selection of young adult books this year,” she said, and because the annual book sale is July 1 to 5, she feels the timing will coincide neatly for those young bibliophiles seeking summer reading material.

Another plus for the youth is the price of the books. “We have not raised prices for five years,” Ms Kaiser said. “Books cost from 25 cents for a child’s paperback picture book to maybe $5 for an almost new hardcover with the dust jacket still on it.” Most paperbacks, she said, are only 50 cents and the majority of the hardcover books are just $1 or $2. At those prices, “Kids can really come with their allowance money or $5 from Grandma and come away with a nice selection of books they choose for themselves,” Ms Kaiser pointed out.

What makes the Friends’ C.H. Booth Library Book Sale different from many other book sales, too, is that all of the books are classified. Board books, picture books, Disney or Sesame Street books, easy readers, early chapter books, and young adult books are located in individual sections to ease shopping. Math books do not mingle with biographies, nor do history books tangle with electronic books. The books are also separated by series, nonfiction, fiction and hardcover vs paperback, as well.

Adults and young people who attend the five-day event will find nearly 100 volunteers on hand to help navigate the maze of books and music. “The nice thing,” Ms Kaiser said, “is that the people who sort the books also work at the sale. Usually, a volunteer can direct questions to a person who sorted that collection.”

The Annual Friends of the Library Book Sale will be held Saturday, July 1, to Wednesday, July 5, at the Reed Intermediate School at 3 Trades Lane, a departure from the venue of recent years. The book sale will be open from 9 am to 5 pm each day. There is an admission fee of $10 from 9 am to noon and $5 from noon to 5 pm on July 1. There is no admission charged the other days. On Wednesday, “free day,” any remaining books are offered at no cost to takers.

Because Reed Intermediate School is large, with many stairwells and heavy doors, Ms Kaiser asked that parents be especially attentive to young children this year while browsing books. “Please watch the small children. We would hate for anyone to get lost,” she said.

Procrastination does not pay off when it comes to the children’s division, warned Ms Kaiser. The children’s books always sell out, including many boxes of books donated every year on “free day” to Bridgeport Social Services and other nonprofits and schools.