Saving on Books!

If you are an avid reader like me, books can be a big expense. They don't have to!! Here are a few tips on ways to save on your favs!

1) Use the Public Library, sillyhead! If you haven't been in a while, libraries are totally automated now, and some areas even offer e-books. In my area, you can self check out and in, drive-thru for pick-up, reserve anything online and have it sent to the library of your choice for pickup. Plus, new releases have a shorter return time so hopefully you can get it pretty quickly after it comes out. (Not so with The Girl series-I waited months)

2) Look in your area for Used Book Stores. The Richmond Area has a hidden gem in Midlothian, called The Book Exchange. They buy books for 1/4 of the retail price and sell them for 1/2 of the price. So you can get a new book for every fourth you trade in. They only buy books they need, so you may need to bring your books back several times. Even if you don't have any trades, half off is still a great deal and they have a huge array of all kinds of books including childrens'. I recommend bringing a list with you or you will be overwhelmed.

3) Check out Yard Sales and Church Sales. Sometimes people don't price books cheap enough to sell at Yard Sales, but I have seen some great deals. The best I have ever seen was a Church Book Sale right before Christmas. They actually advertised it as a Book Sale, then had Hardbacks for a dollar, Paperbacks for $.50 and Children's Books $.50. They also had DVD's and videos. All were donated and all proceeds went to their mission. I got some great Christmas gifts and a ton of cute Children's books and I think I paid $10 in change for a brown bag full. Of course, once you finish with these cheapies, trade them in, see above, for a profit. If your church group is looking for a fundraiser, what a great idea!

4) As far as Mass Retailers go, Target and Walmart discount their books and magazines, but the price clubs like Sam's and BJ's, are usually better deals on new releases. Also, Borders and Books-a-Million offer Rewards cards, available for purchase, in order to get in-store and on-line savings.

So, these are a few ways to save. If you have other great ideas, let me know!!