Well,in addition to the gardening nuts,looks like all the bookworms have settled in over here,too.I guess that old Ciscero was a wise guy(hee hee) when he said "If you have a library and a garden,you have everything you need"

So to help us all follow his sage advice,let us know where you get your books,so we can go there and get more, too! Because we need to,desperately.

www.half.com has been mentioned. www.discountnewagebooks.com I've mentioned before.Don't let the name throw you,lots of good homesteading books there 'dirt cheep'.

Of course there is Ebay where you sometimes can get a good deal,if you have patience(not my strong suit)

And,we always hit used book stores when we go to the big? city.Big to me being population over 4000! My little towns here don't have any used book stores anymore. Boooohooooo.

And,if we have to have it and can't locate it elsewhere,my local library can get them for me at a really good price.Anything Barnes & Noble has.

So where else do you shop?

Any way to find used bookstores in an area you are visiting? What abt. finding flea markets?

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Answers

Used Bookstores.

Used Bookstores.

Did I mention Used Bookstores?! I used to have all the ones around here staked out - they seem to go in and out of business quickly. Isn't it funny how one will have lots and lots of books in one genre, and another will have very few? Do you wonder if the readers in that area read only one thing? I have two that I visit on a regular basis - one weekly and the other monthly. One used to have a lot of homesteading type books, but I guess I must have bought them all!!

Catholic Charities and the Sallies have a lot of books but - GASP! - they are in no order whatsoever. Someday when I'm really bored...... I also check out the occasional rummage sale and auction.

I've looked at the on-line sites and they do have some good buys; but for some reason, I've never ordered anything. I use interlibrary loan through my local community college on a regular basis.

As to finding used bookstores, I just look for someone reading a book and ask 'em! We don't ususally stop at the McD's and etc...when we travel, we go for small town diners; and I will ask there or at the motels where we stay. You can also ask at the local library or stores. I even had the Ex and Pop trained to be on the lookout for them - they know that I'm a much better traveler with a book in my hand. Traveled from here in Illinois to Wenatchee, WA on the train one time. When Pop met us at the station, he took us out for breakfast; then to the local HD dealer so Sis could get her Dad a shirt, and then to the used bookstore - he figured after 49 hours on a train, I might be running low!! Ain't he a great Dad?! I can get by with a lot fewer clothes on a trip than I can books!

Something that really surprises me is that all of the nurses on my current unit are voracious readers. If you accidentally leave a book at work, it will go through all the nurses and one of the psychiatrists before you see it again. All of our lockers have an emergency stash of books in them! The patient care leader and I are collaberating on "writing" a book - every day we have a new chapter, and it just gets sillier and sillier!!

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Sadly, many of the books I buy are unlikely to show up in a used bookstore, at least in a timely fashion for my needs. Just bought a brand-new one about Bach Flower Remedies for animals.

However, I do know of bargain places too! When in Madison, there's Paul's down on State Street -- a venerable institution, it's been there for at least half a century. Last time I was in, it wasn't very well organized though. There are several others in the vicinity according to the phone book, but since I so rarely get down there, I haven't been into them. Borders and Barnes & Noble and University Bookstore usually have "remaindered" sections where books are half or less of retail. There are a couple of Half Price books, one on each side of town.

But my favorite, that I visit most frequently, is Frugal Muse. They are very well organized, fiction and non-fiction, cookbooks all in the same place, etc. I've taken them books to sell, also. Yeah I know, heresy. But if I don't think I want to read it again and can't find anyone to pass it along to, I'll sell it. Believe me, I have PLENTY left!

I've used eBay too. Julie and I were both looking for our own copies of mom's Good Housekeeping cookbook. We learned to cook from that one, and they changed the recipes with every edition. We both found copies through eBay. Boy, I was in a bidding war on every copy that came up, with the same guy, but he was willing to go a lot higher than I was. Finally, my curiosity compelled me to email him, because he was the "winner" on at least five copies and still bidding. Turned out he had similar reasons for wanting a copy, but he also wanted to provide one for each of his siblings for Christmas. I gave up bidding until he was done, I was in no hurry. Then I got a copy for a more reasonable price. I've also used eBay to get copies of some old, out of print favorites. Julie got Beautiful Joe for me, I found a hard cover copy (Frugal Muse didn't have one) of Hawaii, and I got The Egg & I and a Rudyard Kipling book, Thy Servant a Dog. I really lucked out on that one. There was great competition for any copy that came up, but this one was under children's books. Do you ever get the feeling that some people bid on stuff just because they see other people bidding on it?

I also have used the on-line book search sites successfully.

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Besides half.com (a big source for me), ebay (use to get lots there before half.com came along), gotten all they had that I wanted at www.discountnewagebooks.com, in despiration I'll go to Amazon.com (I took my real name and cc info out their database and put in a pseudonym and pay by money order because I heard that if they bo bust they are going to sell their customer list and info), BN.com and an actual Barnes and Noble store there is bookfinder.com--these guys are hooked up to a bazillion used book stores. I have ordered from these independent books stores from bookfinder.com and have had no problem. When I have been trying to complete a collection between half, ebay and the independents I have scored what I am looking for at reasonable prices.

Before taking a trip I do a yellow pages search on yahoo for bookstores in that town. I visited my brother in San Antonio awhile back and had a list of bookstores I wanted to go to along with a couple of other places I want to see, as in a particular restaurant and the river walk they have there. Before the internet I would go to the library and check out the phone book for that city.

Happy hunting.

Namaste,

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

How about abebooks.com? I like that one and have always found what I was looking for. They have used books and many of them are out of print. I found my More-With-Less cookbook there when I couldn't find it anywhere else. It's my favorite cookbook now. I hardly ever cook from any of my others now!

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Check www.booksalefinder.com for a list of library and other used booksales across the country. Get there early, when it opens, to beat the dealers!

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

I buy all our books at public libraries when they have the friends of the library fundraiser sales. Most books sell for 25 cents to a dollar. Find rare ones ocassionally also (like a 1920s edition of Thus Spake Zarathustra by Nietzsche) for a quarter.

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

Thanks Christina.That's a good site.I found some places back home that I didn't know about.

And,Jay,thanks for your suggestion,too.Looks like I need to schedule a trip to Lexington in Nov, and take a long list, to the library book sale there.

Appreciate all the suggestions. Polly,We scope out used book stores too,whereever we live. If you ever get over to Terre Haute,In area....there are(or at least were) three there.I don't think I lived too far from you when I was there,did I?

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2001

I'm not sure whether this is legal or not, but since this post came up I'll respond with my info- if it offends anyone please feel free to have my response removed by the moderator- my feelings won't be hurt! I am reluctantly selling most of my collection of books on homesteading/farming/gardening/nature/self-sufficiency/etc. Someone is moving, either me to Texas or Yuppie Boyfriend to Florida with me, and I absolutely must make room in my house and/or lighten the load to prepare. So, I am selling them on ebay. I have literally hundreds of these books- I have only gotten a couple dozen of them listed so far, but will keep adding some every day until they are all there. (One thing I have learned- it's easier to aquire books/stuff than it is to get rid of them!) If anyone is interested in looking go to ebay's home page @ www.ebay.com. Select "Search". Select "by seller". For seller's ID enter "ekfla@aol.com". A page will appear including everything I have listed so far (haven't scratched the surface yet). This will not likely be the cheapest source for these books, but I have a lot of really classic, out of print titles that I have been collecting all over the world for the past 10-12 years. You won't often find so many in one place. I will try to hurry and get them all listed, but if you don't see something that interests you right away, check back in a few days. As for the rest of you, please STOP listing your favorite sources for books- it's like giving heroin to a junkie- I am trying to get rid og books and you guys keep offering really great sources to get MORE!

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001

Elizabeth, YOU complain about US offering heroin to a junkie and you do THIS!!!! LOL :>), I am NOT going to look, I am NOT going to look, I am NOT going to look...............................

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001

Elizabeth

The first step is to admit you have a problem. Good for you! Now,when you get to Florida(what you want to move there for-are you nuts?-oh that's right you are,that's why I'm typing this.) you just get settled in...and then you go buy more books at the nearest used bookstore.

This has been my stratagy over the years.However I have never given up my books,they have gone with me on every move, which numbers a dozen times by now. So,what are you nuts? Oh,I keep forgetting that answer.

Thanks for posting this.I will have to check it out. Guido and Vinnie, let me know what you are after.We don't want to get in a bidding war,now do we ;o) The Kinfolk will be displeased.

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001

TO HELL WITH EBAY!!! Let's do it right here.....oooppsss I wasn't going to look was I. Man,,,,,I really did think I was in recovery. I am like sharon, my books have really traveled. As they say, some of us are sicker than others!!!

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001

AWW MAN!! And I just told Hubby he could have my bonus check for part of the down payment on a new truck! Wait - maybe he won't buy one! I can talk him out of it, I'm sure I can!!

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001

You guys are funny! I agree, Sharon, if any of us are going to bid, we should coordinate. Or just post our user names, so we recognize each other. Mine is JEF52.

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001

It's not finding the books that bother me... it's the lack of bookshelves...

I don't want to know how many I have... maybe we should start a swap/forsale/buy thread... as I have books I'd like to rid of... did I say that??? and there are books I'm looking for....

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2001