Fall 2010 Book Sale FAQ's

This is part II of the FAQ's for the Fall 2010 Book Sale. If you missed Part I yesterday, click here. 

If you have more questions than we've answered, please e-mail us!

What’s in the Display Case?

A variety of eye-catching and specialty books that might require a little more gentle handling than those on the shelves in the Specials Room.  NOTE: Display case items are sometimes ready to appear as soon as MONDAY, during set-up.  Things from our TOPLIST will often be featured there as well.

Do you have books “held back”?

There are a certain number of higher value books that we have available for scrutiny and purchase which we do not put in the Specials Room. This is largely due to concern for their condition. As you probably know, in collectible books, condition plus scarcity is everything. Let us know if there is something particular you are looking for.

What are the advantages of becoming a Friends Member?

First and foremost, you can enter the sale on Friends Night, Sept 22, 5-7:30 p.m.  While we restock the sale all week, the best of the Specials Room books are available that night.

Second, for Friends members with specialty subject interests, we are sometimes able to identify a few available titles that are not shown on the toplist.  Tell us what you collect, and we’ll keep it in mind as we accrue donations between sales.

GREAT! How do I become a Member?

The easiest way is to click on the button to join (top of the sidebar on the left). That will take you through a process to join. Then on Friends night, you show up, check in, and will receive a ticket to enter.  If you wait until Friends Night to join, you will spend more time at the check-in table as we have to get the information from you along with your check. Spend less time IN LINE by doing it ON LINE.

Support Friends of Reston Regional Library by purchasing a T-shirt during the sale! They're only $10 and make great gifts!

Why do you allow Dealers?

Dealers are customers just like anyone else. We value our relationships with all of our customers as long as everyone behaves in an adult manner. Believe it or not, some of the most egregious behavior does NOT come from dealers. By the same token, we do not have a special “Dealers Night” like some book sales do because we do not value the dealers any more than our other customers, and vice-versa.

What are the sale hours?

Friends Night (membership required) Sept 22, 5-7:30 p.m.

Thursday & Friday, Sept, 23-24, 10-5

Saturday, Sept 25, 10-4

Sunday, Sept 26, 1-3:30

How much are the books?

Mass Market Paperbacks start at .50 cents each

Trade Paperbacks start at $1.00

Hardcovers start at $1.50

All media and specials room books are visibly priced.

If you do not see a price on something and it doesn't fall within the first three categories, please ask us about it.  

What kind of accessibility do you provide for disabled people?

Our aisles are measured and tables placed exactly to comply with Fire Marshall requirements for safety. If you need a walker or wheelchair, we are happy to accommodate you by offering you a chance to come shop for a short time before we open to the public. Please understand that to access this opportunity you need to contact us first. You can do so by e-mailing us at restonfriendspr@gmail.com or contacting someone at the library.

That said, per Fire Marshall rules, we cannot accommodate strollers. Please consider carefully whether your child or children are the type that can wait quietly for you to finish shopping. If they are likely to create a disturbance for other patrons, please reconsider bringing them. Our major concern is their safety -- people carrying boxes, bags or piles of books often do not see little ones under their feet.

Finally, we want to make the book sale a pleasant experience for everyone involved. If you have concerns, suggestions or questions, please communicate them to our e-mail address and we’ll answer as soon as we’re able. Thank you for helping us to make the Reston Used Book Sale the best in town!

Emajean on Holiday

The story of Emajean will continue NEXT week. This week the researcher is accruing more details to share.

In the meantime, please consider attending this event being held at Reston Regional Library next
MONDAY, SEPT 13, at 7PM.  Attending is FREE.

Rita Crosby will appear to talk about her book and sign it.  Simultaneously (and I do not understand how this all works), a company called Autographaroo will be offering signed copies via the internet. All net proceeds will go to the Fairfax Library Foundation.

This is not underwritten by Friends of Reston Regional Library, nor are we receiving any funds from it. We just wanted to pass on something happening at our library!

Semi-Annual Sale Approaching

The Semi-Annual Book Sale is approaching quickly, so we'll revisit some of the FAQ's.

FALL 2010 SEMI-ANNUAL BOOKSALE FAQ

The Friends of Reston Regional Library welcome all of you to the sale.  Our goal is for EVERYONE to enjoy the sale and to have a fair chance to find what they want. To that end, we have a few rules, which if everyone can follow them, will help all of us.

Why do you have so many more fiction than non-fiction books?

We don't!  Yes, adult fiction is the largest single subject category at the semi-annual sales.... as measured by "volume" (cubic feet!).  However, when all fiction is toted up (fiction plus sci fi plus romance plus lit, etc.), the total number of boxes is well below half.  So therefore all non-fiction (history, self help, cooking, religion, etc.) is clearly well above half.

But what the Friends have sorted through and stashed in our storage shed isn't the whole story either.  The way that the Friends have allocated selling square footage in the building (the two rows of fiction tables, plus the zones for sci fi, romance, lit) confirms that fiction again represents well below half of what's allocated. . . and what happy shoppers get to browse through at any given time during the sale itself.

What forms of payment do you take?

Cash and checks with valid information and phone number.  If you’ve written us a bad check in the past, cash only.

What are the rules for dealers/high volume buyers?

First, NO HOARDING. 
Second, no pushing, shoving, cursing, or behaving in a way that would have made your mama mad if you'd done it when you were five years old. We're all adults, and we all deserve a chance to shop in a non-hostile environment.

What is hoarding?

That's when someone takes a whole bunch of books from a table or area, keeps them from other buyers, and then goes through them slowly, rejecting and often not returning their rejects. This is rude and violates the spirit of the book sale. SO...if you take a book off a table we will presume that you are buying it.

a)     No bulk buying allowed until Sunday at 2pm. That means no sweeping of books from the tables into plastic bags. Throughout the sale we allow you to buy as many TOTAL boxes (standard size/postal size) as you wish.  However, each time you accrue 6 boxes, we ask that you check out and take them to your car; and return as time permits.  We are very short on space, so if you can get your books out to your vehicle in chunks, it lessens the chance another patron will not recognize them as ‘taken’ or even ‘sold’ and start going through them.

Do you allow scanners?

Scanners are allowed on the main floor as long as one abides by the rules and behaves in an orderly fashion. We will ask people who cannot behave in an orderly manner to leave.  Should the use of scanners cause a disruption, we will ask you to put them away. We ask that you mind your manners – do not snatch books out of people's hands.

NOTE: Scanners are NOT allowed in the Specials Room


NOTE: Scanner are NOT permitted in the Media area (cd's, tapes, etc). This area is too crowded and numerous complaints about the behavior of those using scanners in this area have prompted this move.

What is the Specials Room?

This is the small room where we have located higher value books ($5 and up – the vast majority $7 and under). ON FRIENDS NIGHT (Sep 22), patrons may select up to 40 items at a time, have them processed, paid for, and taken to their car, and then return and repeat as often as needed throughout preview night.  Due to the small space, patrons will be asked to leave other boxes, bags and books outside the Specials Room throughout the sale. 

What are some typical books located in the Specials Room?

You can see a selection of the books offered by viewing our Toplist which will be posted by the end of this week.  This list is just a drop in the bucket of what we have there.

Why do you take so much information when I’ve selected Specials Room books?

We do it because it clearly helps us to run a better sale for the shopper, not just at this sale but future ones as well.  By knowing that a particular scarce item has sold already, the less likely we'll be to keep looking for it when another customer asks about it later!  More importantly, we learn about what subject categories are most sought after by our patrons.  And of course, that contact info routinely allows us to contact a buyer who's forgotten to pick up the precious bag of selections at checkout time (unfortunately happens every sale, and multiple times, too)

Will there be children's books at these sales?

No, last year we decided to separate the Childrens & Young Adults books from the Semi-Annual Book Sale and hold a specific sale for those items about a month before the Semi-Annual Sale. We just ran it again in August and it was more successful than ever. So there will be NO children's books at this sale, except for collectibles that might be in the specials room.

MORE FAQ's tomorrow!