Are you a reader? Me, too. Sometimes it’s challenging to find the time to read, or sometimes to find the right book for the space we’re in. That can be a tough one.
But then, during all the deliberation of what I want to read at the moment, comes my county’s huge annual book sale. Last year, they had 60,000 books available, in every genre you can imagine.
The only way to do this is to come with a list and try to stick to it, because inevitably there will also be a book by an author you love that you hadn’t thought of; a copy in brand new condition to replace your old, beat-up paperback; or maybe you’ll just want to take a peek at the art section. Or maybe at the cookbooks. Wait – now they have jigsaw puzzles? (Yes, they do.)
The Hunterdon County Library Annual Book Sale is a dangerous place to go. Especially when you can come out with 15 books for $30 or $15, depending if you go Saturday or Sunday.
Last year’s very small haul ($4.50) – I went with a really tight rein on myself, as I’ve been trying to push books out of the house, not bring more in! Two of these were replacement copies – one for one of my top seven favorite books (The Art of Racing in the Rain). I read the rest, and am in the ongoing process with two, which are non-fiction.
What else is nice? Being in such wonderful company, where every person you meet is an avid reader, and where, depending which section you’re in, you can get solid recommendations and insights.
Making my list now ….
For a half hour’s drive and $24.00, I picked up the amazing selections you see here, hardbound and paperback. I do go with a list, and am happy to find anything on it, but don’t expect my top picks, especially from 2018. But I did bring home some selections from favorite authors – Lisa See, Alice Hoffman, Jodi Picoult, Barbara Kingsolver, E. Annie Proulx, and more. I also picked up a number of middle grade/YA novels including Jacqueline Woodson, Jerry Spinelli – and amazingly, the exact book by Linda Sue Park, A Long Walk to Water, that will help me in a drawing project for a client!
There are also authors I am not yet familiar with but had been hoping to find, and some I don’t know at all. There are a couple psychological thrillers, some historical fiction, science fiction, and mysteries – enough to keep me happily reading for quite some time.
As I drove down the lovely backroads to the book sale, I couldn’t help but think that a good book and a warm and fuzzy friend to curl up with can get us through a lot of stuff in life – both good times and bad. And $24.00 isn’t much to pay to have one of those pleasures at my fingertips.
Still A Dreamer 