Book and Bake Sale

Local library sales are not just an overstock of library volumes. They can also include personal donations from the Board or other families that support the library.  My husband and I have been going to our annual town library sale for years. It’s a tradition that we look forward to every year. When we see the sign get posted, we automatically mark the date.

That date was yesterday.

Richie got his coffee on the way in and we saw others from the community in line for cheesecake and popular fiction. The local dealers always show up too. We try to beat them to the door.

When we arrived, I switched it up and went to the children’s room first. I only found a few items for decorating my booth versus adding to someone’s collection. Richie on the other hand had several hardcovers against his chest when I arrived in the Trustee room. I brought over an empty box for him to fill and added my young adult vintage fiction. We left as the parking lot filled and the crowd was elbow-to-elbow.  I told myself, “better luck next year”.

We went to the car and out to breakfast.

After our morning nourishment, we picked up our groceries on the way home.

We unloaded the food together in the kitchen. As Richie finished putting the last of the items into the crisper, I reached for the box of books.

“You didn’t even notice what I selected this year,” he said proudly.

Admittedly, I hadn’t. I figured he probably got some Cussler, a few paperbacks for the beach and maybe something on Churchhill or Lincoln. He knows literature, writers and history better than I do but I always try to find classic American fiction by local writers from the past century. We live near the same woods and towns as Thoreau, Emerson and Alcott to name a few. Their old volumes are exciting to find and date for either our own collections or resale.

I was thrilled to see that one of the books Richie found amongst the library chaos was Hemingway.  I’ve resold his paperbacks in the past and I’m currently reading The Paris Wife written by his first wife. It was pure joy to see this 1940’s item come out of the box:

It’s in very good condition. After we read it again, we’ll have to determine if we keep it or resell. The difficult part will be determining its sentimental value.