A couple of bargains

[Jonathan_NW]

Hi all

Whilst browsing through my local library yesterday I had look in the 'for sale' section of unwanted stock and chanced upon a couple that caught my eye. First was 'The First World War 1914-18' by John Terraine and next to it 'The diary of an old contemptible : from Mons to Baghdad, 1914-1919' by Edward Roe. Both in hard back and in excellent nick. The price?...20p each. Bargain.

Jonathan

[Steven Broomfield]

Iwonder how much they'd fetch on eBay? I'm not being jealous at your good luck (well, I am, really), but were I a local Council tax payer, I would be quite cross that a library is selling off books so cheap. Many years ago I acquired the History of the 7th Division, courtsey of Cambridgeshire Libraries - for a song.

In these straitened times, one reads of Oxfam making a killing out of second hand books, and here is a public body virtually giving them away.

Shameful, I call it.

[squirrel]

So, you'll be off to your local Library pdq then?

[Waddell]

Well done Johnathon. I've been looking for the Roe book for a while.

Steve, I hear what your saying but I honestly don't think the councils care. I always have a look at my local library and have purchased a lot of WW1 books for ridiculous money. When I asked the librarian how they choose which ones to dispose of I was told they arbitarially pick them from the shelves. As you say it doesn't make a lot of sense.

I have noticed on e-bay that generally a lot of ex-library books don't sell for as high a price as a privately owned book. It's never worried me and consequently have purchased a few bargains. I like to read them so they don't need to be perfect.

Scott.

[Jonathan_NW]

Steve,

I'm a local council tax payer as are the many people who browse and purchase from the very popular clearence section of the library. I have asked the staff previously what the policy is with regard to selling old stock and they told me that when a title has not been borrowed for a significant amount of time (I think it is 2 years) it either goes into the Borough's central store or is distributed to the branches to be sold on to the public. It's all a question of space really as my local library has just had a consignment of hundreds of new titles delivered and as shelf space is limited it comes down to a question of either 1) send it to a storeroom where it might sit unread for years on a shelf or 2) sell it to a local council tax payer who will enjoy it, display it and lend it to potentially interested or curious readers.

Best Wishes

Jonathan