50 cents might land you a treasure at Houston County Old Book Sale
Houston County Friends of the Library is a tremendous resource for the county’s three public libraries in Perry, Warner Robins and Centerville. Each facility is the recipient of funds raised during the annual Old Book Sale, which this year will be held April 26-28 in the McGill Marketplace at the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry.
Offering more than 90,000 books in 60 categories, the sale is often referred to as “Houston Friends build a library in one day!” Prices range from 50 cents to $100 for especially nice book sets, but most books are priced between 50 cents and $2.
The sale is a massive effort of 25 volunteers working year round and 75 volunteers working the three-day event to organize the 3,000 boxes of books. Customers travel from as far away as Miami, Alabama, New York and the Carolinas to see what treasures they can find.
“One nice thing about our sale is that there are benches” says coordinator Deborah Rossignol. “It allows people to stay longer and look over their books” she said.
Pam Yates, long time volunteer with the book sale, said the fairgrounds is the perfect place for people to gather for a book sale. “People coming to Houston County love the fairgrounds, and it’s just perfect for our sale being centrally located.”
Sale hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 26. Admission is $5 admission that day only. Admission is free Friday and Saturday, April 27-28. Hours on Friday are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and On Saturday, hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and books are half price. Acceptable forms of payment are cash, checks, credits cards and debit cards.
Yates says best sellers are magazines, children’s books, audio books, and DVDs. “But the variety of book topics this year also includes history/biography; classics; religion; military; crafts and hobbies; art, music and film; and a variety of vintage and individual topics,” she explains.
The sale has certainly paid off locally; the organization says it has donated more than $354,975 to the Houston County Library System since 2005. Last year alone the book sale raised $28,000, which went toward the purchase of books, audio books, materials and children’s programs. The Friends of the Library organization itself is made up of local citizens who believe in the value of a strong public library. Members assist in developing programs for the community and volunteer in the library system.
Complete information regarding Friends of the Library and this year’s Old Book Sale is available by visiting . You may also call 478-923-0128.
Marsha Priest Buzzell may be contacted at 478-922-5100 or cvb@wrga.gov.
If you go: Take I-75 exit 135 and follow the signs to the north gate. Parking is free.
This story was originally published March 23, 2018 at 7:05 PM with the headline "50 cents might land you a treasure at Houston County Old Book Sale."