A fabulous resource for locating book sales anywhere in the United States is the web site http://www.booksalefinder.com/
Front page for booksalefinder.com
I happened on booksalefinder.com two summers ago, and the site has been great in helping me organize my shopping itinerary for used books.
The web site states that it is maintained by Helen and Tom Oram, who live in Massachusetts. Under the “About Book Sale Finder” tab, is the story of the site’s creators: “Helen works full time keeping the web page up-to-date: compiling all the sale information, answering e-mails, soliciting new sales, and working with advertisers. Tom works part time on the page and is responsible for writing the programs that create the web pages, keep track of the sales, build the Google Maps, and personalize the weekly Sale Mail notices.”
According to the website, “We don’t charge charitable non-profit organizations to list their traditional used books sales or bookstores on our web page.” They list the non-profit organizations who are likely to run book sales around the country. “The majority are sponsored by Friends of the Library volunteer groups who hold the sales to raise funds for such things as local cultural activities and book purchases for the library. Many other non-profit groups also run bookstores or sponsor regular sales for general fundraising. These include such national organizations as the American Association of University Women, Bryn Mawr Alumnae, Brandeis University National Women’s Committee, Goodwill Industries, and Planned Parenthood as well as neighborhood churches and charitable organizations.”
- Web site established in 1997
- Now lists over 6,000 sales per year
- Weekly Sale Mail to about 18,000 subscribers (subscriptions are free)
- About 180,000 page views every month
- About 80,000 visits every month
- Appears as first non-paid listing in Google and other search engines with key words ‘book sale’ or ‘book sales’
There is also a GPS download on booksalefinder.com for Tom-Tom and Garmin systems. This feature allows travelers to add Points of Interest (POI files) that alert them where to find book sales and non-profit book stores. The site explains that, “Each Tuesday, the Book Sales TO GO files are updated to contain sales for the next 9 days, so be sure to get a new download each week. You simply load the file into your GPS and you’re on your way!”
The e-mail feature is also very helpful. This service is call Sale Mail and is “a completely free service that we offer, where every week we check to see if there are any sales in your area and, if so, we send you an email telling you about them.” The web site pledges that your email address will not be released to any other party, and they have a no spam policy.
The booksalefinder.com web site is a great resource for anyone looking for book sale in their state or community in quantities large or small. The information has helped me locate the necessary texts for my used book classrooms!
Used Books in Class 