A fairground of books for sale to benefit Moscow summer reading program
Mar. 1—In the last few weeks, books have poured into the basement of the Moscow branch of the Latah County Library to be sorted and boxed before a twice-a-year book sale organized by the Friends of the Moscow Library.
The sale is a fundraiser and will go toward programs like the Summer Reading Program, Books for Babies, Everybody Reads and more.
The Friends of the Moscow Library Spring Book Sale has returned for another March weekend at the Latah County Fairgrounds. Today's session, open only to Friends of the Moscow Library, goes from 6-8 p.m., and the open sale is from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday, with a buck-a-bag sale for the last hour. Payment can be made in cash or by card.
Mary Hughes is the treasurer and book sale chairperson for the Friends of the Moscow Library and has been involved in the nonprofit since she moved to Moscow in 2003. She took over as the book sale chairperson around 2008.
Hughes said books will be grouped by genre, and one table usually has recommendations from Friends of the Library members. The unpacking Friday morning often includes recommendations among volunteers and sorting the last few donations.
"It's fun to see all the friends and people getting together," Hughes said.
Patrons will be asked to leave the room at noon Saturday so volunteers can make sure all the books are out and prepared for the buck-a-bag sale, which will last until 1:30 p.m. Attendees can bring their own bags or be provided with one.
"We don't care if it's a duffel bag," Hughes said. "We just want them out the door and not have to recycle them."
This year the books on offer include over 5,000 titles, including some library catalog discards and community donations. The donation number on Tuesday was smaller than normal but Hughes expected more to be donated today before the sale. The titles include nonfiction, fiction, romance, Western, young adult or anything a person might have in their home collection.
Hughes said the Friends of the Library collect the books throughout the year but see an increase in the three weeks before a sale. Any books left are recycled to make room for books for the next sale.
The books move fast, Hughes said, and sometimes tables have to be refilled throughout the Saturday session. On average, of the thousands of books involved, around 200 are left after the sale.
"I always say if you want to make sure you get that book, buy it now or take the chance to wait," Hughes said.
The books are collected at the library through the back door and people can drop off a total of three bags or boxes at a time. Volunteers for the Friends then sort the books and box them by genre.
"People show up and just know what needs to be done," Hughes said. "We have wonderful volunteers."
Hughes said organizing the sale is a team effort, and she may be the chairperson but couldn't do it without the other board members, volunteers and others. Moving the boxes of books from the storage unit to the fairgrounds is done by University of Idaho ROTC members, who are a big help, Hughes said.
"I don't want to give the impression I do everything, because I don't — our board is a big help," Hughes said.
Kali Nelson can be reached at knelson@dnews.com.
