Books!

This weekend brings the annual Friends of the Eugene Public Library book sale at the Lane County Fairgrounds. I attend this event most years, and I decided to go this year after skipping last year.

The problem I have with books sales is that the book sellers go early and scoop up the really good stuff, leaving the rest for the regular folk who just want to get some good books for their evening reading. There's no way to know if you've missed on some good find or a book you've been wanting to purchase for a while. That said, these sales offer unbeatable prices, which is awesome in today's economic climate.

I was on the hunt for the complete works of Robert Burns, but I didn't see that or any other Burns collection. I didn't really see anything on my wish list, but I did pick up some good stuff. I bought a 1936 poetry anthology called "The Best Loved Poems Of The American People." I like it because it is organized into themes. I also wanted to get an art book, and so I chose "The Story Of Art." That one won out because it includes famous works such as the Mona Lisa. Not very large versions, mind you, but they're in there. I wanted to get another one called "Treasures Of The National Museums," but most of the works were reproduced in black and white. What's the point of black and white? These works should be seen in their colorful glory. Thus, I passed on it.

I also picked up "Walden" by Thoreau, a couple John Grisham novels (I finally made a list of what I have to avoid duplicates), and a few other random novels. That's what I like to do - find novels I've never heard of and buy them just because the back summary sounds good.

All told, I bought nine books and spent a little over $10 on them. I didn't overdo it this year, mostly because the bag I had them in was getting mighty heavy. I keep forgetting that books have weight and that weight adds up quickly.