Work begins for book sale at library
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on March 27, 2017 9:57 AM
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Wayne County Public Library volunteer Brenda Kahn sorts donated books in the storage area of the Wayne County library on Friday.
Debbie Brantham, Brenda Kahn and Lee Yahnker gather by a table of books in the back of the library.
The three admitted "bookworms" are there to see the latest arrivals.
Not to check them out and take them home to read, mind you -- they are there to prepare the newest donations for the upcoming spring book sale.
"It's spring and people are cleaning out their closets or attics, or deceased relatives, cleaning out someone's house," Mrs. Brantham said of the back story on the items brought in for the sale.
"I come every year and buy a couple big bags of books," Ms. Yahnker said.
Mrs. Kahn has volunteered for several years during the book sale. This is her first being part of the sorting process, she said.
"It's been very interesting," she said. "I have actually enjoyed it, to see what other people are reading, the variety that comes in."
Once they determine which items pass the criteria -- no yellowed pages or water damage, for example -- the women begin sorting them. From fiction and non-fiction, which they alphabetize and arrange by category.
Cookbooks are particularly popular, Mrs. Brantham said.
Ms. Yahnker, in her second year as a volunteer, said she has been seeing a lot of Civil War books.
"Maybe being in the Goldsboro, Seymour Johnson area, there's a lot of military books," said Mrs. Brantham, who coordinates volunteers getting ready for the annual sale.
A board member of the Friends of the Library, which hosts the sale that supports programs and events at the library, she also worked at the library for 14 years and then as a media coordinator in the school system for 17 years.
So she doesn't mind giving her time to work in the cramped, little area at the rear of the Goldsboro library.
"The three of us work well together," she said of her counterparts.
After all the latest donations have been sorted and boxed, they are taken to an off-site storage unit, where they remain until the day before the sale.
"I was here a couple weeks ago and this table was full," Ms. Yahnker said. "I came back later, and they were all gone. They had gone to storage."
Donations are actually accepted year-round, the women said.
"We take any type and most of them, a lot of people go out and buy them at Sam's, but they only read it once," Mrs. Brantham said. "For $3 you can get a really good book."
The spring sale -- merged into a once-a-year event held around schools' spring break to draw more young readers -- will take place next month.
A members only preview sale will be held on Tuesday, April 18, from 5 to 8 p.m. Open to Friends of the Library members only, memberships are available at the door for as little as $10 for an individual or $15 for a family.
The public schedule will be April 19 from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., April 20 from noon until 6 p.m., April 21 from noon until 5 p.m. and April 22 from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
For those who show up to Gertrude Weil Auditorium, expect a bargain.
Paperbacks sell for 50 cents, with children's books, trade books, audiovisuals and "dotted" sale items being $1 and hardback books going for $3. Wayne County Public Library tote backs can also be purchased for $5.
The women all plan to be there -- walking around, talking to people, helping patrons find things and keeping items in order.
They also enjoy the enthusiasm the book sale generates.
Like collectors in search of a particular genre or author.
Those who come in with their devices, checking to see if they stumbled upon something valuable.
And familiar customers who "come and get carloads full" or walk out with "bags and bags" of purchases, they said.
"There's a book company out of Raleigh that buys whatever is left," Mrs. Brantham said. "And we do give away all the children's books that are left over (to) a lady that works with the Boys and Girls Club."
It's not too late to bring in donations, she added.
"We'll take as much as we can get," she said, up until the cut-off day of April 17.