Tips for spending less on books
If you love to read, you know that reading can be a very expensive past-time. However, there are several ways that you can spend less on books and you can still read as much as you would like. Let us review some of the most economical and easy tips for spending less on books.
- Book swap - Most of us have a group of friends with similar interests. If you have a group of friends who loves to read, make a conscious decision to set up your own book swap among them. A group of a dozen people could mean that you can read twelve new books and only have had to purchase one book. This is a great way to spend time with friends discussing a book (after everyone has read it) and spend less on book purchases.
- Senior centers - If your community has a senior center, chances are that their shelves are loaded with books. Contact them and find out if you bring books in for them if you can borrow books. Many local community centers and senior centers will allow you to do this. This can increase the number of books that you can read without adding anything to your budget to purchase books.
- Secondhand stores - Most people only read books one time and then either pass them along or donate them. Check around your city or town and find out if you have a second hand book store. Often these stores will take your book, give you credit for them and allow you to purchase additional books using that credit. The benefit of this is you can often find new releases within a couple of months. This is a great tip for spending less on books, and you can repeat it over and over since most second hand stores offer a variety of new books.
- Discounted books - Many of the top booksellers have "bargain" or "discounted" books. For example, Barnes & Noble offers both discounted books and also offers used books for sale. You can spend less on books by taking advantage of these greatly reduced prices. Check them out regularly just be cautious of shipping charges or you may find you are not saving much.
- Internet - There are thousands of books available for sale on eBay in every possible classification you can imagine. These are often books that people have read and enjoyed and they are now "cashing in" on the books. Do not overlook eBay as a possible source for spending less on books. While you are searching the internet do not overlook the thousands of free eBooks that are available for download. While these may not be the most current titles, there are a number of books that you can download free of charge.
- Your local library - The easiest and most convenient way for spending less on books is to utilize the library. While there may be waiting lists for a title you are interested in reading, you will find this is the most cost effective way to read books. Take advantage of intra-library lending if it is available in your area. If you are an avid reader, you can line up several books that your library can request from other libraries that are part of the lending system and never run out of books. This tip for spending less on books will cost you nothing except a trip to your library.
Just because you are having economic challenges does not mean that you should have to give up reading. Many people take great pleasure in reading books, from old historical novels to current best-sellers. Use these tips for spending less on books and keep reading!
