The books are lined up on tables for reading; puzzles pile up at the back of the room; and the CDs and DVDs are in place, ready to buy.
“It’s about time,” said Elizabeth Bowlby, director of the Clyde-Savannah library, of the library’s first sale of books since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. “With the vaccines and the good weather, and I think people are now used to masks and social distancing. Our goal is to get these books into the hands of readers.
With its sale running through Saturday, Clyde-Savannah is the first of many local libraries to resume book sales, a source of additional income as well as a way for avid readers to stock their own shelves. All four counties in the region have libraries that will host sales in the coming months.
Clyde-Savannah charges a dollar for five paperbacks, $ 1 for a hardcover, and if the book is new it will be $ 2. Most sales charge a bit more for paperbacks, but all of them keep their prices low, especially when it comes to children’s books. The prices there are usually a quarter or 50 cents.
But the money adds up. Depending on their size, sales of books, whether held by a group of friends or the library itself, can generate anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. They also provide the community with a good, inexpensive source of reading material and related articles.
The Geneva Public Library Foundation returns with its first large-scale book sale since COVID-19 from June 6 to 11. The foundation had books for sale on the second-story balcony for the past several months, but library director Chris Finger said there had been “an overabundance of donations and a decrease in space for store them “. He said the comfort level of foundation staff and volunteers who manage the library’s book sales has increased with the advent of the vaccine, making it easier to plan a sale.
In recent years, the foundation has raised enough money from its sales to help with projects and purchase new materials. He said the foundation’s long-term goal is to maintain the library’s endowment funding to offset a tax increase.
Seneca County librarians have decided to jumpstart their sales. On September 18, all five libraries will be on the book sales trail, with their sales taking place on the same day during library hours.
Cyndi Park-Sheils, executive director of the Waterloo Public Library, said the event is generating a lot of excitement in the library community. She expects her library to start collecting books for sale in June. To his knowledge, there has not been a book sale in Seneca County since the Seneca Falls Historical Society organized one last fall, under a tent on his lawn.
Jenny Burnett, director of the Seneca Falls Library, said the Book Sale Trail is a great idea and will certainly catch the attention of many dedicated book lovers.
The Clifton Springs Library was the only library in the area to be sold during the pandemic. Its next sale is scheduled for June 3 to 5.
“We had a modified sale last summer because we had so many books to get rid of,” said library director Phil Trautman, who noted customers were supportive and encouraging. “We have limited the number of people in the room. Everyone was wearing masks and we had hand sanitizer, the same things we’re going to be doing this time around. “
The Palmyra Community Library will hold a “giant” book sale tentatively scheduled for September 14, said Patricia Baynes, director of the library. She said that due to the pandemic, the library missed three book sales, but never stopped receiving donations.
The Friends of the Library will be hosting the sale in the large basement of the library, which will allow for social distancing, but even so, Baynes predicted the sale “was going to be crazy.”
“We have a lot of books,” she said. “People went home, so they de-cluttered. We were lucky because we have a volunteer who comes to sort the books.
Each sale typically brings in between $ 1,500 and $ 2,000 for the group of friends, who in recent years have paid for library programming and equipment and covered the cost of digitizing their photo collection. of family.
Melissa Correia, director of the Newark Public Library, plans to hold a sale in late August but has no date set yet. Library sales usually take place on the lower level, and there just isn’t enough space to do it safely, she said.
“We really struggled with this because everyone has books to give away,” Correia said. “And we just have a little closet for storage, but we don’t like to turn anyone down. “
The Wood Library of Canandaigua does not solicit donations either. Executive Director Jenny Goodemote hopes to host a book sale in June with material that has already been donated. She has not set a date yet as she is working to find enough volunteers to make it work. Wood Library generally holds two major sales per year; the last one took place in the fall of 2019.
There are no sales in sight for the Phelps Library and the STEAM Lab Makerspace, said director Daniel Bish. Donations are not accepted. He said the library tries to keep the space as safe as possible for its customers. The staff plan an inventory and weeding and if this generates enough material, there could be a sale later.
The Penn Yan Library has a series of mini-sales on the lawn, weather permitting, every Friday in June from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in, said Sue McGiill, who coordinates the effort. People who have stayed at home because of the pandemic are cleaning up their collections and sharing the wealth.
“There are long lines of library supporters waiting for these sales,” McGill said.