Wisdom for 25 cents

I've recently developed the habit of shopping for books at thrift stores. It's much less guilt-inducing than visiting your typical Evil Empire store or buying online, for one thing: not only do I leave with a huge stack of books for less than $10 and no shipping costs, but I'm supporting a good cause. This also means that I can be just as impulsive as I like: when books only cost somewhere between 25 cents and a couple of dollars, I can give them away to friends or bookcross them with abandon. I can take more risks on buying things I'm not absolutely sure I'll like or use, too. Not to mention that people give away some utterly fascinating and marvelous books: it's like a treasure hunt!

I've been especially thrilled by the children's books I keep finding. So many people seem to toss out their kids' books--or their own childhood books--once they're "outgrown." This lack of foresight bewilders me. Don't these people realize how delightful and wise a good children's book is? Don't they know they ought to re-read their favorites every couple of years to remind themselves of who they are? Don't they think they'll ever know a child who needs those books?

At any rate, their mistake is my gain. During the last few months, I've found a first edition of Ezra Jack Keats's Snowy Day, a gorgeous copy of The Wind in the Willows, a perfect The Very Hungry Caterpillar board book, a beautiful illustrated copy of The Secret Garden, a spotless Phantom Tollbooth, and loads of spooky kids' books to give away on Halloween. Yesterday, I found a somewhat battered copy of Miss Rumphius, which every single one of you ought to own--or at least borrow from somewhere.

I think this habit is likely to stick.