Anne here, currently far from home, giving workshops and talking about writing. Yesterday, taking a break, I wandered into a second-hand bookstore (which is what we call them in Australia), and wandered out again a good hour later, carrying a large bag of books.
I don't often buy books second-hand, but this was an especially well organised bookstore, clean, arranged in genres and with all books shelved by author, in alphabetical order. It was irresistible. I prowled back and forth, trying to remember the names of authors I wanted to try, and just happily browsing.
Some people argue that used bookstores deprive authors of their rightful income — we make no money from sales of used books — and while that's true, I think we gain other advantages. People browsing through the shelves of cheap used books will often try a new-to-them author, and perhaps become a fan. And really, anything that encourages people to keep reading is to be encouraged. And I'm well aware that not everyone can regularly afford to buy new books.
Some people say they don't like second hand bookstores because they don't like the smell of old books. Personally I love it.
When I was a teenager, I haunted a number of stores that sold used books, and spent my very small (meagre!) weekly allowance on carefully chosen books. My collection of Georgette Heyers started that way, as did my collection of a number of other authors. My allowance would barely have covered the cost of one new book, but buying second hand books meant I could bring home a bag of books each week, and happily devour them. I still have some of those books.
I love browsing through stores full of old, well-thumbed, well-loved books. They can be a treasure-trove of unexpected finds — books long out of print, vintage books of all sorts. You never know what you're going to find in a used bookstore — sometimes the books are crammed in any old how — pilled up in teetering columns, or piled in between what were once quite wide aisles, that are now a maze hedged with walls of books — and of course inevitably the one you really want is right at the bottom.
Second-hand bookstores are the reason I have multiple copies of some of my childhood favourites — books that are like old friends, that I couldn't bear to see sitting out on a specials table — or worse, on a sidewalk table for a few cents — it seemed somehow disrespectful, and I've bought them to save their dignity. I've bought favourite books for friends and the children of friends, and when I first started teaching writing, I bought every used copy of Strunk and White (The Elements of Style) I came across to give to students. I also buy any copy of Dorothea Brande (Becoming a Writer) for the same purpose.
Used books can also inspire a writing career. On an author panel at a recent writers festival, one of my friends told the story of how she was living and working in a remote part of Malaysia, feeling quite culturally isolated and without much to read in English. Then she came across a stack of very old Mills and Boon (Harlequin) romances, which she devoured. Those books didn't just entertain and comfort her through a difficult time — they eventually inspired her to become a writer.
I most often shop at second-hand bookstores when I'm travelling, because it's easier to spend a few dollars on a "risky" read by an unknown author. But I've found some gems that way. Many years ago, on a used bookstore on the island of Corfu (Greece) I found, read and fell in love with EF Benson. I read my first Ellis Peters book in the UK, bought second-hand. Those books are still on my shelves.
There's a sense of adventure when you enter a second-hand bookstores. Each one is different — sometimes very different, and reflect the tastes of the owner— usually a person who truly loves books, and spends a lot of their time reading — and that can lead to fascinating conversations, as well as some wonderful discoveries.
When I mentioned to a friend that I was going to blog today about second-hand bookstores, she told me a story of how, when she was young and almost penniless and racking her brains to buy a very special birthday present for a very special person, she ended up going to a second-hand bookshop, buying twenty-five books — each one carefully selected and beautifully wrapped — and how utterly delighted the recipient was!
So what about you — do you like poking around in second-hand bookstores or not? Do you have a favourite one? What was your best used book find? Tell us about it.