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09/14/2016 09:15 AMMark your calendars, book lovers—the annual Friends of the Guilford Free Library Book Sale is coming to town Friday through Sunday, Sept. 23 to 25. With the event now in its 35th year, volunteers are hard at work getting ready for the big weekend.
More than 25,000 books from every genre, ranging from art and autobiographies to fiction and film, will be up for sale this year. Books will be displayed across the library, with tents for fiction and entertainment in front, a tent for non-fiction in the back, children’s books in the Book House off the parking lot, art and architecture books in the Meeting Room, and cookbooks near the Children’s Room.
The sale has grown immensely since its first year when it brought in $500, according to Library Director Sandy Ruoff. Now the sale brings in nearly $40,000, but it wouldn’t be possible without a team of volunteers.
Every Thursday, all year long, Friends of the Guilford Free Library members meet to sort through the thousands of books that are donated to the sale each year. Teams of sorters assess and categorize books—a task that’s not as easy as it sounds, according to Linda Brouard.
“Some people are not as careful as they should be when they bring in books,” she said. “Some of them are rotten, smelly, ripped.”
The books come in from all over, according to Linnet Allen, who said they get donations from Guilford and Madison as well as estate sales and other sources.
Books not sold at the sale are sold in bulk or donated and the sales from the books go right back into the library. The funds are used to support programs, purchase books, and anything else that is needed. Allen said this year it is particularly important to have a successful sale.
“We are trying to expand our publicity and get more people to come,” she said. “The library lost quite a bit in the town budget this year and we have got to try and make it up for them.”
While the sale is a daunting event to put on, the Friends members agree working on the sale is a rewarding process, particularly Jane Marshall, who has been volunteering for 20 years.
“I think there is a certain collegiality about it and when I was new in Guilford, it was a great place to make some friends,” she said.
The sale itself makes for some great memories too. Allen recalled an interaction she had with a teacher just last year.
“I think one of the most touching things I heard was a teacher from New Haven, obviously from a school that didn’t have a lot of money, said, ‘I am taking these books back and this is going to be the first book this child has ever had that they get to take home,’” she said. “They have never had a book of their own.”
Brouard said after sorting through so many books, it is rewarding to see someone find just what they are looking for at the sale.
“I love seeing people find that book because so many books come in and we think, ‘Well, who is going to buy that?’ and then the right person just finds it,” she said.
Beyond the books, another big hit of the weekend is always the Bake Sale, which is held Saturday, Sept. 24. Diana Stovall, who manages the bake sale, said more than 150 items are donated each year—and things go fast.
“We sell all day Saturday and people come early, particularly for hot pies,” she said. “People come before it even starts and say, ‘I want that one and that one.’”
The annual Friends of the Guilford Free Library Book Sale will be held Friday, Sept. 23 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday, Sept. 24 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sunday, Sept. 25 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. To learn more about the sale or to volunteer with the Friends of the Guilford Free Library, visit www.guilfordfreelibrary.org.