Cheap Books for Cheap People

Books are, unfortunately, quite pricey. I have one six-shelf bookshelf and one three-shelf bookshelf completely full, and I don't even want to imagine how much I've spent on all of those books.

My old go-to store was Barnes & Noble. Borders was fine, but I never felt I could relax in the stores (probably had something to do with the stores impending doom that was bankruptcy.) When I lived in my college town, I could either go to the campus Barnes & Noble or Books-a-million (which was owned by Barnes & Noble.) Clearly I was loyal to the company.

Once I graduated and moved, I discovered so many more places to buy books. Here are the best.

Goodwill

It is crazy what people will give away to Goodwill. I found a brand-new hardback copy of The Help for $1.50. Some stores have larger selections, but most have incredibly popular books in both paperback and hardback.

Garage Sales

Spring and summer are all about the garage sales. Most people who hold them just want to get rid of their stuff, otherwise their tables, TVs, and "gently-loved" mattresses would be on Craigslist. Among the never-used espresso machines and baby clothes, you can usually find some good books.And if they do turn out pretty bad, then you only spent 50 cents, which I'm sure you could find in your couch or car or maybe even last season's clothes.

Used Book Stores

This one is kind of a "duh" place. Half-Priced Books is a great store, and there are quite a few across the country. You can find paperback copies of some classics for a buck, and most other books are between five and seven dollars. The store does have new releases, but those are a bit pricier than the rest of the stock. If you dig through the impressive inventory, you can probably find any book you are looking for. There is even a selection of first-edition copies of classics. And Half-Priced Books also has a vast collection of DVDs, games, comic books, and even VHSs for all of you hipsters out there!

Ebook Library

One of my favorite aspects of having a Kindle is that every month I can borrow a book from Amazon for free, and every day new daily deals are offered, usually just a couple of dollars each. Around holidays, Amazon offers special deals. Sometimes hot sellers, such as Hunger Games, will randomly be $3 or so. Barnes & Noble offers similar deals for the Nook.

Library

I am not a big library-goer, which is probably weird. But if you have an e-reader, you can borrow an ebook just as easily as you would a physical book. Due dates and everything apply, so you can renew a book if you need to. And of course the library has traditional books as well.

 
I also "borrow" a lot of books from my family. A lot just sit around gathering dust, so I can usually take one back home with me after a visit.

So don't worry about spending all of your money on $30 books when you can just head around the corner and find some new hidden gems.