The Book Sale

There is a singular pleasure in shopping for books at the library book sale. Comfortable among fellow bibliophiles, moving as though choreographed, sideways stepping , spine-reading heads held at an angle.

I spent a glorious part of the afternoon at the Charlottesville Friends of the Library book sale, buying, predictably, collections of essays and short stories. One juicy find is a biography of John Irving, possibly my favorite author of all time. (Irving is to books as Ben Folds is to music for me; if you have spent even an afternoon with me, you would know both these truths.) Another is a collection of the best stories of the 1980s, my coming-of-age era. Sigh.

But the best is yet to come as the sale really begins March 24 and wraps up, finally April 1, when everything's a quarter of the price. On April 2 they'll let you cart what's left away for free.

I'm planning to return, of course. I've got my hopes set on cookbooks and classics; a few favorite authors and whatever else captures my attention. The key to success with library book sales is low expectations and a broad range of reading interests.

If you see me there, do say hello. I always love to meet a fellow reader.