Date: Fri 22-Aug-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: DOTTIE

Quick Words:

Library-Book-Sale

Full Text:

Upcoming Library Book Sale:

Alphabetized Mysteries, First Editions And a Roof Overhead

B Y D OROTHY E VANS

There is plenty of good news this year for Library Book Sale devotees.

There will be more titles in more categories than ever before, with more than

100,000 books donated for the event, which will run Saturday, August 30,

through Wednesday, September 3.

"We'll have the largest collection of contemporary first editions ever, as

well as the best selection of new and barely used children's books," said sale

co-chair Joanne Zang.

Furthermore, sale workers are grateful to be holding the book sale inside so

that bad weather or a possible hurricane won't be a deterrent to its success.

The five-day event will take place in the two huge dining rooms of Bridgeport

Hall on the campus of Fairfield Hills. Last year, it was held outside under

tents at the Newtown Shopping Center on Queen Street.

Both years, the sale has been relocated from its traditional place outside the

Cyrenius H. Booth Library on Main Street, due to renovation and remodeling

activities at that facility.

A To Z Whodunnits

For some book sale regulars, the best news this year is that for the first

time ever, mysteries as well as fiction and biographies will be alphabetized

by author.

Thanks to the efforts of Library Friends member Julie Stackweather, Agatha

Christie will be right where she ought to be - somewhere after Catherine Aird,

but well in front of P.D. James, Sue Grafton and Ngaio Marsh.

"People will be able to go right to their target area and not get jaded by the

sight of all those books," Barbara Yarbrough said Tuesday.

She and several other Booth Library Book Sale co-chairs and volunteers have

been gathering at Bridgeport Hall every day this past week to sort and price

the countless books that have been packed and delivered to the library over

the past several months by their donors - and those books have been lovingly

packed by their previous owners in every sort of container imaginable.

As a result, the cavernous institutional dining halls of Bridgeport Hall, so

long empty and unused, have been slowly filling up with old liquor cartons and

flat soft drink boxes, brown shopping bags and plastic bags, all filled to

bursting with books of every shape and size.

"We haven't yet figured out how to use the conveyor belt or the dishwashers,"

joked Gloria Palmer as she glanced at the many boxes lined up on the old

dining hall cafeteria counters.

Besides the paperbacks and hardcover books, there are tapes, computer

software, LP records, games and puzzles - all needing to be unpacked, grouped

by category and labeled.

Obviously, the library sale volunteers have their work cut out for them but as

of Tuesday morning, they seemed undaunted at the magnitude of the task.

It would get done just as it has for 21 years before this, said Library

Friends president Marian Wood.

"We've got everything from fiction to chess books to biographies to science

fiction. And there are some beautiful coffee table art books in excellent

condition," Ms Wood added.

Many Regional Cookbooks

"We've got more than 1,000 regional cookbooks and as many that are in the

general category," said Ms Palmer, passing her hand over a colorful array of

spiral bound cookbooks spread out on one long table.

Having so many to choose from was quite unusual.

"It's hard for people to give up a cookbook," Ms Palmer remarked.

As the women began examining the cookbooks, a discussion took place concerning

the merits of considering several different recipes before baking an apple

pie, for instance.

"I'm not in favor of using flour with the apples to thicken the filling," said

Ms Yarbrough.

The cookbook tables would be a big draw, Ms Wood said. People can't resist

looking at recipes and talking about their favorites, comparing notes.

"When they come to the sale and see all these cookbooks, they'll go away with

new favorites," she predicted.

Numbered Tickets Saturday

The hours for the Booth Library Book Sale are: Saturday, August 30, from 10 am

to 5 pm; Sunday, August 31, from 10 am to 5 pm; Monday, September 1, from 9 am

to 4:30 pm; Tuesday, September 2, from 2 pm to 8 pm; and Wednesday, September

3, from 10 am to 4 pm.

Admission of $5 is charged on Saturday only ($3 for members of the Newtown's

Friends of the Library group). Numbered tickets will be sold outside

Bridgeport Hall on Saturday beginning at 7 am.

On Saturday and Sunday, everything will be sold at the marked price. On

Monday, items will be sold at half the marked price from 9 am to 2 pm. From

2:30 pm to 4:30 pm Monday and again on Tuesday, from 2 to 8 pm, books will be

$5 per bag.

Leftover books will be free on Wednesday, from 10 am to 4 pm, with donations

accepted.

Refreshments will be available on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, with a juried

craft fair held on Sunday and Monday on the outside grounds.

All proceeds from the book sale will benefit the library.