You may care to know...
Do we buy books from people?
Not often, but sometimes. Especially if you have the COOL stuff...
Please see our Trade/Donation policy page.
Cash transactions are referenced at the bottom of the page.
Do we have a store pet?
No - we do not. We have far too many at home and can't afford another vet bill! Further, they're all anti-social demons with no desire to expand their social circle and therefore aren't welcome during store hours. There is a possibility we bring in our Russian Tortoise if future spacing decisions allow him to have a comfy enclosure.
That said - please know that our dogs do roam the store while we're organizing after-hours. Plus, patrons accompanied by their well-behaved allergy-mounds are also welcome in the space. We do our best to sweep and dust regularly, but if you have severe reactions to animal dandruff we recommend masking up!
Where do we get our inventory?
Our collection of novelty items and knick-knacks, as well as our array of featured novels, are supplied by local authors/artists and sold on consignment terms through Village Books. To see featured content and learn more about consignment sales, see our Featured Consignment page.
The majority of our books come from Village Books patrons and Southern Oregon community members! We offer in-store credit for a wide variety of inventory. See our Trade/Donation Policy page for more information. We also do our best to scour local garage and estate sales, and stop by all the second-hand stores we can find any time we leave town - perks of the gig!
Anywhere we can find quality content at the right price for us to resell & keep paying our bills, we seek it out. Facebook marketplace, eBay, bulk-ordering sites and holiday sales... You name it!
Can we ship books to correctional facilities?
Unfortunately, no. Humans were creative enough to modify book bindings to conceal prohibited items within. Based on my last conversation with the DOC, they won't take anything second-hand.
Do we take & sell books from little libraries?
Absolutely not - we view that practice as extremely unethical and have no desire to profit off someone else's donation to the community.
...That said -
Once a book is donated to a little library it is subject to the whims of the world, which risks it re-entering the economic cycle.
A book selected becomes part of your personal collection, which you may keep for days or years before you're ready to let it go. When If that time comes, we're here to help you clear space and get content back into community circulation.
We have no desire to support poaching from little libraries, and if presented with a suspicious purchase request we will do our best not to enable its continuance. Singles will mix in - we try to offset our inevitable intake with additional donations to little libraries.
That's the best I've got for you right now, our tiny library friends. Keep your chins up, and keep helping spread access to reading!
What do we do with excess inventory?
It depends on the item -
Fancy stuff? Ebay.
Less-fancy stuff? Donations to little libraries, bulk discounts for craft projects, and further donations to local thrift stores.
Great quality duplicates? Mystery bags, which we sell in-store, and bulk bundles, which we sell through our eBay.
Occasionally, we'll store excess inventory and reintroduce it at a later time, depending on our storage availability and personal feelings about it.
Do we ever trash inventory?
It's unfortunate, but - Yes, we do. At Village Books, we do everything we can to keep books in circulation. While some books survive intact for centuries, not all paper exists in an environment that enables longevity.
Books with water/mold damage or staining (think greasy cookbooks) can be a health concern and may damage other inventory if shelved nearby. These items are likely discarded, but may be donated if damage is minimal, the pages are fully dry/clean and have recovered well, and the book is in otherwise great condition.
Books with excessive smoke/odor damage can spread to nearby inventory and pose a health concern for many of our patrons with sensitive respiratory systems. We are experimenting with a variety of odor-removing processes for those that can be saved, but some may be so thoroughly damaged that they aren't salvageable.
Books with nibbles may have pests that can spread. As absolutely fascinating as some of those munching marks can appear, they must be discarded.
Lastly, books that are no longer intact. [Book] Spines get snapped, things get torn, and stuff starts to fall apart. We have fun with glue where we can and offer these as bargain books, little library donations, and bulk-buy discounts for craft projects. Sometimes they don't make it much further, but we thank them for their service as we help their disassembled bits toward their final resting place.