If you spend any time around a used book store, you’ve no doubt been a witness to this scene: someone pulls up with a trunk load of used books. Load by load, they struggle to carry them into the used book store, dropping a few along the way. Once inside, the buyer quickly shuffles through them, then makes an offer. “Not much we can use here…we can pay you $10.”
“For ALL of them?” the dejected seller responds.
Knowing what’s worth actual cash in used books is not too difficult, as long as you understand a few simple guidelines, and look at it from the buyer’s perspective.
Before you trying selling any used books, here’s are some broad guidelines:
* There are two types of books that are generally worth money – newer titles and collectible titles. Newer books are generally anything published in the last year or so. The best time to resell a hardback book is BEFORE it comes out in paperback. Used books stores have the most demand for recently published books, so they are most anxious to acquire these. The sooner you sell a new book after you read it, the more you are likely to get for it.
* Collectible titles can cover a broad range, but the most sought after are genre fiction (mystery, science fiction, etc.), first editions of popular works,
certain children’s titles, art books and nonfiction categories where the information is not time-dependent. (Last year’s guide to Mexico is going to be worth very little this year, because the information is all out date.)
* Categories that often have very little value include book club editions, outdated textbooks, dated guides and annuals, encyclopedias, outdated reference, etc., etc. One other category that can have very little value is mega-bestsellers. The used book market is all supply and demand, and something that sold millions of copies has a HUGE supply, so once the demand drops off, there is very little value for the used copies.
* Before you sell a book, here’s a few things to check that might make it more valuable than you think: Is it signed by the author? (Autographed books are often worth much more, even if it’s a common title.) Is it a first edition? (Look for the words “first edition” or the number “1” in the number stream on the copyright page.) Is it a title that was printed in limited quantity. (Hint: Books published by small publishers often have more value…because less copies were printed.)
* In today’s internet age, you have several options for selling your used books. Should you sell to a brick-and-mortar store or try selling through a site on the internet? If you’re selling to a regular store, be aware that there are generally two types of used book dealers, a collectible, or antiquarian dealer, and a store catering to the more general public. The antiquarian book seller is going to most interested in your collectible titles only. The general seller may buy some of the other items, as they have a more general customer base.
* With the internet, you can easily search your book’s title and come up with a possible value. If there are forty-seven copies of the book you have already on Amazon with a prices are starting at 47 cents, you’re copy isn’t going to be worth much more.
Of course, for readers, the real value of a book isn’t found in what’s it’s worth, but in the words on the pages. One of the great joys in life is finding a dusty copy of some old book in the quarter pile, and discovering that’s it’s much better than that best seller you had to pay $25 for. Don’t overlook those hidden treasures!
