VNSA Book Sale

Yippee! It’s that time of year again… time for the VNSA Book Sale in Phoenix. This year it is being held Saturday, February 12th 8 am – 6 pm, and Sunday, February 13th 8 am – 4 pm. All books are half price on Sunday (except rare & unusual books). It takes place at the Exhibit Building at the Arizona State Fairgrounds in Phoenix. There are more than 600,000 books and other items for sale. It is a book lover’s dream come true!

The proceeds from the sale are used to support two nonprofit human service agencies: Arizona friends of Foster Children Foundation, and Literacy Volunteers of Maricopa County.

Last year Jessica was living in Ohio and flew in for the sale. This year JD & Janel, who live in South Carolina, are flying in for the sale. I’ve started making my list and planning my strategy. They post a map on the website each year showing the layout of the sales floor. I’m checking everyday to see if this year’s map is up yet so I can plot my way through the sale.

2010 The line when we arrived

In previous years, we’ve gotten there about a half hour after the doors open and generally stood in line about 60 – 90 minutes. Last year, we got there 30 minutes before the doors opened, stood in line 45 minutes, and entered the building in the 2nd wave. Needless to say, we’re going to try to repeat that experience this year. We take our own cloth bags and rolling suitcases to put our books in. They do hand out plastic bags at the door, but they are small and your hands will be numb in no time from carrying them.

Once we enter the building, we split up to shop our individual lists. We meet up in an hour, compare notes, and then split again for another hour. When we join up the 2nd time, those who have completed their shopping help those who still are looking for items. We’re generally in the building 3 – 4 hours. At the end, we find a corner to sit on the floor, sort through our stash one last time and then make our way to the cashiers.

 

If you’re not a reader, you’re thinking we’re nuts. If you are a reader, you can understand what a great adventure this is! Check out the website for additional information. Leave me a comment if you plan to attend and I’ll keep an eye out for you!