Library Sale Spoils

If you know me, you know that I do countdowns for my local library sales.

This week I went to the biggest library sale in my area. Over 50,000 (yes, really!) books were put out for this sale, and boy was it a bibliophile's dream.

Long story short, I bought ninety-seven books.
If your mouth is hanging open, I don't blame you. Even the librarians were impressed.

Let me explain...
I went with the goal of building upon my classroom collection, which I started a few years ago but is still only a fraction of size I hope to have in my classroom come next year. Many people have no idea that the books in a classroom library are purchased out-of-pocket by teachers and that schools don't provide teachers with the books for their classrooms. In the fourth-grade classroom in which I'm completing my student teaching this year, we have more than a thousand books for our students to choose from for their daily reading. They often read 2-3 books per week, which means that we need to have a whole lot of options for them throughout the year! There's no way to predict which grades I'll teach in the future, and my teaching license covers first through sixth grade (and up to eighth for special education), so I've been collecting everything from picture books to more difficult middle grade series. This sale was a great opportunity for me to pick up a lot of books for a much lower price than any online seller or local bookstore can offer.

I didn't go in with a list, but I do have a general idea of which authors are really important for me to have (big names like Andrew Clements and Sharon Creech), and which series are most popular and therefore great for buddy or bookclub reads (A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Warriors, etc.)

That being said, I did buy a few books for myself, so I thought I'd share those here.

The Religion by Tim Willocks

Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James

Eleanor of Aquitaine by Alison Weir

I, Mona Lisa by Jeanne Kalogridis

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory

Needless to say, I have a great stock of books to cozy up with this winter. The sale happens again in March, so I'm already saving my pennies for another round! Do you see any favorites here? Have a recommendation that I absolutely have to look for at the next sale? I'm always up for adding more to my wish list!

P.S. Have a children's book (or two) that you'd like to donate to my classroom library? E-mail me at topshelftext@gmail.com!

Library Sale Spoils

I've been not-so-patiently waiting for the annual Friends of the Library Sale since I arrived home for the summer. Most public libraries hold this type of sale at least once a year and I highly recommend going to them! Not only are the books priced from 25 cents to just a few dollars, but the proceeds go towards benefitting the library (so you can feel good about binging on books). I's a great way for library staff to clear out books that haven't been circulating, as well as encourage people to donate the books that they've already read or didn't like. I'll take any excuse to get an armload of books while contributing to the library's needs, so I was seriously counting down the minutes until the sale started. Below you'll find my picks:

The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd

{Recognize the author? She wrote The Secret Life of Bees and this year's The Invention of Wings}

In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant

The House of Velvet and Glass by Katherine Howe

The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe

Living History by Hillary Rodham Clinton

{For research purposes, you know, just in case a certain someone makes a big announcement soon.}

The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff

{This has been on my to-read list for years. So excited that I found it for just a dollar!}

The Doll People by Martin Godwin Selznick

{This was a favorite of mine when I was younger, and from looking it up on Goodreads I just found out that it's the first in a series! Definitely going on my re-read list.}

The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom

{This has been on my Amazon wish list for months. So glad I waited to purchase it and instead found it at the sale!}

Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer

{One of the.best.books.ever. So fascinating, and one of the few nonfiction books that I'll always have on my favorites list.}

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry

The Last Dickens by Matthew Pearl

The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl

The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

The books are often in new or almost-new condition, and this year I had really good luck in finding books that have been on my to-read list for a while now. For the record, although I came home with a massive pile (and I'm not joking when I say that my arms were sore the day after from carrying such a big stack), I did donate about three boxes of books to the sale to make room for the ones I knew I would inevitably buy. Although when is buying a one dollar book not justifiable? (Rhetorical question.)

Beautiful Bookshelves

It's certainly been a busy start to the summer! After finishing up my final exams, I sped home to unload the car and turned right back around to hop on a plane to Colorado. I got to see my bestie graduate from nursing school (yay!) and spend a few days hanging with her. The day of her ceremony was absolutely gorgeous, and it was so special to be there for her. We've been friends since we were less than a year old!

{What are best friends for, if not making sure that your cap is perfectly centered?}

While I was away, my Dad painted my room a new color. (Did I mention he's the best?) Previously, my room was red and the inspiration for it came from my travels through Thailand and Morocco while I was in high school. It's been a while and my tastes have changed a bit, so we decided to give it a new spin with light grey walls and navy, coral, and yellow accents. It's a work in progress, but one of the biggest focal points of my room is my bookshelf. Enter the reason for this post: I've been on the hunt for bookshelf styling inspiration. I may be a bookworm, but I also love pretty things. My book collection is a point of pride for me, and I want to put it on display in a way that conveys how big a role books play in my life. 

Below are some of the beautiful bookshelves that I've stumbled across. There are so many ways to style a shelf, I'm a bit overwhelmed by all of the pretty possibilities!

{one}

{two}

{three}

{four}

{five}

{six}

I think what I like most about these is that they bring attention to the shelves by using color. I'm tempted to copy number three and paint mine white with a yellow background. And the color-coordinating on four and six? Gorgeous. It's hard to find shelf styling that actually features more books than decorative items, which is why number two is really inspiring me to add fun touches but keep the attention on the books themselves. What I really need is a wall-to-wall, ceiling-to-floor shelf so that I can actually display all  of my books, and not have them hiding under my bed in boxes. I guess that will just have to be on my list of future must-haves. 

Stay tuned for more updates on my bookshelf makeover!