Sep192012
Facebook Sharing: Stocking up on books
Print 
PDF
image by gruntzooki
It’s super easy to list must-have survival books and non-fiction manuals, but recently a reader left a comment on the blog about the importance of reading to escape. So far, the U.S. Army Survival Manual hasn’t caught my imagination and carried me away to fantastical, fairytale locations.
So, I asked the Facebook crowd where they go to find cheap, or even better,free books, and they came up with a very creative list. Here it is:
- From Rachel: “Thrift stores and yard sales are good options.”
- Bonnie said, “Our library usually has a ‘free’ table.”
- From Victoria: “Our library has a sale once a year, most books are 25 cents. Aside from that, I utilize our library for books/movies/dvds. Also get ones from my mother that she has read and wants to get rid of!”
- From Erik: “Library sales, Goodwill, Salvation Army, thrift stores, yard sales. Every year where I live they have a giant free book giveaway at an old nearby mall. Also college book stores dump thousands of old textbooks out at the end of every semester.”
- Michelle says, “There are loads of free books available for Kindles. I know paper books are important too, in case of grid issues, but it is an option. I’ve gotten quite a few free cookbooks with great prep info (canning books, how to feed a family cheaply, etc.) free. They also have lots of the classics free. I don’t have a Kindle but I loaded the free program to be able to read them on my PC. For paper books I would say Goodwill, yard sales, library sales. I can come out of Goodwill with a whole bag of books for my kids for under $10.”
- From Smallacre Homestead: “Ever since the economic crises started, there have been a lot of “resale” stores popping up, usually run by charities (i.e. Catholic charities). One of those nearest us has a large book section. Hubby has been perusing Amazon for the 1 cent books, but the shipping is almost as much as buying a new paperback.”
- David’s tip: “I have found that Amazon Kindle has a ton of free books for download. I figured out that you can search for specific genres the same as you do a Google search. For example, Search for kindle + free + homesteading and I found about 30+ free books on the subject. I save these books on an SD card in a tablet with the free Kindle app downloaded. Yard sales usually yield good results as well.”
- From Erik: “At recycling centers sometimes they will let you have books if you ask.”
- Margaret says, “Sometimes you can find people giving away free books on Craigslist. Check the “free section.”
- Bethanne shared this link for free Kindle books.
- From Lola: “Our local library has a paperback exchange… you can take as many paperbacks from that section as you want, and either replace them with books you have read or not.”
- Carol shared this: “Garage sales, thrift stores, but also sales at bookcloseouts.com and also freebies/ cheapies for kindle. If you get a solar recharger for it, the kindle can be a very portable way to store a lot of books.”
- Gayle is already prepared, “Too funny! This past summer I started accepting the libraries trash books. Classics actually, they said no one reads anymore and were going to throw them in the trash. I figured I’d add them to my stash because frankly I love books. I never thought about entertainment for the apocalypse lol! I am glad my selfish side can now be justified! Thank you!”
- Greg/Teresa said, “Best place is Swap.com- all you pay is the shipping for the media form you are mailing.
Don’t forget books for the kids. Even if your kids are little, go ahead and buy chapter books for reading aloud. I read the Magic Tree House series to my two long before they could read that level of book on their own, and I’m currently reading Robinson Crusoe to my son. Oh, and don’t forget audio books!
Do you have other tips for free/cheap books? And, if you haven’t ‘Liked’ The Survival Mom Facebook page, join in! That’s where you’ll find all kinds of discussions, tips from readers, newsworthy articles, inspiring quotes and a lot more.
© 2012, thesurvivalmom. All rights reserved.
(5) Readers Comments
Leave a Reply
My Story: Surviving a flood and planning for long-term survival
I've never been in a flood before. Where I'm at in the Northwest they'
ACTION STEP: Get thee to the dollar store!
Here's our list 99 ways for a Prepper to Spend a buck at the dollar st
Stealth Spaniel
I am a confessed book-a-holic. Going through swap meets, thrift stores, second hand, or cheap/very cheap at Barnes & Noble is my idea of a great afternoon. Those “trash classics” that no one reads anymore: I have an entire rubbermaid inventory of. How sad that the general populace isn’t schooled on the classics! I have even thought of getting a set of “free, old, Encyclopedia Brittanica” for their knowledge of the past. History is being rewritten as a matter of course. The old books also did not seem to have an agenda, such as left or right politics, or pc thought police. The authors simply told their story. The reset is going to include a giant move back to the truth because the truth is the only thing that stands the test of time.
Just for fun-don’t forget to include some trashy romance, impossible scenario, and crossword puzzle books too! We all may have many long and lonely nights that be made easier by a light heart and silly stuff.
SingleMom
I’ve never understood it, but many people only read a book one time and then give it away. Let your friends, relatives, and neighbors know that you’ll take their unwanted books, and before you know it you’ll be getting them by the bagful.
As far as Goodwill, ours sells kids’ books and paperbacks for 99 cents and adult hardbacks for $1.99. I’ve found full-color nature & hiking guides, herbal medicines and gardening, home repairs, cookbooks, a turn-of-the-century dressmaking guide (including how to make your own patterns, sew winter coats, and darn socks), medical how-to’s, favorites from my childhood, the latest hardbacks by popular authors, and textbooks/educational materials for a variety of ages.
One of the first things I packed in my BOB was a favorite paperback. It’s a duplicate that I sealed with my FoodSaver, because I’m one of those people who NEEDS books to maintain my sanity. A good book can provide comfort, relaxation, inspiration, and they don’t require batteries, electricity, or make any noise!
Sonia
My local Goodwill really has cheap books! They are $1.99 for 3 hardbacks and kids books are .99 for 4. They often have special sales to clear space where they sell all books for 10 cents each! What a deal/steal! I have bought thousands of books there – everything from Little Golden Books for children, hardback vintage Hardy Boys mysteries, gardening, medical textbooks, textbooks for every grade and every subject, encyclopedia sets for children, cookbooks, farming /livestock manuals, and of course, a wide variety of fiction.
Estate sales are another great place to find deals on books – especially the last day, when they often have 50-75% off. At a recent estate sale, I got 3 of the Foxfire books for $1.00 each as well as several gardening / livestock / general farming books. At another sale, I found 36 Organic Gardening magazines from the 80′s for $2.50 for the lot.
Our local library has a Friends of the Library group that holds quarterly books sales – they have books from every genre all priced less than $1.00.
My personal library has several thousand books that will be sanity lifesavers when things go south!
Natalia
I wish I’d seen this post sooner! I have subscribed to your blog for quite a while but am so behind on reading! I wanted to share what I do regarding books–every single morning I spend about 2 hours checking for prepper-type books that are free that day on Kindle. (Non-fiction and fiction). I started doing it just for myself, then started sharing them in the comments on the first prep blog I ever started reading, then thought I’d put them in a blog so people could check every day. Some prepper online friends told me I should start getting it around a bit more as they think it’s such a great resource. Is it okay if I share it here? People reading your blog post are the sort who might like free books that have already been searched out. (As Michelle said, you don’t have to have a Kindle, not only can you read them on your computer but you can get free apps for other devices too.)
I have also got quite a few books cheap at second hand stores–but that’s pretty hit and miss. I do have a little collection, though.
Jessica Ares
Thank you for such wonderful information, I am always looking for ways to grab free books.