There are an abundance of charity shops varying from those that support developing countries and health conditions to ones that provide for pets. Whilst the cause is different, what they all have in common are bargain goods of a good to fair quality and books are probably one of the most popular reasons for buying from charity shops.
Hidden gems if you are prepared to rummage
Visit any charity shop and there will be a corner or a wall dedicated to shelves of books. They probably won't be placed in any particular order; no cataloguing here. But this of course is part of the joy of the search, the search for a book which you would never ordinarily have spotted in a bookshop.
Let's face it: if you go into a bookshop you have a specific title in mind or a particular subject and whilst you may browse a little, you inevitably end up seeking the authors you have known and enjoyed or the books of which you have read a review or had recommended by a friend or programme.
A charity shop gives you a chance to explore its shelves with no particular subject or author in mind. In front of you are titles, some of which you will have heard and others which will be new to you.
Take your time to look
And this is where the enjoyment comes in. Scanning shelves for interesting books means that you can be drawn to a particular cover, author or title that you may not recognise but on reading the blurb, you think that you like the sound of it and at less than a pound, even if it turns out to be the worst book you have ever read, no real loss has been made.
You can introduce yourself to classic authors like Jane Austen or Charles Dickens with an old book club edition, leather-bound for a bargain price. You can buy a reference book on gardening which has been published in the 1970s but has the techniques needed to be successful that the new books contain at a fraction of the price. You could pick up "trashy" fiction that you have always wanted to read—Judith Krantz and Jackie Collins—but have none of the guilt of knowing that you could have spent that £7.99 more productively because you paid only 50p for the two! Or if you prefer something more high-brow, tour the world and its history with Thor Heyerdahl on Kon-Tiki on a budget.
If your taste in literature and reading is eclectic, then a charity shop really is the place to indulge yourself.
Limited editions
What about rare books? Occasionally, you are bound to come across a book which has more value than the price placed on it. This does not mean that you will find extraordinary books which, if sold at auction, would make your fortune but you may discover a book such as an edition of fairy tales with original illustrations that captures your attention and can become an object loved by generations. It is a search like this that produces a bargain which provide the most satisfaction—as well as the knowledge that you have a book which you will enjoy reading.
So don't be put off by the racks and racks of shelves or the cramped corner of the shop at the farthest end. Go and have a mooch and see if you can come away with some literary marvels.
Rachel Deeming - Rachel is a mother of two boys, one 18 months old and the other a busy boy of four. She used to work until recently as an English teacher ...
Join the Conversation