Bargain hunting at Sortfloorbooks.com

If you are looking for children's books at reasonable prices, check out Sortfloorbooks.com.  I just tried my first order there last night -- in total, I purchased six books for $20 ($12 + 8 shipping), which works out to $3.33 per book.  

The search is a little clumsy, but I was able to search popular authors (Karen Katz, Eric Hill, Ezra Jack Keats, Seuss, etc.) pretty easily.  We purchased I Spy books, two Max and Ruby books by Rosemary Wells, a Karen Katz lift the flap and a copy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  Books may be marked used, and may have shelf wear.  I will let you know how it goes!

I love Amazon, but this may be a worthwhile alternative.

Curious George - Kohl's Cares for Kids

I just learned that the Kohl's Cares for Kids program is now featuring Curious George books and plush animals. We love Curious George. Kohl's sells the books and toys for $5 each -- a nice affordable price, and donates the net profits to support children's health and education.

The available book titles are:
   -- Merry Christmas, Curious George
   -- Curious George and the Firefighters
   -- Curious George at the Aquarium
   -- Curious George Feeds the Animals

The plush animals are Curious George, a dalmatian, a penguin and (I think) a hippopotamus. You can see the items here.   Knowing how popular Curious George is, these may sell quickly. The items are available now through December.

Here's an article in our Business Journal about the campaign.

I love resale shopping for children's books!

I love getting good deals on children's books, and one of my favorite ways to save money on books is buying them used at resale. Yesterday my husband took the boys to the public museum and I ran errands, which included a great shopping trip at a children's resale shop that is blessed with a large inventory of books. The books are very reasonably priced ranging from $0.50 to about $4.00. I can't resist a children's book for $1.50 and came home yesterday with a total of 20 new books for the boys for about $30 and feeling extremely satisfied.

Time flies in the store while I am browsing the books -- I try to read or at least skim most of the book to get a sense if it's a good fit for our family.  I could easily spend an hour sitting on the floor of the store with a stack of potential purchases, but that time is enjoyable and worth it to me.

Even if none of these 20 books become all-time favorites, I know we'll have some very good reads. I highly recommend searching out resale shops and events in your area. (Pretty soon a nearby community hosts a GIGANTIC family resale that draws many sellers and 100s of buyers -- it's wonderful (although I may be too pregnant at that time to attend or enjoy it.)) I love buying gently used kids' clothes at resale too, so it's a double benefit of shopping.

As much as I would like to be a frequent library user, I often find resale more attractive because I like owning the books, we can keep them, they can get misplaced without incurring fines, and I'm not worried about wear and tear. I also think resale is great for selling off some of our family's belongings when things get a little too crowded, even our bookshelves.

It's fairly easy to find great titles at resale -- especially popular series like Curious George, Dr. Seuss and various reading level books.  I've been lucky to find many interesting and some truly wonderful children's books while resale shopping, and a favorite book is even more fun when it only cost a few dollars. 

This morning I pulled out all 20 new books and it was like Christmas for the boys. We had some wonderful reading time together.