About The Author:
Alise is a wife and mother of four living in WV. She love knitting, crochet, music, reading & zombies. She is afraid of killer robots. You can read her writing at Big Mama’s Blog, and can connect with her on Facebook and Twitter.
Our whole family is comprised of avid readers. (Well, I’m guessing about the animals. But the dogs have been known to literally devour a book or two and the cats like to climb in my lap when I’m reading, so I assume that they’re on board with the whole reading thing as well.) And if you read, you know that a book habit can be expensive. And if you’re a family of six, you know that a book habit for six people can be really, stinkin’ expensive.
Which is why I was thrilled a couple of years ago to discover PaperBackSwap.com. A friend referred me there and I was sure that it had to be a total scam. I send my already read books to someone else and I get a credit and that credit is good for any book? Definitely too good to be true.
Incredibly, it is absolutely true! I have exchanged hundreds of books at the site and nearly all have gone without a hitch. There are guidelines that should be followed (no writing or highlighting in books that aren’t textbooks, no liquid damage of any kind, no broken spines), but provided your book is in pretty good condition, you can trade it for something that you haven’t read. Media mail is relatively inexpensive, so each transaction costs you about $3, which is far below retail and often even sale prices for most books. When you join and post your first 10 books, you even receive 2 credits for free! And they have handy printable mailers that you can use to send out your books right from your home.
I originally joined so that I could get rid of some old books and make more space, but honestly, I’ve ended up bringing in many more to replace them! But honestly, it’s absolutely wonderful. Most of the people on the site are incredibly nice and my transactions have primarily been really positive. And don’t let the name fool you — you can swap both paperback and hardbound books. I have received gorgeous, like-new copies of the entire Harry Potter series in hard cover for my family from this site!
I do encourage you to check out the forums there. They have games where you can trade books without using credits (usually themed games with a specific genre in mind, but sometimes books on different topics or even something silly like a title with a specific set of words in it) and the “book bazaar” where people sometimes run deals where you can get more than one book for a credit. I have picked up a lot of children’s books that way (and unloaded a lot of books that my kids no longer read). I love that I’ve been able to put presents together for birthdays and Christmas using used books.
There are other book swapping sites out there, but I have found none to be as well organized or as helpful as PaperBackSwap.com. If you enjoy reading, this site can save you hundreds of dollars in books! If you happen to join, let them know that BigMama sent you!
