Paul Szmal: Good morning, it's 7.50 FM, we have a routine down when we have the Friends, find me a quarter, the foundation for the Geneva Public Library book sale. We do one interview to kind of set the stage and solicit books, and then we do another one when it's almost time. This is the Almost Time One, Spike Herzig and Deb Brewer here, good morning.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: Good morning to you.
Paul Szmal: So tell us about the sale, beginning the 19th.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: Yes, this coming Thursday it starts with a bang. And we've got lots of books, sale goes right on through the 27th, we've got discounted days as we go through the sale. Come on down, we've got some great books, great donations, we all appreciate that. And I always say, one of my favorite parts of the sale is at the low price you can take a chance. If you're not sure if you're going to like a book, I don't know what hardcover books are now, probably $35 or something, I mean in retail, but it's a chance to try a few different things out.
Paul Szmal: Yes, absolutely. I agree, that's what I've done, and I've come up with some brand new authors that I look for now.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: You're like, what have you gotten turned on to?
Paul Szmal: Well, it's all fiction, yeah, that's all.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: See, it's funny that you say that, because I have not been a fiction reader very much in my life, but over the last year or so, I've started to, and I'm kicking myself at what I missed. I got this book, and it's like, wow, that's good, I got another one, boy, that's good. So, it's a great chance, and most importantly of all, it's books that don't have to be carried back to where they came from. As the husband of a librarian, that's the big part.
Paul Szmal: So explain to us how the deals get better as we go along.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: Well, the first couple, three days, those are full price days, that's September 19-21, and the hardcover and the trade are two, mass paperbacks are five for a dollar, which still is a deal.
Paul Szmal: Wow.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: The audio, any of our audio are puzzles, they're 50 cents, and the kids and the young adult books are 25 cents.
Then we have what we call discount days, and that's 23rd through the 24th of September. So we bring everything down, hardcover, trade, or dollar, the mass paperbacks are now two for 25, holy cow. The audio is 25, kids and young adult are two for 25, puzzles, two for 25, and we've got a new thing going during those days. Buy five items, anything, buy five items and we'll give you something free. So come on in, that alone is a great deal.
And the last three days of the sale, the 25th through the 27th, is bake sales. We have $5 bake sale, $2 bake sale, and a $1 bake sale. And you know, you were talking about the young kids books and things, you know, parents now are challenged when it's time to go back to school. I made the joke, when I got back to school, we got a pencil and a pair of jeans, and now you go to Walmart and there's this giant list, and you know, Trapper Keeper, and graphing computers, and you wind up $300 later. So here's a chance, if you've got a family, to get everybody what they like to read, or the puzzles, or the video, at a really reasonable price.
Paul Szmal: That's one way of looking at it. The other way, as an ex-teacher, as a retired teacher, this is a great time. If you're a new teacher and you're trying to get books in your room, it's a great way to start your library. And I invite any of the new teachers, old teachers for that matter, to come in and you'll find some great titles for the kids.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: That's a great idea.
Paul Szmal: Now Spike, I always like to ask you about the role of the foundation. The library is taxpayer-supported. Taxpayers hate paying taxes, so it puts you in a little bit of a bind, and that's where the foundation steps in to help fill the gap.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: Yes, and all the funds that we get, we have two book sales a year and a number of other promotions, and all of those funds go back into the Foundation Kitty, and that is shared directly, penny for penny, dollar for dollar, with the library. So we bought everything from rugs and carpets in the children's room, to technology. Technology always is the big one, because that changes annually, or semi-annually, I guess, because of the different types and the progressions that are made. So we've got all kinds of good things to spend our money in, and we take this money in so that we have a chance to get it back out to the community.
Paul Szmal: And of course the library faced a serious challenge with all the flooding that hit, and they had to do a whole bunch of renovation and tear out stuff, and it was a tough time for them. And people really, if they haven't yet, need to come to the community room and just see what has been done, because it's a brand new room, and it's just delightful, and the people really enjoy it.
If you go to GenevaPublicLibrary.net, that's the library site, when you click events you'll see Fall Book Sale, it's got the poster there, Foundation for the Geneva Public Library Fall Book Sale, September 19th through 27th. And again, when we talk about full price, two bucks for a hardcover book, and paperbacks five for a dollar, I mean, you can't go wrong. And then if you like to do a little gambling, you can wait until late and hope your favorite book is still there, and stuff it in a five dollar, two dollar, or one dollar bag.
Thanks you both for what you do, I know you work hard, and a lot of other volunteers do as well, and we wish you great success with this sale, and we'll look forward to the next one in the spring.
Spike Brewer, Deb Herzig: Thank you.
Paul Szmal: Thank you. Thanks for the visit.
