Book Finds at the Antique Mall

I love browsing around antique malls. I don’t always find treasure, but the hunt is the biggest part of the fun. Book stalls are my particular favorite.

During my folks’ visit, the girls, my mother, and I took a trip to a nearby antique mall, housed in what was once a roller skating rink, wood floors and all. We found delightful items around every corner, but Mama and I spent the most time in a stall featuring nothing but carefully organized old books. Oh, joy abounding!

My mother was thrilled to spy a 1921 Zane Grey entitled The Man of the Forest, which she’d never heard of (he’s a favorite of hers), as well as a 1941 edition of Edna Ferber’s Saratoga Trunk.

I was delighted to find a few for the girls and me:

• Passages from the Diary of Samuel Pepys (Modern Library, 1921)
• A Wonder-Book for Boys and Girls, by Nathaniel Hawthorne (1929)
• The Prince and the Pauper, by Mark Twain (Heritage Press’s illustrated and boxed edition, 1964)
• Life in the Castle in Medieval England, by John Burke (British Heritage Press, 1978)

The most I paid was $4.00, which was for the Twain. Talk about a win/win situation!

Many homeschooling parents carry lists of books they're looking for, so as to always be at the ready; but I prefer to give serendipity free rein. Besides, if I focus on searching for certain titles, I may overlook a particular gem. With so many book selections in the public domain and available online, I can afford to be cavalier and simply enjoy myself in book stalls.

And you? Do you enjoy spending time amid the dusty stacks of used books? Have you ever experienced that particular delight of finding unexpected literary treasure?