Welcome back to The Never Ending Book Basket’s countdown of The Best 5 ½ Places to Find Books.

(I know you’ve all been anxiously waiting on the edge of your seats for these posts, right?! Sorry for the smidge bit of delay, but it’s been harder to create this countdown than I thought it would be originally. Too many great places to choose from I guess!)

This countdown was created to list and discuss the best possible places that us book addicts can find the books we so need, desire, and have got to have. (Because you gotta know where to get the best of the best!)

Each spot on the countdown has its own post that contains my completely opinionated list of reasons of why that place rocks when it comes to finding books.

In my previous two posts I detailed the #5 spot Target (my own personal hell) and the #4 spots Barnes and Noble and Books-A-Million (the good old standard in finding books).

Up today on the countdown is what I refer to as the miscellaneous grab bag:

Number 3: The Miscellaneous Grab Bag (Yard Sales, Flea Markets, & Goodwill)

The aptly named number 3 spot on the countdown covers not just one, but 3 spectacular places to find books.

(Yay for you!! You get more bang for your buck today!)

Yard sales, flea markets, and the good old Goodwill are three places that offer a wide array of unique items, and sometimes more shit than you can shake a stick at. These are the places for the true diggers of this world because you definitely have to dig, but when you do, I guarantee that you’ll be pleasantly surprised at what you find.

I lumped all three of these places together for a lot of reasons. (And when I say a lot, I mean like 3.)

One, all of these places are not your typical locations that you would think of to go find books. All of these places also sell heavily discounted books because of the nature of the stores themselves. These wonderfully miscellaneous establishments also have a very random and varied book selection within their walls. (Or lack of walls if you find yourself perusing a yard sale or most flea markets)

If you’re sitting here reading this post and wondering how the hell these places beat out the book store for this spot on the countdown, let me explain my madness to you.

Why yard sales, Goodwill, and flea markets are some pretty outstanding places to find books:

• The prices. Money may not buy you happiness, but it can buy you books and that’s pretty close. That’s why finding books at any of these miscellaneous
  

  The truest thing I have ever read…(photo credit: Pinterest)

  places will be so worth your while. The books here are dirt cheap. They range in price from mere pennies to just a few dollars. If that doesn’t make you smile, then I don’t know what will.

• The little tidbits you can’t buy. All of the books you will find at these kinds of places have had previous owners. Now while I tend to not give away my children, I mean books, other people do, and when they do this they tend to leave more than just the book behind. The notes, phrases underlined, and the dedications really make these books something different and add a unique feature that “regular” books don’t have. (I must say I really enjoy reading the dedications people write in these books because it explains why they wanted to gift that particular book, and reading that is really something.)
• The never ending search. So if you’ve ever been to one of these places you know that you better be prepared to dig pretty deep to find something good. But let me tell you that the digging can be well worth it, and it’s half the fun. Digging around in any of these three places is sure to yield some pretty interesting finds as well. (Be prepared to find A LOT of romance novels.)
• You never know what you’re gonna get looking for books here. It can be hit or miss with finding books at any of these places. Books are constantly coming in and out of each one, but the excitement of never knowing what you’re going to find is what makes these places fantastic. And it adds a bit of a thrill.
• The wide array of books. When you go to yard sales, Goodwill, or flea markets you will find a very wide variety of books. All walks of life are represented at these places. Again you never know what you may find, but be assured you will find some pretty interesting books at any of these three places.
• The people you meet along the way. Especially with yard sales and flea markets, the people you meet there are about as fantastic and out there as the books you may find. In my experience they are pretty awesome, and always willing to talk about the fantastic books they are selling to you.
• The one of a kind experience. Let’s face it, part of the appeal of these places is that they aren’t that normal place you go to find books. Each time you go here to find books or whatever you seek, you will definitely have some kind of an experience. Whether that’s good or bad or out of this fucking world, it’s something, and that’s pretty important to remember.

There you have it folks. The number 3 spot on the countdown of The Best 5 ½ Places to Find Books. I’m sure going into this post you didn’t expect that I would be talking about yard sales, flea markets, and Goodwill, but I hope you’re happy with my choice. (But let’s be honest, this is kind of my countdown…)

This miscellaneous grab bag of places to find books is definitely out of the ordinary in a lot of ways, but I shit you not that you’ll find yourself quite surprised about the books you can find at any one of these places. Sure you may have to dig a little harder to find something spectacular, but that’s what makes it all the more worthwhile.

Plus look on the bright side, if you go to any of these three places to find a book you’re more than likely to come out with some other additional amazing treasure. (Or if you’re me, another piece of crap you don’t need, but let’s just keep that between us.)

Until next time book addicts. Stay tuned for more on this spectacularly named and designed countdown. (hah!) I know you’re all dying to know what nabs the top two spots! (And what the hell the ½ thing means!)

Up next on the countdown is the place that continues to actively feed my book addiction. (More so than all the rest!)

Ps. If you have a good, bad, or out of this world experience on finding a book at one of these three places, I’d love to hear from you!