DPL Sale: The Aftermath

OK. So that was a poor idea — arriving at the Denver Public Library sale on the first day at the first hour. You would have thought they were giving away free iPods. The crowd lined up around the central library building for the outdoor event. I just bided my time until everyone was inside, entered the darkened tent (appropriate for the circus-like atmosphere) and was immediately appalled by the mass of people inside. People with boxes, with what amounted to shopping carts, with SUV-sized strollers.

The worst, however, were the professionals, those stocking their used book stores. These people carried Palm Pilots with an additional device that they used to scan the barcodes on books. They had downloaded the entire Amazon database, so immediately knew which books were valuable and which were not. Most were at least courteous if annoying by their need to handle every book on the table, though a few were manic, rushing through the crowd — packed tighter than a mosh pit — pulling boxes from under the tables and generally making everyone in their path miserable.

I only lasted an hour before giving up, leaving with only six books. The most interesting score was a 1900 edition of Chinese and Arabian literature. Also picked up a Guide to Middle Earth (never know when that will come in handy), a paperback history of the Denver Post and the city, a poetry book, a botany dictionary, and a 2005 Best of Science and Nature Writing. Total cost: $10 — and my faith in humanity.