A Walla Walla book sale that started as a novel event and grew into an epic February fundraiser returns to the Marcus Whitman Hotel this month.
The American Association of University Women-Walla Walla invites book lovers to its 61st annual AAUW Book Sale. Slated for Feb. 20-22, the three-day tradition fills the hotel’s ballroom with tens of thousands of gently used titles in dozens of categories.
About 1,700 boxes of paperback and hardback books, collected at community drop-off sites throughout the year, fill every square inch of table space — and the floors under the tables — with titles that largely range from $3 to $4 each. For budget-minded bibliophiles: Sunday’s Discount Day allows participants to pay a flat rate for a filled bag.
More than just a promotion of literacy, the sale is a massive scholarship fundraiser that helps support local women returning to college, trade school scholarships and educational projects and events.
“We love the idea that people are getting reasonably priced books, but our purpose is for scholarships,” book sale co-chair Kay Raddatz says.
Raddatz and co-chair Kathy Jones lead the event, starting with the regular collection of donated books from six locations spanning Walla Walla, College Place, Touchet and Milton-Freewater. They’re sorted and stored by category.
The ballroom converts into a labyrinth of tables organized by categories that include true crime, classics, young adult, children’s, science fiction, sports, cooking, crafts, biographies, teaching tools, history, self-help, humor, art, large-print, religion, fiction, collectibles and much more.
Informed by six decades of sales data, AAUW members work to carry in-demand titles that will satisfy readers and help raise the most funds. Hardback books typically date back just five or six years, while paperbacks may be a decade old. The works of about 60 authors such as James Patterson and David Baldacci are considered timeless and are carried regardless of when they were published.
“The idea is that the category managers really try to have the best books they can,” Raddatz says. “That’s ideal for us because then we don’t have to bring any back at the end.”
In addition to books, the event offers selections of CDs, DVDs, sheet music and audio titles.
The sale comes together with help from an army of volunteers, Raddatz says. Books are transported and set up the night before the sale starts with help from Walla Walla Community College students.
An additional crew of about 30 students from respective Latino Clubs at Walla Walla and College Place high schools help set up tables and load books onto them. About 25 AAUW members staff the event, running checkout stations and directing guests through the experience.
The event dates to 1964, when it was first offered as a book fair in downtown Walla Walla. Back then, sales largely supported national-level fellowships. But the focus changed to local scholarships and community projects in the 1970s as the sale evolved and grew.
Whether you’re building your own library collection or looking for a gift, there’s something for every reader at the AAUW Book Sale!
- What: 61st annual AAUW Book Sale
- When: 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Feb. 20-21 and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 22
- Where: Marcus Whitman Hotel ballroom