As hell month is winding down many of us are spending more and more time with our textbooks. All those long, lonely hours staring at the pages make us think we’re in a committed relationship with none other than those lovely books. As with most relationships that start with a few passionate nights together, this too shall end.
There is never any easy way to give an “its not you its me” speech and in this case it’s a question of cashing in on the relationship. Selling back textbooks is a nice way to give a send off to a book that you know you’ll never look at again or that reminds you of that terrible class — you know the one. There is something about receiving a large amount of cash at the end of finals week that can lighten up anyone’s day but at the same time there is a tiny voice that knows you might need that book sometime. After spending all that money on it you might as well get the most out of it after all.
Consider the costs and benefits. No you won’t get the same amount of money out of your book as you put into it. You may get sixty percent by selling it to the bookstore or online. If you’re looking at making a deposit on a new apartment or don’t have a summer job lined up that little bit of extra cash can mean the difference between eating pasta and tuna fish salad every night and grilling burgers with friends.
If you honestly know that the book will just sit up on your shelf and never get looked at again then by all means sell it back. There is no need for it to take up space especially if it means someone else can appreciate it in the future.
Books can be nice conversation pieces. There is something about having a large intimidating textbook — I am looking at you, nursing majors taking pathophysiology — to get a slow conversation rolling. As an English major it makes sense for me to keep my books because I love paperbacks and have been known to lend them out and I like to keep my calculus book around as evidence that no I do not fear math, or just in case I feel the need to work some problems.
It is always a hard decision when it comes to parting with textbooks. On the one hand they have come to see a part of you that not everyone gets to see but some can also bring about the worst. Decide if this is one relationship that needs to be broken off as soon as finals are over or if you’ll be able to spend many more sleepless nights together in the future.
