# I pit used book sharks **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 30, 2021, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692 "2021-09-30T21:11:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/102 "2021-10-03T01:56:46Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Wait…if the authors don’t make any money from the secondary market, then how the hell are the resellers helping them either? Aren’t they buying the books on the secondary market too, not to mention making more money off of said books themselves. > > Talk about a really shitty justification. I _think_ he means that when hobbyists are shut out of the secondary market, they are forced to buy their books on the primary market which DOES result in a payday for the author (note to **HMS\_Irruncible** : if I didn’t get your meaning right, I’d greatly appreciate you making another attempt at clarification). If I’m right, the disconnect for me is because my understanding of the “book sharks” described in the OP leads me to suspect that they’re not interested in buying up titles that are still in print (and therefore actually EXIST on the primary market). ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/103 "2021-10-03T02:18:55Z")
> [@bump](#): > > As far as the toys go, having been a child who was into certain toys at one point, it would have been extraordinarily frustrating to me, had some _grown man_ swooped into Toys R’Us when I was in school and bought all the good stuff for himself. I mean, I had limited wherewithal and limited transportation, I don’t know when you were a school kid, but when I was, it was even more limiting, because Toys “R” Us required anyone under sixteen to be accompanied by an adult to enter the store. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/104 "2021-10-03T02:25:25Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > This is a function and advantage of a capitalist system in efficiency and ruthlessness of distributing goods. There are products for sale, and people wanting to buy them, but there is also a need to connect these 2 together. Exactly. Arbitrage is the Grease of the Capitalist Machine. Yeah, that book in Oklahoma City might be the biggest Hard-on for someone in San Diego. I got no problem with it. Anybody want a running RZ350? ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/105 "2021-10-03T02:34:18Z")
> [@gdave](#): > > And one of my points was that providing cheap goods to people with limited means without trying to maximize profits is actually one of the functions of a thrift store. It must be different where I live. In my experience, there are three kinds of “thrift store”: The first is run by a strictly local charity, with volunteers and gets donations that they re-sell in a church or inexpensive storefront. All proceeds to to the good works that they support. They sell to whoever wants to come in and pay the prices that they have set. The second is a charity that collects needed things that low income families need. They want mainly things like furniture, clothing, especially for children, and things that a single mother might need, or a woman leaving a violent relationship. Things for people on the street are often needed too. Note that the first example above may ALSO run this type of charity - but they collect needed things for low income people, and don’t run their stores for them alone. The third is larger “charities” that collect free stuff and resell it, with a portion of the proceeds to charity, and a large chunk to the board members and CEO’s who run the place. They also don’t care who buys their stuff, but they are much more careful to sift the good stuff out and get the most profit for it. Bottom line - thrift stores in my area are most decidedly NOT like stores for low income people to go to for good deals. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/106 "2021-10-03T02:56:33Z")
> [@Bonum\_Legatum](#): > > But there is an important difference: The person who has put in the time and effort to recognize “gems in the mud” is likely to also have an appreciation for why certain items are more valuable than others. They learn the story behind the object and have a deeper appreciation of what it means. Ask anyone who has developed an “eye” for antiques versus someone who just says “Ooo, this looks old. I’d better grab it.” In the above, the key phrase is “why certain items are more valuable than others.” And that is an important difference. As I mentioned above, I collect rare books, and the difference between a first edition of Ian Fleming’s _Goldfinger_ and a first edition of Peter O’Donnell’s _Modesty Blaise_ is vast. Both are British spy thrillers, both were published in the 1960s, and both were based on established characters. So they should be about the same, right? Wrong. Among collectors, there is demand for _Goldfinger_; there is little demand for _Modesty Blaise_. Oh, sure, a first edition of _Modesty_ will cost in the hundreds, but a first edition of _Goldfinger_ will cost in the thousands. But demand is not the only answer–there’s also condition, dust jackets, number of copies published, “quirks” (such as the crease in the skull on _Goldfinger_’s hardback cover, but not the dust jacket), and so on. Authenticators and appraisers help a lot here. The ignorant reseller who thinks he or she can buy _Modesty_ at a decent price, and flip it for the price of _Goldfinger_, mainly because they’re both British spy novels and published at roughly the same time, doesn’t know _why_ Goldfinger is more valuable, nor why _Modesty_ will ever command the same price as _Goldfinger_. “Ooh, this looks old; I’d better grab it,” describes these people perfectly. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/107 "2021-10-03T04:07:21Z")
> [@gdave](#): > > But the other purpose of a thrift store is to provide an opportunity for people with limited financial means to acquire goods they otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford. It’s here that I think the resellers are problematic. This would have some validity if this were remotely like how the used book market worked. The supply of used books _vastly_ exceeds the demand and, as a result, the median value of a used book is zero. The types of books most likely to appeal to a poor family are of the least interest to a reseller. The 3 year old John Grisham and the 83rd printing of Twilight have no value on the resale market because millions of copies of them were printed and now only a few people are interested in buying a used copy. The books resellers are picking tend to be obscure, specialist and of niche value. > [@bump](#): > > Neckbeards going in to poach the collectible stuff at _TOY STORES_ right as they open just means that kids aren’t going to get to play with those toys, just some dickhead manchild who needs a job and a life who’s going to sell them or collect them. If toy companies wanted children to play with those toys, they would have just made more of them. They’re collectible precisely because toy companies make them in limited quantities as things not intended to be played with. Collectible toys are not intrinsically more fun to play with than non-collectibles. Unless a kid happens to particularly care about how rare the toy they’re playing with is, they have a bajillion other choices of toys that are going to deliver them much more fun to play with at a much more affordable price. > [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > I’m thinking that part of the angst against the scanning book buyers is that they really don’t have the first fucking clue about books, or any appreciation for what they are looking at. They just mindlessly scan, scan, scan, looking for a gold nugget amongst the chaff, not even knowing what a gold nugget looks like - just relying on a bit of technology. That’s like feeling sad that the truck driver shipping a pallet of mountain bikes doesn’t have a deep appreciation of the beauty of the great outdoors. The person buying the book from the reseller is going to have a deep appreciation for the book, as evidenced by them going on the internet and making a special order. The reseller is just a laborer in the supply chain in charge of getting that book to the ultimate buyer, to them it might just as well be cabbages or diamonds or coal. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/108 "2021-10-03T04:12:32Z")
I happen to agree with you. I was just looking for an explanation of the angst. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/109 "2021-10-03T05:35:19Z")
Twice, I have sold a book to its own author, and in one case, it was a nonfiction book that was a decent best-seller when it came out, and AFAIK is still in print. My guess is that she knew someone who wanted a signed copy, and she didn’t have a near-new copy handy. ---
**Author:** ![Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundane_super_hero/32/6304_2.png) [@Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mundane_Super_Hero)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2021, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/110 "2021-10-03T21:21:35Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > My guess is that she knew someone who wanted a signed copy, and she didn’t have a near-new copy handy. You make me actually Want to be an author… ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/111 "2021-10-04T01:00:48Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > > [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > > > I still don’t get the bit about the wardrobe. > > If you’re referring to: > > > [@drad\_dog](#): > > > > He caught me with a little wardrobe problem and was ordering at me thru the mask like he worked there. He wanted me to get out of the way. I straightened up and said “OK Cool” He says "Welcome to (Name of City). > > Here’s a guess: he was bent all the way over, blocking the aisle, looking at books on a low shelf, with his plumber’s crack showing. Shark pointed it out while telling him to move. Then you’d have to explain what “ordering at me thru the mask like he worked there.” is supposed to mean. He’s upset that the person is speaking with a mask on while also bitching about him “pawing over” everything? Did he want this person to take his mask off when talking to him? Really his whole OP makes very little sense. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/112 "2021-10-04T02:00:25Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > Then you’d have to explain what “ordering at me thru the mask like he worked there.” is supposed to mean. I think the shark told him to pull up his pants and stop blocking the aisle. > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > Really his whole OP makes very little sense. Agreed! There are blanks just begging to be filled in. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/113 "2021-10-04T02:10:21Z")
Brought to you by the SDMB: _BBQ Pit Mad Libs_ (“Mad Libs” could also describe a great number of posters too.) ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/114 "2021-10-04T03:37:19Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > I’m going to start watching these pricks closer. And do what? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/115 "2021-10-04T03:44:32Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Brought to you by the SDMB: _BBQ Pit Mad Libs_ Modified from the OP: They have a \_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_ that \_\_\_\_\_\_ with their \_\_\_\_\_\_ to place \_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_\_ on \_\_\_\_\_\_. They hang around in \_\_\_\_\_\_ stores and \_\_\_\_\_\_ anything that fits their \_\_\_\_\_\_ \_\_\_\_\_\_. Trying to \_\_\_\_\_\_ a \_\_\_\_\_\_ it seems. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/116 "2021-10-04T15:57:11Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > This whole thread is about thrift stores and churches both of which are based on donations. I am not talking about bookstores. There are for-profit thrift stores and there are the ones run by bona fide charities, nonprofits, churches, etc. See also [#105](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/105) ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundane_super_hero/32/6304_2.png) [@Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mundane_Super_Hero)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/117 "2021-10-04T16:06:46Z")
Holy Shit, That’s Tempting!!! ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/118 "2021-10-04T16:07:57Z")
Do thrift stores rotate their stock of books or do the books just stay on the shelf until they are sold? Typically, the books seem like just a bunch of junky books. I could imagine many of them staying on the shelves until the store closed. A book like “Master Microsoft 98 Today!” may never find a buyer. Does the thrift store treat the books on the shelves as a temporary stop before the dumpster, or are they more like a “no kill shelter” where the books can live out their lives on the shelves no matter how long that takes? With the amount of books that get donated, it seems like a thrift store is either going to have to trash donated books or books that are already on the shelves. One benefit to the sharks is that they cull the books on the shelves, which should enable more books to be put on the shelves in their place. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/119 "2021-10-04T16:30:14Z")
I believe after thirty days or so the books get dumpster. Most of them are not worth the effort to recycle them. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/120 "2021-10-04T17:13:53Z")
Book Sharks are conceivably providing positive economic impact by taking a book that may not sell at a Peoria Thrift Shop, and moving it to a more robust sales channel, with thousands of potential customers. Scalpers are not. Neckbeards buying up toys and pokemon cards to sell online are not. They are not moving product from a limited sales channel to a channel with more customers, they’re moving product from a robust sales channel everyone can use to a sales channel only the rich can use. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2021, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692/121 "2021-10-04T23:24:16Z")
It depends on the store, and the books. This whole rotating-stock thing also applies to furniture, clothing, knick-knacks, jewelry, household supplies, seasonal items, and pretty much anything else they may stock. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-used-book-sharks/951692.md?page=7)