Because I just got raped in the ass at the bookstore. Come on, 2 books= $200. What the fuck? The biology Professor writes the book and every year requires the newest version, so he gets to sell more books, and also means no used books are available. An English Lit. anthology was needed for $80, yet it is just a collection of novels I could have gotten for much less if I was to buy them seperately. Oh, but I guess it was worth the cash, as I did get a special CD with someone reading selected passages from the anthology. Yippee fucking yay.
“Thank you for shopping here…” No no, thank you for shoving that big club up my ass right before you took all my money.
Hah. My university had Text Rental! $125 a year and you get all your textbooks, just return them in nice condition. That wasn’t really a problem for me as I rarely opened them.
That sucks about the biology book. In my experience “New Editions” of these types of text books are often just re-edited versions of the original-perhaps a couple of pictures added or removed, etc. If you can, return the new one and try to get a copy of an older one. If they are not available at the book store you may be able to buy one cheap from someone who took the class last year.
I’d also return the anthology if I were you and just by and or check out from the library the separate novels. The library may even have the anthology. You should be able to keep renewing it unless someone else has it on hold. If that is the case, return it and put it on hold. Then you can buy the novel that you are reading at the time until the library book becomes available again.
You can also try to buy the books online.
Textbooks / assigned books bought at college book stores are a huge rip off.
My philosophy prof. wrote both of the textbooks we’re using. He says he doesn’t get much money from them, since most of the copies are used anyway, but what profits he does make from the sale of the books he puts into a “class entertainment” fund. So we go out and do shit over the course of the year. Fucking awesome, if you ask me.
I never buy books before I go to the first class–that way I get the syllabus and can see which books I can procrastinate buying, check out from the library or just flat out ignore.
Of course, this semester, my class only has a course pack. Life is good.
UW-Stevens Point… that is cool. I am at UW-Green Bay at the moment. I wish all the Wisconsin system schools would adopt that method. As far as the anthology, I had the class today and the professor said that we need the most recent edition of it, because she will be calling out page numbers in class and expects people to be able to follow and read when told to. So they really get you by the short ones.
That’s ridiculous! What, is she going to have someone stand up and read-aloud to the class, too?
My books for enginerding ran ~$80-100/each and I’d average $300+ per quarter. 'course, I couldn’t return any of them because, like you, the “newer” version was always required for the next class and besides, they were good reference material for future work.
Now, I’m not advocating copyright infringement, but if there is a Kinko’s around, an $80, 300 page book can run you $17…you do the math. I only figured that out my last year.
Given the choice between being raped and paying $200 for a couple of books, I’m reasonably confident most rape victims would choose the latter. Perhaps you should choose your metaphors with a little more care.
If I would have said that the bookstore bill really killed me, would I be insensitive to all murder victims? If I said that paying said bill was highway robbery, would I be insensitive to victims of theft and muggings?
Why don’t you find something else to be offended at, because this is just a rant. If you can not tell the difference between sarcastic exaggeration, I suggest you figure out just how to do so.
Actually yeah, she is going to have people stand up and read out loud… This is what I get for missing a requirement and waiting a long time to take care of it. I am stuck in a very basic Lit. class.
As far as copying, the bookstore wraps all books in plastic with their own seal on it, and books can’t be returned with the wrapping taken off. I would have to borrow someone’s book and copy it from them.
I too do not support breaking the law on that one… wink wink.
You know, as snooty as I am about whining, I’ll do this one.
I have five classes. Five. I did the procrastinate book buying thing and bought two of three Ethics books, Thermo, Calc, and 4 of 13 War books, while ignoring my logic class. 8 books. $270.
Now on to the whining. My Thermo book was $130 of that! I swear I’m going to drop out of engineering because its too friggin’ expencive. I may get it back later (I will) from working, but for now I have no money just like the CAS students that can get away with a couple of $7 novels as “textbooks”.
Let’s look at this. As an Engineering student I pay more tuition, do more work, and pay more for books. And people wonder why we growl at English lit majors. Not only can they spell, but they get to read sci-fi as a class for credit for a degree. While most of my crap is in Greek and costs many times more. On the same budget. Even if I had time to party I wouldn’t have the money. /whine.
One of my CAS classes is cool though. Yea the prof wrote one of the books we are using. He’s only putting it in this year becuase its about Pearl Harbor and he wanted to make up for the movie this summer. If we bring him a reciept he’ll pay us back. (We’re already doing cool stuff like a trip to Gettysburg and hopefully flying in a plane.)
