The Big Bad Wolf Sale is a must-go event!

Image source credit to http://www.shoppingnsales.com

If you haven’t been to the Big Bad Wolf book sale yet, I only have this to say:

YOU. HAVE. TO. GO.

Details:
7 – 16 October 2011
10 am – 9pm
MAEPS (Malaysia Agro Exposition Park, Serdang)

I took half-day off yesterday to go to the sale with my husband. I had decided and planned earlier on to go on a weekday for two reasons, firstly because there’ll be less crowd and secondly so that I can leave my children at their babysitter’s house (as though I am at work). On the second point, it would be nice if your children comes along to pick their own books, but honestly it will be quite a challenge to look after them and hunt for books at the same time. Unless they are the type who can sit quietly in a pushchair for hours. Yesterday, there was an announcement looking for the parents of a ‘lost’ boy. I guess it depends on their age as well.

But I digress. For me, this is the best Big Bad Wolf sale ever (I think this is their 4th one) mainly because of the venue they selected. It’s huge and spacious, allowing more room in between tables, therefore I was able to browse more comfortably. The books selection are a lot and varied as well. I’m not sure about this being ‘the biggest book sale in the world’ but it looks like the organizer is serious when they claim to bring in 1.5 million books for us! I stared around the hall and thought, “Where did all these books come from?” (Really, I am quite interested to learn about their business model. BBW is affiliated with BookXcess who claims that their books are cheap because those are ‘overprinted copies’. But how could popular titles have ‘overprinted copies’ as well?)
Image source credit to http://aurinh.wordpress.com
I like that the books are more organized with labels on each table. There are also notes saying ‘Please put back the books where you took it’. A reasonable request, as mixing up the books will inconvenience the next batch of customers. More books are displayed with their cover up, instead of spine up, hence easier to skim through. Customer services are good and they have a ‘check-in’ system so people can park the books they have chosen first before continuing to hunt for more. I hope they will choose this venue again next year because it’s very near to my house. It’s not accessible by public transport, though.

All in all, my husband and I spent RM313 for 39 books. The books we chose vary, from general fiction, fantasy fiction, thriller, motivation, classics, children’s books, general knowledge, and a first time for us – a coffee table book! It’s by National Geographics titled ‘Work’. My best catch is And Thereby Hangs a Tale by Jeffery Archer, who is one of my favourite authors (I especially like his short stories). I found that I feel less inhibited to buy a book because of the low price (most paperbacks is priced at RM8). In fact, I actually chose several books that I know I don’t want to keep. I’ll offer them up for book swap after I’ve finished reading them, as well as make them available for sale. We spent 3 hours instead of the planned 2. And I saw Ain Maisarah, a PTS bestselling author. Yes, ‘I saw’ only – I didn’t go and say hello.

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but when going to a book warehouse sale, don’t bring a list of books in your wishlist. Instead, you’ll just have to see what’s available there.

Now go already! Only 4 days left!