Dear Members,

On September 1, 2014, PaperBackSwap quietly turned 10. Ten years old!  Some of you remember the earliest days, without Forums or Personal Messages or even a Help Center; we have added so many features since our launch that it's a little bewildering to think back to the "olden days" - how did swapping work back then? It did work, though, because of a small dedicated circle of swappers, many of whom are still swapping to this day. The club spread by word of mouth and book by book, and today the PaperBackSwap group of booklovers has spread into every state of the union as well as to military locations and US territories, and the features we've added along the way have helped to keep swapping easy and fun.

Almost every change we've made in the last ten years originated with the membership - either it was suggested by a member (or suggested by more than one), or it was designed by us to solve a problem that we'd noticed members were having, or to answer a need that we thought members would appreciate.  So in a way, every bit of the club was built by our members - it's been a long group effort, and while we're always striving for better, we're very happy with where we are now!

In our ten years, we've become the largest book club in the world! It's a feat that every member can be proud of, here at PaperBackSwap.

And in those ten years, the club has swapped almost 17 million books successfully - a number that truly boggles the mind. To imagine what 17 million books looks like: if we presume an average book thickness of 2 inches, we could stack the books into a tower over 530 miles tall - a stack so tall that it would go higher than NINETY-FIVE Mt. Everests with THIRTY Washington Monuments on top.

In other words - that's a lot of books!  And a lot of reading, a lot of sharing, a lot of joy. We're very proud of the club of 2014, and we're glad you are part of it too!

All the best,

Richard and
The PaperBackSwap Team


Amazon Showcase Book

By popular demand, we're showcasing a "hot" Wishlisted book that is not currently available in our Market, but which is available right now in NEW condition at a substantial savings off retail. Use any of the Showcase links below to go to Amazon, and your purchase (of anything) there will help support PaperBackSwap!

 

The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace by Jeff Hobbs
When author Jeff Hobbs arrived at Yale University, he became fast friends with the man who would be his college roommate for four years, Robert Peace. Robert’s life was rough from the beginning in the crime-ridden streets of Newark in the 1980s, with his father in jail and his mother earning less than $15,000 a year. But Robert was a brilliant student, and it was supposed to get easier when he was accepted to Yale, where he studied molecular biochemistry and biophysics. But it didn’t get easier. Robert carried with him the difficult dual nature of his existence, “fronting” in Yale, and at home.. ...read more
Buy at Amazon


Used Books Currently Available for Swapping

Order these books for credits; repost them when you're done reading and get the credit back!

 

Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult  A compelling and disturbing novel about a prep school teacher accused of rape by a group of young girls, the woman who stands by him, and the repercussions of the case in a small, New England town where the past is only a heartbeat away. ...read more
Browse currently-available Contemporary Fiction

 

Mr Perfect by Linda Howard What would make the perfect man? — That's the deliciously racy topic that Jaine Bright and her three girlfriends are pondering one night at their favorite after-hours hot spot. They concoct a tongue-in-cheek checklist that becomes an overnight sensation, spreading like wildfire at work and sizzling along e-mail lines. But what began as a joke among friends turns deadly serious when one of them is murdered ...read more
Browse more currently-available books in Romantic Suspense

 

The Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks  When an infected bolt of cloth carries plague from London to an isolated village, a housemaid named Anna Frith emerges as an unlikely heroine and healer. Through Anna's eyes we follow the story of the fateful year of 1666... read more
Browse currently-available books in Historical Fiction

 

Taken by Robert Crais, Luke Daniels (Narrator). Unabridged Audio CD. When the police tell a wealthy industrialist that her missing son has faked his own kidnapping, she hires Elvis Cole and Joe Pike -- and Cole soon determines that it was no fake. The boy and his secret girlfriend have been taken, and are now lost in the gray and changing world of the professional border kidnappers...read more.
Browse more currently-available audio books

 

Having Our Say: The Delaney Sisters' First 100 Years  by Amy Hill Hearth, A. Elizabeth Delany, Sarah L. Delany  Warm, feisty, and intelligent, the Delany sisters speak their mind in a book that is at once a vital historical record and a moving portrait of two remarkable women who continued to love, laugh, and embrace life after over a hundred years of living side by side... read more
Browse currently-available Memoirs


Market Spotlight Books

In the PBS Market, available new at bargain prices!

 

My Notorious Life: a Novel  by Kate Manning This sweeping, evocative, and absolutely unforgettable novel about the charismatic and passionate Axie Muldoon who changed the lives of countless women was inspired by a real midwife who became one of the most controversial figures in Victorian New York City...read more

Retail Price: $26.99
In the PBS Market (Hardcover): $2.29+1 credit (save 91%) or $6.19 (save 77%)

Browse Historical Fiction currently available in the Market

 

Knitting Beyond the Edge by Nicky Epstein In this third entry in her bestselling series, Epstein shares more than 150 one-of-a-kind adornments for cuffs, collars, angles, corners, and necklines—embellishments for any type of garment edging ...read more

Retail Price: $29.95
In the PBS Market (Hardcover): $5.59+1 credit (save 81%) or $9.49 (save 68%)
 

I Forgot to Remember  by Su Meck the courageous memoir of a woman robbed of all her memories by a traumatic brain injury -- and her more than twenty-five-year struggle to reclaim her life. At twenty-two years old, Su Meck was married with two children in 1988... read more.

Retail Price: $25.00
In the PBS Market (Hardcover): $2.79+1 credit (save 88%) or $6.69 (save 73%)

Browse Memoirs currently available in the Market

 

Hell Above Earth: The Incredible True Story of an American WWII Bomber Commander and the Co-Pilot Ordered to Kill Him by Stephen Frater  Hell Above Earth tells an unforgettable story of two World War II American bomber pilots who forged an unexpected but enduring bond in the flak-filled skies over Nazi Germany. But there's a twist: one of them was related to the head of the Luftwaffe .... read more

Retail Price: $25.99
In the PBS Market (Hardcover): $2.29+1 credit (save 91%) or $6.19 (save 76%)
Browse History currently available in the Market
 

The Mammoth Book of Ghost Romance  This big book of 18 fun, fresh stories from some of today's bestselling romance writers, including Gwyn Cready, Julia London, Liz Maverick, Dru Pagliassotti, and Caridad Pineiro, offers the perfect mix of ghostly stories, from spooky to funny to wistful....... read more

Retail Price: $13.95
In the PBS Market (Paperback): $2.29+1 credit (save 83%) or $6.19 (save 55%)
Browse Paranormal Romance books currently available in the Market
 
 

The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes The Time Traveler's Wife meets The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo in this story of a time-traveling serial killer who is impossible to trace--until one of his victims survives.... read more

Retail Price: $26.00
in the PBS Market (Hardcover): $2.29+1 credit (save 91%) or $6.19 (save 76%)
Browse currently-available Thrillers in the Market

 

The Comfort of Lies by Randy Susan Meyers  Five years ago Tia fell into obsessive love. The only problem -- Nathan was married and the father of two boys. When she became pregnant, he disappeared, and she gave up her baby for adoption. Now, she's trying to connect with her lost daughter...read more

Retail Price: $25.00
in the PBS Market (Hardcover): $2.29+1 credit (save 90%) or $6.19 (save 75%)
Browse currently-available Contemporary Fiction in the Market


NEWS

Savings are just a click away...National Brands Coupons offers you hundreds of printable manufacturer's coupons every week, as well as links to coupon codes, discount gifts, and other money-saving opportunities. It's free to print out coupons for products you already buy.  Using National Brands Coupons helps to support the club, while saving you money!

So many members have asked us how to donate to Books for Schools  (our annual program that turns donated Book Credits and PBS Money into free new books for needy elementary schools) "off-season" that we created the BooksForSchoolsCredits account. You can donate Book Credits there anytime, and when the next program starts the collected credits will be divided among the participating schools. Read more details about Books for Schools, including how to suggest a school for participation, here.

School Book Sales.com is helping educators to obtain classroom books at the lowest possible cost. Because of our relationship with vendors (established by new-book purchases for the PaperBackSwap Market) we are able to take advantage of bulk discount book purchases. Membership is free, and checkout options include school purchase orders as well as debit/credit and PayPal. Spread the word to any teachers/homeschoolers you know!

Thanks to authors...  We've received a variety of books from you, some of which we will be reviewing in the blog soon. Are you an author and do you have a book you'd like us to promote? To submit your book for consideration, we'll need a copy or two of the book mailed to the PBS offices.  For more details, please contact us and we'll give you the skinny!



PBS Local Chapter News

New Chapters/Chapter Leaders:

  • Sara S.  -  sarabelleie  - "Inland Empire Readers" - Inland Empire, CA

Upcoming Local Chapter Meetups:

The Triangle/NC Chapter is looking for a new Chapter leader! Anyone in the area interested?  Respond to Alana in the forum topic , to take the helm of this lively group!

The DVM Chapter  (DC, Virginia, MD)  is hopping with meetups and Games! If you want to get in on the action, see the forum topic or contact Laura (caddieseamus) or Susan P (sneyers11).

The North Texas Chapter  will be meeting Sunday, October 5 to discuss Diner Girl  by Neil Gaiman. Check out the group's facebook page! The 2014 schedule is in the Chapter topic; contact Shellie (aylamonster) for more information. 

The Laveen Arizona Chapter  is next meeting on November 1st to discuss The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. For more details, please see the Chapter topic -also check out their facebook page! Contact lisaparks for location and more information.

The Charlotte, NC Metro Area Chapter has been meeting for six and a half years! They meet monthly, usually the first Monday of every month. No need to have read the book to participate! Contact Kimberly (KimberlyN) for details, and to get on their e-vite list.

We'd love to share your Chapter news - if you have some, please submit it to us

If you want to be a Local Chapter Leader for PBS, you just need to have a PBS Nickname, a viewable public profile, and enthusiasm!  Check the Local Chapter Leaders Forum List of Official Chapters to see if your area already has a local Chapter.  If not, and you want to do this, just contact us.  There are no formal guidelines for being a Chapter Leader.  All of the information is in the Local Chapter Leader Discussion Forum topic.    If you are an official Chapter Leader and want us to include your upcoming meetup in the Newsletter, send in a message to us with the date, at least a week before the end of the preceding month.


MEMBER OF THE MONTH

Wendy H. (donkeycheese)

Wendy has belonged to the club since our second year of existence - it's fitting that she is MoM for our tenth anniversary.  She has swapped several thousand books in that time, and she has a terrific swapping record. As a Tour Guide Leader and a Games Mod, she helps other club members every day. We've always wondered about her nickname - but we're kind of afraid to ask!

"She's always been very helpful anytime I have any questions with being a Tour Guide or a Games Moderator."

"You couldn't find a nicer person than Wendy."

Wendy, you go with PaperBackSwap like a donkey goes with cheese - wait, what? Anyway, you are Member of the Month for September.  Congratulations!

If you have any nominations for Member of the Month, submit them to us hereYour nomination will not "expire"--anyone you nominate will have a chance at getting Member of the Month if enough nominations accumulate over time. Each month the person who has the most votes accumulated when the Newsletter goes to press gets to be Member of the Month and gets a newsletter mention and a nifty MoM icon to wear on profile and forum posts with pride.  So go for it! Tell us who's helped you in the Forums, who's been a great swapper, who in your opinion is a credit to PBS.  We are keeping a list of all the nominated members.  Who knows--one of them might be YOU!

DEAR LIBRARIAN

Dear Librarian - I mailed a book to the address on the wrapper, and it was returned to me! What do I do?  -- Boomeranged in Billings

Dear Billie,

We hate when that happens! It's not common, but a book can be returned for a number of reasons. The first step here is to look at the USPS marking on the package for clues. They usually mark a reason for the return. That's just the first step, though. The second step is to send a message to the requestor, letting her know this happened, and asking her to confirm her current mailing address. While you are waiting for her to respond, you can read the info in our Help Center, which explains that returns can occur because of

  1.  sender error - like miscopied or illegible address; inadequate postage; using Priority Mail materials with Media Mail postage  (that's actually not legal!)
  2.  requestor error - for example, if the requestor does not update her mailing address in her account settings before submitting a request
  3. USPS error - USPS is really superb at mail handling overall, but mistakes do happen

If the requestor did not update her address, she is considered liable for the mailing (it's in our Terms of Use that mailing address must be kept updated in the account settings, since Media Mail is not routinely forwarded). So she does have to give a credit for the book that was mailed in good faith (= she needs to mark it received), and she can give you her new address and send you postage (by snail mail or PayPal) for the remailing, if she still wants the book. In the case of USPS error, the returned package can be sent "under cover" back to the other member's PO for no additional postage.

The good news is that this doesn't happen often - and it will happen even less if members are good about keeping their mailing addresses updated in their account settings. This is especially important for members who use Auto-Request on the Wish List, since there isn't a chance to change the address before accepting the Wish List offer - with auto-request, the address in the account settings is the one that is used for the request!


 The Last Word:

  • Are you REALLY not reading the Blog? You don't want to miss out on Free Book Friday book giveaways, author interviews, awesome book reviews and giveaways, and so much more! 
  • As always, don't forget to start your Amazon shopping from the link at the top of the PBS site - when you do this, a small percentage of your purchase amount comes to us.  So whenever (and whatever) you plan to purchase on Amazon, start from the Amazon link at the top of the PBS site. It's an easy, free way to support the club!