The ThriftBooks Blog

By Melina Lynne • November 13, 2015

We are fast approaching the holiday season, and while we dig through our attics, garages, and closets in search of our holiday decorations, we are also thinking about those big family meals. Maybe you have a tried and true recipe you go to every year, or maybe you are still in search of a knock-down, drag-out, fantastic dish that will go down in family history.

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By Hugo Munday • November 02, 2015

The latest in the James Bond movie franchise is released this month and I'll go. It's not a book by Ian Fleming, most of the ideals of the movie are outdated and corny, but out of allegiance to my childhood, I'll go.

This week you can use the code ASTON at Thrift Books to get a 15% discount on books in the Spy Stories and Tales of Intrigue genre, so that got me digging up a lot that wasn't related to James Bond. Much of it would make, or even has made, block-buster movie scripts and so it follows that we have some good books too. Starting with the interesting and working up to mind-blowing...

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By Melina Lynne • October 26, 2015

Vampires, werewolves, monsters, zombies, wizards, witches, and all things that go bump in the night. These topics used to be relegated to fiction pulled out in the fall to get us geared up for Halloween, but now have their own presence in the literary world. So how did they make the leap from October reading material to year-round "go to" reads? I have three words for you: teen paranormal fiction, and I’m not just talking about books, or in our case, used books like Twilight and Harry Potter. Sure, Stephanie Meyer and J.K. Rowling made it “cool” again to write about fantastical elements. It helps that these are usually easy reads and always leave us wanting more; another series, another set of characters, and another chance to further our paranormal addiction.

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By Melina Lynne • October 11, 2015

Guilty pleasures. We all have them, and entertainment is one of the biggest categories. Whether it is the TV show we watch when no one is around, or the book we hide behind our more "accepted" reads on our shelves. One category in the book world that has slowly risen in the ranks is the Teen and Young Adult genre. With series like Harry Potter, Twilight, Hunger Games, and Divergent; audiences for these books have grown broader... and older. I will admit to being found in the teen section often when browsing for new series to delve into, and I know I am not the only one. Try typing "twilight mom" into your search engine, and see how many hits pop up. There are countless clubs and forums where older generations have raised their hands, and said, "Yes, I like Teen Fiction!" And there is nothing wrong with that.

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By Eva • October 07, 2015

You know that feeling of heart-stopping embarrassment you get when you come across a photo of yourself from years ago? It's a universal 'oh-my-god-I-can't-believe-I-thought-that-was-cool' moment, and we've all been there. Puberty can a time of questionable stylistic choices and a deluded state of believed independence. I for one thought it would be a fabulous idea to cut off my butt-length brown tresses in favor of a bleach blonde pixie cut sometime in the middle of my sophomore year of high school. Of course it was a terrible idea, and I was left with five awkward years of grow out and dye jobs, and a really unfortunate driver's license until I turned 21.

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By Hugo Munday • September 24, 2015

Politicians of all stripes were on their best behavior listening to the Pope address Congress. He may not be a native English speaker, but he referenced some very influential American authors in his speech, some better known than others. Our current 15% off fiction coupon (use LITFIC at checkout) isn't going to work for all of these, but for those of us who need to catch up with what's on the Pope's bookshelf…

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By Hugo Munday • September 16, 2015

Yesterday the shortlist of 6 finalists for the 2015 Man Booker Prize for fiction were announced. There is one debut novelist in Chigozie Obioma, but other than that the list is made up of known quantities. Here are some thoughts.

Marlon James has made it to the shortlist for the first time, continuing a prolific hit rate after John Crow's Body was a finalist for the LA Times Book prize and his The Book of Night Women also became a finalist in the 2010 National Book Critics Circle award.

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By Eva • September 14, 2015

Five words you never want to hear in a comparative lit class?

"Yeah, going off of that..."

Which, when translated to normal human speak, actually means "This in no way relates to the point you just made, but I really love to hear myself talk." Every English major knows the scenario: The class circles up after reading (or not reading) a beautifully crafted piece of literature, and an intellectually-indulged twenty-something decides to hijack the discussion with the deluded idea that they have the book completely figured out. But the thing about great literature is that no one has managed to totally figure it out – that's why it stands apart as a selection of work that we all keep coming back to. Plus nothing kills an engaging class discussion quite like an unchecked know-it-all. Whether you're the type of student who's read the book before it was assigned, or who only highlights quotes they find on sparknotes, these ten works of literature are worth a second (or third) read. And here's a plus; two of them are comic books.

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By Hugo Munday • September 09, 2015

For a good portion of September, Thrift Books is offering all books in our Literature & Fiction category at 15% off, if you use the code LITFIC at checkout.

Our Back to School discount ended at the end of August, but it wasn't lost on us that we could serve some of those returning students into September by offering a discount on ALL the used books in one of our largest categories.

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By Melina Lynne • August 24, 2015

Who doesn't like a little mystery in their life? We spend each day so lost in the routine of working, taking care of the kids, cooking, cleaning, etc. that it becomes hard to carve out a few moments during the day that we can make completely about ourselves. However, sometimes an opportunity to step into another world with a good (especially discounted!) book, and use those parts of our brain that we feel go dormant at times, is much needed. Who better to stimulate our thrill-seeking, mystery-solving, crime-fighting selves than one of the best-selling authors of all time, Agatha Christie.

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