In which I admit to buying 43 books in one day.

When I casually mentioned the other day that I “bought 4o books at a book fair,” Jenny rightfully called me out for not sharing more. “Know your audience,” she said. I KNOW, BUT I’M ALSO SLIGHTLY EMBARRASSED, JENNY.

Still, I wouldn’t want to disappoint.

Do you want to feel good about your book buying habits? This is the post for you! When I started writing it, I thought, “40 was surely an exaggeration!!” Turns out I’m much better at guessing exactly how many books are in a pile than I thought. My husband and I bought 43 books in one day. 

43.

I already had too many books. I already vowed to actually read them before we moved next so I didn’t move books for a third time without reading them. Is this a sickness?

My shame aside, the Green Valley Book Fair is a magical warehouse in the middle of the mountains in Virginia (very near to Cabeswater, if that’s your thing) that has thousands of books for less than $5. Because I am a nerd, I had a lengthy conversation with the cashier about where all the books come from. Many of them are remainders, but the book fair also buys overstock from big companies like Costco.

I loved all the pins and paper from people who have visited the Green Mountain Book Fair from around the world.

Beyond the cheap books, there were just so many people there excited about books. And you never know what you’re going to find. There were lots of bestsellers, but also lots of undiscovered gems.

So here’s the list – anything I should read first??????? Help me. I need to do a lot of reading.

1. Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick
2. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
3. Intro to Alien Invasion by Owen King, Mark Jude Poirier, Nancy Ahn
4. A Writer’s Guide to Persistence: How to Create a Lasting and Productive Writing Practice by Jordan Rosenfeld
5. Etta & Otto & Russell & James by Emma Hooper
6. Black Swan Green by David Mitchell
7. The Write Brain by Bonnie Neubauer
8. A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
9. Love, Anger, Madness by Marie Vieux-Chauvet and Rose-Myriam Rejouis
10. The Duff by Kody Keplinger
11. Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
12. Dishing Up Virginia by Patrick Evans-Hylton and Edwin Remsberg
13. Friday Night Lights by H.G. Bissinger
14. Deep Wizardry by Diane Duane
15. The Wizard’s Dilemma by Diane Duane
16. Wizards at War by Diane Duane
17. A Wizard Alone by Diane Duane
18. Wizard’s Holiday by Diane Duane
19. The Final Descent by Rick Yancey
20. The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace by Jeff Hobbs
21. Beyond the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo
22. Illustrado by Miguel Syjuco
23. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
24. The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore
25. What Do I Want to Do With My Life? by Po Bronson
26. Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai
27. Tuna by Richard Ellis
28. China in Ten Words by Yu Hua and Allan H. Barr
29. The Chinese Brush Painting Bible by Jane Dwight
30. Butterfly People by William R. Leach
31. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
32. The Boneshaker by Kate Milford and Andrea Offermann
33. The Broken Lands by Kate Milford and Andrew Offermann
34. An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination by Elizabeth McCracken
35. The Moment of Everything by Shelly King
36. Get in Trouble by Kelly Link
37. Schooling by Heather McGowan
38. Mister Owita’s Guide to Gardening by Carol Wall
39. Unthinkable by Nancy Werlin
40. Cooking for Isaiah by Silvana Nardone
41. A First Course in Cheese by Charlotte Kamin and Nathan McElroy
42. The Kitchen Pantry Cookbook by Erin Coopey
43. Meals in a Jar by Julie Languille