I was super skeptical about buying books from estate sales, but then I got a first edition Stephen King for $4

I always figured estate sales would be picked over or way overpriced. But last month I stopped at one in the old part of town near me, just out of curiosity. I found a box of sci-fi and horror novels in the back of a dusty garage, and one turned out to be a first edition Cujo from 1981. I spent $4 total on three books, and the King alone is going for like $80 online. Has anyone else had a lucky find at an estate sale that changed their mind about them?

2 comments

2 Comments

jana_davis901mo ago

Hold up, I'm going to play devil's advocate here. I've been to maybe 30 estate sales over the past couple years and the vast majority were full of beat up romance novels from the 80s priced at $3 each. One time I found a box marked "antique books" and it was all Reader's Digest condensed editions from 1965, not a single one worth reselling. Your luck is honestly pretty rare, most people I know walk away empty handed or with stuff that's only worth what they paid for it.

rosew371mo ago

Jana, that's just life, ya win some ya lose some. Like thrift stores, mostly junk but the hunt is the fun part.