Reading into the fall book sale at OCC

Orange Coast College Friends of the Library’s annual fall book sale is a fundraiser for the library, but Carl Morgan reads a little more into it.

“There still seems to be something very appealing, even for young people, about holding something tangible and physical in book form,” said the Orange Coast College librarian.

In a digital age, a pull away from the written word on the page in favor of the written word on the screen might seem natural, but Morgan sees the opposite happening.

“A lot of students really seem to appreciate the physical format of any old-school book,” said Morgan.

Morgan has been the Orange Coast College librarian since 1991, and he works closely with the Friends of the Library, the used bookstore located in the lobby of the library. Friends of the Library is open regular library hours and sells books priced from 25 cents to $2. The inventory is made up of book donations and includes a variety subjects, from romance and mysteries to art and history.

“All of our books have been donated, usually by community members,” Morgan said. “Donation come from all over, we never know what we are going to get. Sometimes we get a whole treasure trove of unexpected, amazing books.”

An outside donation bin in parking lot E on Merrimac Way accepts donations of books and DVDs around the clock. Morgan can also provide tax receipts for any donations.

In his nearly 30 years at the OCC Library, Morgan said he has lived through what was supposed to be the “paperless revolution,” but in recent years he has seen a shift in the way students read. When a book is offered in both electronic and physical format, students will tend to choose the latter, he said.

The Orange Coast College Friends of the Library will host their annual Fall Book Sale.

(Courtesy of Orange Coast College Friends of the Library)

“I ask them why, and part of it is just the tangibility of the book, but part of it it is also the accessibility,” said Morgan. “With an e-book it is a little tougher to maneuver and get your way around, especially in a nonfiction book when you are looking for information. You can navigate a physically formatted book so easily by going back and forth from the table of contents to chapters, to what you might mark in the book [and] to the index in the back.

“I still love what an old-school print format book can do,” said Morgan. “And I never have to worry about it losing battery life.”

The Fall Book Sale will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 22 and Wednesday, Oct. 23, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Library Lecture Room (Room 112), located near the front entrance. Friends of the Library members and OCC students can shop the pre-sale from 9 to 10 a.m. on Tuesday. Most books will be priced starting at $1 with a “$2-a-bag” special running during the last two hours of the sale on Wednesday. The funds raised will directly benefit the library, allowing it to continue to stock new books and bestsellers.

Orange Coast College Library is located at 2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa. Visitors can park in Lot E and purchase a parking permit online through passportparking.com.