• BOOK SALE SPECIALS:
— THE PRICES ARE RIGHT:
Compare our sales with those at other libraries: on Bard Street in Hermosa Beach, most hardcover fiction and nonfiction is still just 50¢ per volume, while mass market paperbacks are 25¢. Be sure to visit the TRADE PAPERBACK section. These large-format books typically retail for as much as $16 new and half the cover price at used book stores. Our prices range between 50¢ and $1, and many titles have been read only once
— POPULAR FICTION:
This section is arranged in alphabetical order by author, so bring your lists and check our supply of novels by best selling authors like James Patterson, John Grisham, Robert B. Parker, Walter Mosley, Maeve Binchy, Anne Perry, Stephenie Meyer, etc. Writers no longer on the bestseller list can also provide hours of pleasure. When did you last read James Michener, Leon Uris, Irwin Shaw, Joseph Wambaugh, Gore Vidal, Sandra Brown, or Michael Crichton? Our shelves are well-stocked with gems by these and other past favorites..
— MEDIA MESSENGERS:
Take home Bob Woodward, Tom Brokaw, George Stephanopoulos, Ann Coulter, Art Buchwald, and Dan Rather to absorb their ideas at leisure. Thoughtful readers might also sample Jimmy Carter's Meditations. Look for this title in the large Religion and New Age section.
— VHS TAPES:
You have 295 channels to choose from, but there's nothing to watch on TV. Here's an excellent remedy: instead of paying $3.95 or more for a  new movie on cable or waiting for Netflix to arrive, pick up a batch of our video tapes for 50¢ each. Tapes are more durable than DVDs and provide hours of pleasure--later, you can pass them on to a retirement or nursing home.
— THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING:
A generous donation of fiction and nonfiction in Russian has arrived. Refresh your knowledge of the Cyrillic alphabet; impress your spouse, friends and children.

• FOR MORE INFORMATION: www.hbfol.org
--- Hermosa Beach Library: 310-379-8475
--- Carol Lawson, Book Sale Chairman: 310-372-2610
--- Call 310-372-2610 if you have a large donation of books for the Bard Street location.

• MONDAY MORNING BARD STREET BOOK SALES: Open hours are still 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. except for Holidays or the Monday before and after each book sale.

• WHERE THE BOOK SALE MONEY GOES: Our funds pay for most of the library's magazine subscriptions. Recent purchases by County Library Manager Elmita Brown also include over $4,000 for books and DVDs, tote bags for borrowers, and book plates to acknowledge FOL donations.

• 2009 SUMMER READING PROGRAM: Entertainment for these Friday afternoon programs will again be sponsored by the FOL's Evelyn Belasco Fund. Dates will be set shortly, and flyers will be available at the circulation desk.

• FAREWELL, CAROLYN: We are happy to announce Youth Services Librarian Carolyn Reed's promotion to the next level, Librarian II, but very sad to see her transferred to a larger library. Because of the current County budget freeze, she has not yet been replaced. The library staff asks for your understanding and patience at the desk, since other transfers have reduced the number of employees from 12 to 7.

• NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK EVENT: On Friday, April 17, the Hermosa Beach Friends of the Library hosted a well-attended celebration for pre-schoolers. FOL President Dorothy Yost and Publicity Chair Marilyn Shaw served cookies and milk following Mayor ProTem Michael DiVirgilio's read-aloud performance during Story Hour.

• 50TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION: An open house at the library on Saturday, September 26, will commemorate the Friends of the Library's golden anniversary. Hours will be 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.-- a buffet will be provided, and the FOL will make a surprise donation. Look for flyers inviting members and patrons.

• INTERIM BOOK SALES: The shelves on both sides of the Pier Avenue entrance to the library are loaded with bargains and with volumes on these timely subjects. Stock changes frequently and includes large-format (or trade) paperbacks priced at 25¢, 50¢, and $1.