By Mary Richardson 

When people enter the gym at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church for the annual Used Book Sale you can almost hear an audible gasp, according to Polly Cole, head of the committee that organizes the book sale.

“The gym is wall to wall books,” she said. “Tables are filled to overflowing. Book lovers are in heaven.”

Dates of the sale are Friday through Sunday, March 21-23. It will be again held in the EDS gym at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, 715 Kirkman. Hours are 8 to 6 p.m. on Friday, March 21, 8 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 22, and 11 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 23, which is the day of the famous “$5 a bag” sale. People are given sturdy bags and pay $5 for as many books as the bag can hold.

There are so many books at the sale that the tables can’t hold all of them. Volunteers are continually replenishing the tables from boxes of books stored underneath.

“That’s why you should come often,” Cole said. “The selections will continually change.”

The personality of the sale changes each year, Cole said. “This is the year for science fiction,” she said. “We have never had so much!” The sale will also include boxes filled with LPs, but Cole warns that they have not been examined. “We are just putting them out there,” she said. “Some people will find treasures, but others may have scratches.”

She added that some cookbooks and Louisiana books are among the most beautiful she’s ever seen.

Most prices will be the same as last year with one exception: DVDs, CDs and LP albums are all $1 each. The price for paperback books has been changed from two for $1 instead of 50 cents each. “We just don’t want to deal with quarters!” Cole said. “Trade” paperbacks, which are printed on better paper and with larger print, will sell for $2. Other prices are $3 for hardbacks and cookbooks, although Louisiana cookbooks are $4, and $1 to $2 for children’s books. More than 500 Jigsaw puzzles will be available, ranging in price from $3 to $6. Some books, as well as some full sets of books, have been pulled because of exceptional quality and will sell for a few dollars more; these will be marked with colored ribbons.

Proceeds from the sale are always given to local nonprofit agencies, and since 2008 the book sale has generated $229,000. This year’s recipients are DeWanna’s Closet’s Food for Kids program, Lake Charles Kiwanis Club’s Coats for Kids program, Girlie Girls, Holy Ground Homeless Outreach, McNeese Banners Series outreach to bring Beatles music to area nursing homes, and the Good Shepherd Brown Bag program volunteers work for half a year, starting in September, sorting books, DVDs, CDs, and jigsaw puzzles into categories. A core group from Good Shepherd, joined by book enthusiasts from the community, spends most of the year organizing the sale. Returning volunteers are Amy Allen, Pam Clark, Deb Fontenot, Karen Garber, Kay House Hart, Debbie Howrey, and Kathy Griffith; new this year Judy Morgan, Cindy Monroe and Jeanette Dick.

Cole is asking the community for help in the days leading up to the sale. “We need people to stock — and then restock — the tables, she said. The critical times are 10 to 3 p.m. March 18-20, the Tuesday through Thursday before the sale starts on Friday. People who are interested in volunteering, or who just want information, can message Cole through the Facebook page “Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd Used Book Sale.”