PBH to Raise Funds With Book Exchange

In an effort to raise money, Phillips Brooks House (PBH) next month will sponsor its first-ever student book exchange.

PBH will coordinate the buying and selling of used textbooks and take a small portion of the profits to help fund its programs.

Book collection will take place from 1 to 6 p.m. on February 1-5 at PBH and all the houses, and the books will be sold from 1 to 6 p.m. on February 6-9 at PBH.

Chris S. Chen '90, is coordinating the exchange with the help of his roommates John C. Hou '90, T. James Lawrence '90 and David A. Stonehill '90.

The exchange will emphasize required readings for introductory courses, Lawrence said, but PBH will accept books for all Harvard courses.

Books will be sold at 60 percent of the retail price, with 50 percent being returned to the sellers, and the other 10 percent going to PBH, Lawrence said. Most second-hand bookstores pay sellers about 25 percent of the retail price.

"Everyone has felt that the prices at some of these bookstores are absurd," he said. "The exchange is a way for students to sell some of their books at a higher price than they'll get from used bookstores around here."

Many students try to sell textbooks by posting flyers around campus. Lawrence said that the exchange will save both the buyer and seller the hassles of this process.

PBH is not directly in charge of the exchange. Lawrence said he and his roommates were talking about helping a worthwhile cause, and Chen came up with the idea for the exchange. PBH agreed to give them the space to sell the books in return for some of the revenue.

Lawrence said he has no expectations as to how much money will be raised by the exchange. But he added, "Any money we do raise for PBH is great."

The book exchange is timed to take place when students are buying their spring semester textbooks, Lawrence said.

Any books not sold at the exchange will be returned to their original owners, Chen said. The organizers are looking for volunteers to help sort and sell the books, Lawrence said.

"For anyone who wants to save some money without the hassle of places like the Coop, and help a good cause at the same time, it's a good place to buy books," Lawrence said.