Best Biennial Book Sale 

Every May and October, the Friends of the Free Alameda Library —
a fund-raising group supporting Alameda’s library system — holds
a book sale at the DeWitt O’Club in Alameda’s formal Naval Air Station.
They bring between 8,000 and 10,000 books to the sale, mostly donated
throughout the year by Alameda residents. There’s a lot of variety:
hardbacks and paperbacks in almost every genre, as well as some
out-of-print, rare volumes. Prices for regular books usually run from
fifty cents to two dollars. The biennial book sales were originally
held to help raise funds to build a new library; now that the library
is built, the sales go to help with library operations. The sale goes
on for three days, but the best day to go is Sunday after noon.
Admission is free, and their clearance deal is a can’t-miss for
bookophiles: For just a few dollars, you can haul away an entire
grocery sack of books, and help out a worthy cause in the process.