How We're Doing

Briefly: we're continuing to take donations by appointment and are holding small "Friends and Family" sales by appointment in each of our rooms, and we're having another special sale in an additional room. Read on for more details.

 
The "Pop-Up" Sale This Time

Another special FOPAL sale--The last portion of the art donation-- Pop-up books--will go on sale in Cubberley's Room H1 (next to FOPAL's Bargain Room) on March 27 and 28 from 10 am to 3 pm each day. Added attractions will be records and music CDs. Only 20 people will be allowed in the room at any one time and they will be admitted on a first come, first enter, policy. Shopping time should be limited to 45 minutes to allow for more people to enter. Cashiers will have credit card capability.

 
Pop-Up Books

Pop-up books--in which some or all of the pages are three-dimensional and the pictures literally pop up off the pages--intrigue almost everyone, from toddlers to adults. Thanks largely to a local collector's donation, FOPAL is offering thousands of pop-ups for sale. Whether you're a sports fan, a Disney fanatic, a folk and fairy tale enthusiast, an animal lover, a budding paleontologist, an art aficionado, a birder, a parent or grandparent, or a collector yourself--you're bound to be captivated by these ingenious books. Sophisticated or whimsical, all of the pop-ups are in excellent condition; some of the books have never been read. And the prices are low enough that you can take home bags full: from 50 cents to about $5.00! Come to Cubberley Room H1, browse, buy, and enjoy!

 
Mini Music Sale

We're blowing out some of the leftovers from our December 2019 Vinyl Sale so we can get some space to start working on our backlog of records. These will be priced at $1 and $2. We're also going to bring records from the bargain room so record buyers only need to work with one set of entry requirements.

We're also bringing hundreds of music CDs of all genres (Classical, Easy Listening, International, Jazz, Rock, Soundtracks seen as of this writing). Many $1, many $2, several higher priced.

 
Library News and Information

FOPAL grants help support the Palo Alto libraries and through the libraries we are supporting communities beyond the boundaries of Palo Alto. Anyone with a California address can get a library card. Currently there is an online registration form to receive a temporary card. A permanent card can be obtained at any Palo Alto library branch when the libraries reopen, and at Rinconada and Mitchell Park branches when Sidewalk Service is provided. Find out more at the Library's web site: <https://library.cityofpaloalto.org/faq/card/>

The Library has an overview of its online offerings at its eLibrary page: <https://library.cityofpaloalto.org/online-resources/> Many of these offerings are available to Library card holders, and the Library has also worked to make it easier for new card holders to get access to some of these. Read about it on the Library's web site: <https://library.cityofpaloalto.org/news/new-card-holders-get-full-access/>

In June, the Library opened up access to its collection by allowing permanent cardholders to place holds on books and schedule a time (Tuesday through Saturday between noon and 5pm at present) for sidewalk pickup at Mitchell Park and Rinconada libraries. It is also now possible to return books you have checked out. Find out more about the Library's current services on the Library's web site:
<https://library.cityofpaloalto.org/current-library-services/>

You can find out about Palo Alto Library events on the Library's event calendar. Check it out, it has filters that let you select a date range, library branches, types of events, and other things. Wide desktop browsers will show these filters on the left of the window; narrow browsers will show a "REFINE" that can be clicked to reveal filtering options.

 
Friends and Family Sales By Appointment

Our monthly sales will be on hold until the health risk to our customers and volunteers is substantially reduced. We monitor the health situation continually and we look forward to returning to our monthly sales when we can offer them with as little risk as possible.

If you miss our sales and our fantastic offerings of items in three rooms, we have started a program we call Friends and Family. Anyone who wants to shop is definitely a Friend! Use the links below to schedule an appointment to shop our shelves in the Main Room or Children's Room or email appointments@FOPAL.org to receive information on scheduling an appointment to shop FOPAL's Bargain Room.

Main Room F&F Appointment Link:
https://signup.com/go/xaTuNnK
Bargain Room F&F Appointment Info:
appointments@FOPAL.org
Children's Room F&F Appointment Link:
https://signup.com/go/ceYabjC

Use these links to "Shop our Shelves" on SignUp.com, the scheduling tool we'll be using to assign participants with a volunteer to shop in the Main Room or Children's Room. Bargain Room shoppers will be scheduled separately.

Special rules for these sales:

You must have exact change or a check for your purchases.

You must only shop from the shelves where items are priced. Boxes on the floor contain items in process and not yet priced so they should not be opened.

We are requesting that you come prepared to spend a minimum of $30 for the Main Room, and $20 for the Children's Room. The Bargain Room has no minimum request.

 
Donations

Looking forward to FOPAL opening for donations? We are too! As a result, we have started a program we call Drop-off Donations 3.0! Anyone who wants to donate use the link below to sign up for an appointment to drop-off donations Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday 2-4pm. You'll be directed to signup.com, the scheduling tool we're using to assign donors an appointment to deliver a donation (six bags boxes or less) in front of FOPAL's Bargain Room in H2.

Due to the overwhelming response to opening for donations FOPAL donation appointments are FULL. Look for more donation appointments coming mid-April. For an earlier appointment please continue to monitor the link provided, as we're seeing cancellation each donation day.

Drop-off Donations 3.0 Appointment Link: https://signup.com/go/yARbWeT

No donations are accepted during sale appointments and donors must have an appointment to drop off a donation. Please read our donation guidelines before you bring materials to us.

 
Suggestions?

We're always eager to hear your suggestions for ways to improve our book sale. Please email us at suggestions@friendspaloaltolib.org.