Book Sale FAQs
No, Member’s Night is for Friends of the Arlington Public Library (FOAL) members. If you would like to join, click here.
Please log into your account on our website by clicking here. If you’ve forgotten your password, click here to request a new password. Still need help? Email donations@arlingtonlibraryfriends.org and we will help you.
FOAL sends all current members a ticket via email a few days before the sale. For the 2025 Fall book sale, the member ticket will be emailed on Tuesday, October 21 in the morning. If you sign up for a membership after October 21, 2025 at 10 a.m., your members night ticket will be emailed to you as soon as possible prior to Thursday, October 23, 2025.
Also — be sure your membership is up to date, by logging into the member area to check.
Please check your inbox and spam folders in the email you use for your FOAL membership, that is where your ticket for entry will be delivered.
Please also check that you are a member by logging into your member account.
If you signed up for a membership after October 20, 2025, your members night ticket will be emailed to you as soon as possible prior to Thursday, October 23, 2025.
There will be no parking available in the library garage for the duration of the FOAL Book Sale. The ramp will also be closed to vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Visitors to the sale must enter the garage via the Central Library elevator or garage stairwells.
If you plan to purchase more than 5 boxes of materials, please see a sale organizer upon entry to the sale for staff elevator availability.
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Parking is very limited, and we recommend that you park in the outdoor lots surrounding the library as we use the garage for the sale. Another option is to park at Ballston Mall and walk over.
You can also metro, walk, scooter or bike to Arlington Central Library. The closest Metro stations are Ballston and Virginia Square, both on the Orange Line.
For accessible parking, use the surface lot behind Central Library. The elevator inside the building will take you to G1 and the sale. If surface parking is full, explore other parking options nearby.
If you would like to volunteer to assist at the book sale, please fill out our volunteer sign up form and we will contact you when we are able to.
Simply login to your account and click “edit profile”. From there you can change your email address and any of your contact information.
Everyone must have their own ticket, and memberships can be purchased online.
Yes, please bring your own bags or boxes.
No, we do not have space to provide storage.
No, these were not big sellers in the past and took up a large amount of floor space, so we no longer accept donations of these items or sell them.
Yes! Teachers and librarians with school IDs receive 50% off book purchases on Friday and Saturday. Everyone receives 50% off on Sunday (it’s half-price day).
No, only books are discounted.
FOAL provides 100% of the funding for Arlington Library programs — storytimes, summer and winter reading, author events, workshops, The Shop and more. Proceeds from the book sales, donations and memberships go right back into support for our amazing Arlington library.
Book and Non-Monetary Donations FAQs
Friends of the Arlington Public Library Book Sales
Books and magazines and other materials donated at the library are sorted by the Book Donation Team and prepared for sale. Proceeds from these sales support library programming. The Friends hold two mammoth book sales annually in spring and fall in the parking garage of the Central Library. Used materials are also sold daily at all library locations.
Want to help the Friends Book Sale team?
Check the Library Calendar for the dates of the next Friends Book Sale and sign up to volunteer.
The Library Collection
Usually only books published in the current year are added to the Library’s collection.
- Small donations are accepted at all Library locations during open hours.
- Donations up to 2 boxes/bags per day can be deposited in the two white bins just outside the FOAL bookstore near the Charlie Clark Center for Local History at Central Library. Smaller quantities of books can be placed directly inside the donation bin. Ask a staff person or volunteer if you need a cart for assistance.
- Donation receipts are available at all Library locations, at the Service Desk.
- We are able to accept large donations on Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Central Library loading dock off of 10th Street. If you need assistance with your donation, please make an appointment by email: info@arlingtonlibraryfriends.com.
- Please do not leave donations in any other areas of the Library or outside the building.
Please review our full list of guidelines for donations.
- Hardback and paperback books
- Children’s and teen books
- Foreign language books
- Classic literature
- Fiction and non-fiction (hardback or softbound) in all subject areas, including sciences, social sciences, fine arts, and humanities, plus local interest, home improvement, crafts, cooking, and performing arts.
- The Center for Local History, the community archives at the Central Library, is particularly interested in original materials related to Arlington’s history, such as documents, maps, papers, histories, etc. If you have historical materials to donate, please call 703-228-5966.
- In addition to books, other materials accepted for the biannual sales include:
- Board games
- Puzzles
- Blank journals
- Bookmarks
- Recent magazines (no older than 1 year)
- Unused greeting cards
- Unused postcards
- Please click here for a full list of best practices for deciding on what to donate.
- Books that are moldy, mildewed, food-stained, heavily highlighted, or falling apart. Materials previously stored in basements or garages need special checking. If they smell, they can’t sell.
- Academic, scientific, medical, or similar professional journals. A local university library is more likely to be interested.
- Frequently revised travel books like Fodor and Frommer's older than five years.
- Medical books, and legal, tax, computer, financial advice books older than five years.
- School textbooks that are no longer used.
- Consumers’ guides older than 3 years.
- Discarded library books.
- Multi-volume sets of encyclopedias cannot be accepted.
- Audiocassettes (books on tape or music).
- Computer software and games that are obsolete.
- Videocassette (VHS) tapes.
Personal property donated to the Friends of the Arlington Library may be deducted as charitable donations in kind. Donors may request a receipt from any desk that is staffed or from volunteers at the Loading Dock on the 10th Street side of the Central Library. The Library and its volunteers do not estimate the value of donations, but a tax professional or the IRS itself can advise.
FOAL FAQs
FOAL offers a number of volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Contact volunteer@arlingtonlibraryfriends.org for more information. Members of the public are also welcome at all FOAL Board meetings. Meeting dates, times, and locations are posted here.
FOAL volunteers put on two large book sales per year: Spring and Fall, at Arlington's Central Library Branch. Book sales run Thursday-Sunday. Miss a sale? Library branches each have their own bookstore and all proceeds go directly to The Friends of the Arlington Public Library, which in turn fund 100% of all programming at the Arlington Public Library.
Yes! You will receive a donor acknowledgement letter for each financial donation. See the Circulation Desk at your local library branch for a tax receipt for donations of books and materials.
Your tax-deductible contribution will be used to provide programming at all branches. This programming includes author talks, the winter and summer reading programs, music, art, and storytimes. Contributions, along with book sale proceeds, also support the Library’s collection of books and e-books, the Center for Local History, and The Shop which is a maker space at Central Library providing a space for patrons to make things, repair items, and take crafting classes. More information on all that FOAL supports is available on our website: www.arlingtonlibraryfriends.org
Yes! FOAL offers a 50% discount at our book sales to Arlington County educators and school librarians who teach in Pre-K through 12th grade in public or private schools. You will need your school ID to verify that you are indeed an Arlington County educator or librarian. Discounts are claimed at checkout. You will see signs about this discount all the book sale.
Educators from towns and counties other than Arlington should see a Board Member for a discount card you can use for some of your purchases.
Yes! FOAL provides a limited number of free book vouchers for use during our book sales. These vouchers are provided on a first come, first serve basis with FOAL Board approval. Email info@arlingtonlibraryfriends.org for more information.
If you selected a recurring payment option, your membership will automatically renew next year. To modify your annual membership, click here to login.