I also find some great deals on books at www.bookcloseouts.com

It includes a wide range of books from a variety of publishers (including Scholastic).

Of course browsing for books is a unique shopping experience. My first choice is always to be able to hold and view books I'm considering as gifts. So online purchasing may not be the answer for you.

But if I already know the title, or perhaps the teacher has a wish list of books or authors, this online resources can be pretty handy.

They frequently run coupon codes. The current ones are:

Coupon: 5off25
Password: BookCloseouts
Value: Take $5 off your order of $25 or more

Coupon: 10off50
Password: BookCloseouts
Value: Take $10 off your $50 order or more

The current "Children's Booksale" offers
10 books for only $15.00
20 books for only $25.00
50 books for only $50.00
100 books for only $75.00

Warehouse sale in NE Ohio is usually most everything 50% off THE MARKED PRICE. I emphasized the "lowest price" thing because you will see the same books with 3 or 4 different prices. For example, you can get the Harry Potter Books in like 5 different versions at 5 different prices (I chose the "books 1-3" box set for $7.49 after discounts.

Tips for the sales:
1. most warehouses let you spend "book profit" at the sales (discount does not apply, but a big selection); Catalog vouchers cannot be used.

2. Get there as early in the sale as possible; tons of things sell out the first day.

3. Look for box sets, packaged sets and bundles at special prices (plus another 50% off)

4. For future use - Most warehouse sales use volunteers for help and pay them in books; Our local sale pays $8/hr in half price books (spring '03). Ask for signup info when attending-usually fills up fast.

5. Open to teachers, administrators, book fair chairpersons and Volunteers. Not too much ID is required.

6. If buying for the school, make sure that you have your Tax Exempt Certification with you to save even more!

7. If spending a bunch of $$ ($100+, it's worth a reasonable drive; Find other things to do near the warehouse and make an adventure of it!

I've been to the warehouse sales and thought they were great, but you do have to look for the best deals just like any other sale. Of course, the nearest warehouse is in the next town; I don't know if I'd travel and hour and a half for it. Most books were half price but there were also price point cabinets where everything was, say, $8 no matter what the regular price. I bought gifts for practically every kid in our family, plus our friends' children, and our children's friends, and spent under $100. You did have to sign in, but that was it for identification.

A good friend of mine home schools and went to a warehouse last year. In a nutshell, she told me to just stick with ordering through the flyers from school. SHe did a lot of shopping but wasn't that inpressed. She did mention she found books she had been wanting that are hard to find but all in all not really worth an hours drive (she drove hour and half).

The sale closest to me is about an hour away. Does anyone know if it is worth the trip? How deep the discounts. Do you have to buy in bulk?

I've been to one. This may vary by warehouse, but at the one I go to, there is a sign in book and you have to list your school and the capacity in which you work--teacher, book fair volunteer, etc., but they don't actually check anything right there.