Used Paperback Prices

As older books get converted to eBooks, I occasionally replace one of my paperbacks with a Kindle version. I have limited shelf space in my office and too many things in my house, so I look at it as decluttering.

Sunday morning, an ad for Scissors Cut Paper Wrap Stone by Ian McDonald appeared in Bookbub. I clicked on the Amazon link to download a sample. Several formats appeared on the product page, and I was astonished by the price of the paperback (see screen capture from Sunday below):

 Here's the screen capture of the actual listing (notice there's no picture of the book):

 I admit my first thought was to put my own copy up for sale and use the proceeds to fund my publishing/marketing efforts. Here's what my copy (from 1994) looks like:



My name is written on the first page (I used to do that to all my paperbacks), and the book is a bit yellowed, but otherwise I'd say it's in Good condition. The spine is unbent, though you can't see it in this picture.

Before putting my book up for sale, though, I thought I should see what price it commands on other markets, like eBay. Unfortunately, there was a slight price discrepancy, as you can see in the screen capture below:

So if a signed copy is listed at $7, I don't know how the Amazon 3rd party seller came up with a price of $520. I'm tempted to contact the seller and ask, but that might stir up more trouble than I want to get into.

Normally when I want to get rid of old books, I bring them to Half Price Books. I think I used to get a dollar a paperback in the 1990s, but they offer much less now. I'd probably make more money selling them on eBay, though I wouldn't be able to ship them promptly due to other demands on my time.

Do you buy or sell old books? What's the most you've spent for an old book? Is there a certain book you've been unable to find? Feel free to share your thoughts below.