An Ode to College and Textbooks... And a Way to Save Money on Both {A Sponsored Post}
Let me start this post with this: I am receiving a gift card to CampusBookRentals.com in exchange for writing this post. I have some loved ones in my life who are in college. I thought this would be a really cool way to use my writing to bless one of them. That said, do know these opinions are completely my own.
I remember being in college. Please say we don’t have to discuss how long ago that was… okay, well let’s just say people had just started ditching their pagers for cell phones, myspace didn’t exist yet, and Sisqo's "Thong Song" had inspired a thong jewelry trend (I think my eyeballs are still burning from all the low-rise jeans and high-rise thongs I had to sit behind in my classes).
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| College Days. |
I had treated high school like it was optional and had grades that reflected 23 “dentist appointments” (ahem) in one quarter. College, I was excited for. It was the second chance to do things right. I got to dive into the nitty-gritty of subjects like American history, and in college it isn’t all sunshine and roses… I liked that. I went to study groups. I discovered coffee. I debated things like the war in Iraq and the meaning of John Keat's "Ode to A Nightingale." I unearthed my passion for learning, analyzing, and processing my thoughts on paper. I found the subjects I was really good at (literature, history, cultural studies, and meteorology). I found the subjects I completely stunk at (biology, math, and political science).
I also remember the high prices of textbooks and how you got next to nothing at the end of the semester when you tried to sell back your books.
I may have even thought something along the lines of why can’t we just rent books (well, all the books other than my history and literature books. Those are all mine.)
Fortunately in 2007, someone had that thought and actually followed thru with it. That person created CampusBookRentals.com.
- They have a huge selection.
- You pay way less by renting than buying (even less than buying used; and even less than buying it and selling it back… at least from what I can see).
- Shipping is free, and they take care of all the shipping details. They give you the pre-paid container to ship it back in.
I did a little snooping because I am a hard-core bargain shopper. Amazon.com started a similar textbook rental program. So, I decided to compare Amazon’s rental program with CampusBookRental.com. I looked at their policies and the prices of 11 different textbooks. Overall, CampusBookRentals.com came out the winner.
In case you are interested in my study, here's a picture of my findings:
Also, I just want to mention… should you already have bought your textbooks, CampusBookRentals.com has a separate site where you can rent your textbooks for money. They do all the work. You make the money from your textbook. It’s called RentBack.com. If you happen to have a new edition, you could make some decent money back on your book as it could be re-rented multiple semesters.
Did you go to college? What was one thing you discovered about yourself during your college years? Do you wish you could go back to college?
By Grace,
Amanda Conquers