Judging by the number of books both coming in and going out, Corner Book Store is a much-prized gem for local readers.

There are a few shelves dedicated to the store in the front corner of the White Rock Library, near the checkout counter. The titles on offer include non-fiction and fiction and are labeled with dates for the volunteers who maintain the shelves. Each week the volunteers scheduled to work a shift pull older titles and refresh them with newer donated books.

Run by the Friends of the White Rock Library, the little secondhand bookstore raises extra money for the library, and is just one of the volunteer group's endeavours.

"We do have a system and all that it requires is that a person go in for a minimum of probably three hours or so once a schedule," said Liz Osolinsky, who co-ordinates the work schedule. "It's not a lot, but it means a lot for getting some extra funds for the library."

However, sometimes even the volunteers find themselves spending more than their minimum three-hour shift at the store as they get wrapped up in browsing the shelves.

Lucinda Lyall, the library supervisor, noted the store stocks books donated from the public and even the odd brand new book, too, as well as occasional library discards.

"Some of the donated books go into our collection if they're in excellent shape and they're needed," said Lyall.

Among the titles out last week were the 2010 Giller Prize winner The Sentimentalists by Johanna Skibsrud, Ragnarok: The End of the Gods by A.S. Byatt and Lawrence Hill's The Book of Negroes, among many others.

Osolinsky said having the store right in the library seems to work well for the community, including South Surrey.

"People may come in for particular books that they want to sign out and to have this addition, where you can actually buy secondhand books, this is another thing that probably enhances our sales," she said.

Speaking of sales, the big one-day sale held by the Friends of the White Rock Library this fall raised about $1,200, which goes into the overall sale of Corner Book Store. For January to the end of October this year, the store had already pulled in $9,044.81, said Osolinsky.

That's with the books selling for a couple of dollars each.

The money raised is put into the library, sometimes for new much-needed titles, sometimes for programming, such as bringing in authors or supporting the chess club. As well, the Friends will use some of the money for items for which there is no other funding, such as furniture, blinds for one of the meeting rooms and a new projector, to name a few.

Corner Book Store is open during regular library hours, at 15342 Buena Vista Ave.

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