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The Founding College of the University of Toronto
shelf of books including one with a "Staff Pick" label

Book Sale

UC Books has temporarily suspended most of our operations and will not be accepting donations or recruiting new volunteers until further notice. The health, safety and well-being of our volunteers, alumni and friends are very important to us. 

When conditions permit, we look forward to running our annual sale.

This page will be updated as our services resume. The UC Book Shop has re-opened (please see the hours of operation below under Book Shop).

The volunteer run UC Books sells books in a shop and at a fall sale in support of UC students and the UC library.

 

Donate Books

**ATTENTION** The UC Book Sale is not currently accepting donations as services are suspended. Thank you for your understanding. 

Get in touch with us at ucbooks@outlook.com or 416-978-0372. Leave a voicemail with your name and telephone number. We’ll return your call.

All About UC Books

About Us

UC Books began in 1979 as a small, annual sale offering affordable books to students. More than forty years later, our volunteers collect and assess over 100,000 books annually; operate a year-round Book Shop in the College; maintain listings of over 6,000 books in our online store at AbeBooks.com; and organize a large sale every October. Proceeds from the UC Books go to students and to the UC Library. 

All books are carefully examined by our trained volunteers and are sorted to go into either the UC Book Sale in October, the Book Shop, or placed on our internet listings. Other items are considered for the U of T Library holdings, and some are shared with local non-profit organizations in Toronto and Ontario, as well as with schools and programs abroad in countries such as the Caribbean, Central America, and Africa.

Donate

**ATTENTION** The UC Book Sale is not currently accepting donations as services are suspended. Thank you for your understanding. 

We accept used items in good condition such as books, DVDs, CDs and electronic games.       

Our volunteers handle over 100,000 items a year in our workrooms. Incoming books are sorted and directed to various sections of the Book Sale or to appropriate university libraries. Items which the Book Sale cannot use or sell go to student groups and non-profit organizations. 

Your donations give students access to low-cost reading materials, divert waste from landfills, and help keep books in circulation. We are an important source for out-of-print books for readers and collectors. Revenues from the sale of donated books support students and the UC Library. 

To arrange a donation drop off in our workroom on Tuesday or Thursday or to ask for a pickup of your books, please contact us at ucbooks@outlook.com or call 416-978-0372 to arrange the details. 

NOTE: We will not be making pickups of books or accepting donations of books at the work room from September 1st until November 1st while we prepare and run the sale 

We regret that we cannot sell Readers' Digest condensed books, National Geographic and other magazines, encyclopedias (some exceptions apply), out-of-date-textbooks or books with heavy highlighting or ink underlining as well as damaged paper-back books. 

All donors must use liquor store sized boxes and pack the books lying flat rather than on end.

Fall Sale

Due to unforeseen circumstances we will not be holding a fall sale in 2022. We are looking forward to 2023.

Book Shop

The UC Bookshop has reopened. Come and enjoy our beautiful space and large selection of used books.

The UC Bookshop is located in Room A102, off the College Quadrangle in the main building. Currently, the Bookshop is open Monday to Thursday from 11 am to 6 pm. Effective March 10, 2023, UC Bookshop will also be open on Fridays from 12 pm to 4 pm.

Our shelves are filled with donated books in good condition. We are an excellent source of  out-of-print books and we have recently opened an antiquarian section.

Books are added to our shelves regularly and range from Art, Classic and Current Literature, Canadiana, Children’s Books, Drama and Poetry, History, Philosophy, Social Sciences and Religion to Sciences, Math, Reference, Travel and Mystery.

Prices range from $1.00 and up. Payments can be made in cash or with credit and debit cards.

Volunteer

We welcome a wide range of volunteers who can offer long-term or short-term, skilled or unskilled assistance. Whatever your interest and abilities, we have a role for you. We offer on-the-job training and supervision.