The weather is colder and every day it gets darker just a little bit earlier. When it is chilly and dark outside, it is a perfect time to relax inside with a good book.

The Friends of the Fort Dodge Public Library is now offering a good opportunity for everyone to expand their collection of reading materials.

That group is now holding the fall version of its twice yearly used book sale. There are tables stretching the length of the library’s big meeting room and they are covered with books for sale. There are even some books still in boxes beneath the tables.

Something to satisfy just about any reading taste can be found on those tables. World War II history? Got it. Biographies of famous and even infamous people? Yes. Murder mysteries? Check. Romance? Yes, that too.

The sale continues from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Friday. Sale hours are 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

Purchasing some used books does more than just give the buyer good reading for a cold winter night. Those purchases also help the Friends of the Library generate the money to pay for new materials and programs for the library. With the city’s general fund budget seemingly always getting tighter, those investments by the Friends group are important. The group pays for most, if not all, of the new materials, while the city pays for the building upkeep and the staff salaries.

We encourage everyone to check out the used book sale. There’s lots of good stuff there at great prices. Memberships in the Friends of the Fort Dodge Public Library can also be purchased at the sale.