Readers who have extra books to share are invited to donate them to the Berks Book Bonanza, an annual sale of gently used books that benefits local charities. DVDs, CDs, games and vinyl records are also accepted.

Organizers of the annual event recently announced that donation collection hours will go beyond the previously announced March 11 deadline. Now through Monday, March 31, volunteers will be on hand to accept donations on Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to noon at the Berks County South Campus facility, located at 400 E. Wyomissing Ave., Mohnton. 

Expanded hours will begin in April with the following donation collection schedule: Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to noon; Wednesdays from 5 to 7 p.m.; and Saturdays, April 12, May 10 and June 14, from 9 a.m. to noon. The final donation acceptance date for the 2025 sale will be June 14. Donations will not be accepted on Monday holidays. 

During collection days, volunteers are stationed at the rear entrance of Berks County South Campus. As part of a drive-through format, those who have items to donate will be greeted by volunteers who will take the items from their car, box them, load them onto carts and bring them indoors for sorting.

Items that are not accepted are books that are moldy or in bad condition, encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauruses, Reader's Digest condensed books, books on tape, magazines, issues of National Geographic, VHS tapes and foreign language books. Also not accepted are books that have highlighting or writing in them. Donated books that are rejected are recycled.

A complete list of acceptable items is available by visiting www.berksbookbonanza.org and choosing "Donation Information."

The 2025 Berks Book Bonanza will be held from Wednesday, July 9, through Sunday, July 13. This will be the organization's second sale at the Mohnton location. Previously, it was held at a temporary location in Berkshire Mall, and prior to that the sale took place at the VF Outlets in Reading.

During the five-day event, about 75,000 books will be available for sale. Fiction selections will be sorted by genre, including mystery, thriller and romance. In the nonfiction category there will be books on history, science, art, health, nature, hobbies and sports, as well as cookbooks and biographies.

The sale will also feature collectible books, which are books published prior to 1960; a large-print section; teacher materials; reference items; and an area reserved for children's books. Book tables are replenished throughout the sale, so shoppers can attend all five days of the sale to find different titles.

Funds raised from the annual book sale go to the Friends of Berks County Public Libraries and Reading Branch of American Association of University Women (AAUW), which supports the public libraries of Berks County and provides scholarships to women. In December 2024, Berks Book Bonanza distributed a total of $40,000 to the two organizations following last year's sale in September.

For more information about the book sale, visit the previously mentioned website or http://www.facebook.com/BCPLFriends.

Those who would like to volunteer may visit http://www.berksbookbonanza.org/volunteer-information. Volunteers are needed throughout the year to receive, sort and organize donations. Sale-day opportunities are also available. Training is provided.