I was looking at the top 50 wishes. I have the opportunity to go thru some books and maybe fill some wishes but I can't imagine putting my name on a list that has more than 1100 people ahead of me. Wow!

I also saw a lot of wishes for Pillars of the Earth, hardcover, and I think I could get a copy but the postage would be a killer. I'm not sure I want to send it out for just one credit when mostly I ask for things like mysteries and romances.

I'm not complaining, these are just my rambling thoughts. I love PBS.

susan/vt

I thought the same thing as you at one time.  However, I have witnessed firsthand the power of the wishlist when it has so many wishers.  Those top 20 books tend to also be books that are on the bestseller lists right now, so many people have copies to put into the system.  So, those wishlists actually move rather quickly considering their size!  Also, I think some people put themselves on the list and then end up aquiring copies through other means eventually, so they'll drop off the list at some point, advancing your position.  So, don't let the size of a list intimidate you...you'll never get the book otherwise.

Generally if a WL line is really  long, I buy the book myself and post it as a WL book.  I've had a couple I stayed in line for and by the time it got posted to me and I read it and posted it on here they were no longer WL books.  These are frequently the books that end up glutting the system after a while. 

Pillars of the Earth is in a weird situation. A couple of years ago, there were tons of copies of that book on PBS ready for the taking. I got one of them. Now it's wishlisted, I suppose because of the hullaballoo over the release of World Without End. I've never gotten on a wishlist THAT long, but I have been over #300 before and gotten to the beginning within a matter of months. Those long wishlists actually move a lot faster than some that I started out at #5 or #10 for.

Anyway, as far as sending out hardcovers/more postage, etc. I figure at least for me it balances out. I have sent out some big-arse hardcovers over the time I've been here, but I've also *received* many nice hardcovers too.

The beauty of PBS is that you don't have to list any book you don't want to or aren't willing to pay the postage for. I've only had one that I brought to a UBS rather than list here for that reason--a nearly 6 lb hardcover copy of L'Morte d' Arthur!

Cheryl

Would it be wrong to ask the requestor for an additional credit for heavy books? Heck, I have a two-cassette audiobook that requires two credits but weighs less than six ounces.

Holly:  I'm pretty sure its against the rules to ask anyone for more than one credit for a book.

Tim -- yes that would be wrong. We are not allowed to swap books for more than the PBS set price. We can swap for less though, hence the Book Bazaar deals.

I don't mind being on a long wish list. That gives me time to read my always growing TBR pile.

It all averages out in the end.  I mailed a sewing book that weighed 3 or 4lbs and only cost $3.50 to mail.   This was before the postal increase.  I figure I've sent out a lot of audio books that didn't cost much to mail and earned me 2 credits.  Also if you think about it you can order another hardback or more than one book from a deal in the bazaar with that credit.

I wasn't complaining. And I would never ask for more than 1 credit. It just wouldn't be right to do otherwise. I was just commenting on the list.

I work in a library and we had some donations come in. I had the chance to pick up a few things for under a $1 and I was thinking of getting them and posting them, but I think that I'll stick to posting things that I've gotten for myself not to just post for a credit. If I run out of credits, well, I know where to look.

susan/vt

I've been on the WL for Freakonomics for over a year, and I'm still 156!  It wasn't 1000 when I got on, but it was something in the range of 300-400. 

One genre of WL books that I don't think moves fast would be the cookbooks.  Most people like to keep the ones they like.  So I'm watching for an amazon Bargain sale or at a UBS.  I don't think I'm going to get many of the ones I'd like off the WL.

most hardcovers are still under 1 lb.  even if over 1 lb it's not that much more.

I have found that it can't hurt to put my name on a book's wish list no matter its length.  If you're an avid reader, as I am, you just go on swapping and reading until one day you get a great surprise when that particular book becomes available.  Although, there was one time that I just couldn't wait through the long wish list to read the book I wanted, "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan", so I bought it brand new in an airport bookstore.  When I got home from my vacation, I found that it was available through PBS...Grrr.

I signed up for "Water for Elephants" when the list was over 1000, in January. I got to the top at the beginning of June.

Some of the wish lists really move.

Just for clarification, one is NOT allowed to ask for more than one credit for a book unless it is a audio book. It is against PBS rules.