Textbook Information

The following resources have been compiled over the last year in order to help you make informed decisions when  purchasing textbooks, as well as provide you with the most cost effective methods available.

ASGC, Inc. Limited Loan Program- New!

ASGC, Inc. budgets funds each semester for a textbook limited loan program.  These funds are only used to purchase required textbooks not already available at the Learning Resource Center.

Students who are unable to buy a required textbook or borrow it from the LRC may request that ASGC, Inc. purchase the book. If funds are available, ASGC will buy the book for the LRC to place on reserve. This process should take approximately one week if the book is in stock at the campus bookstore.

Please contact the LRC reserve librarian for more information about using books held on reserve.

Eligibility:

  1. Pick up a request form at the Student Activities Window
  2. Fill out the form and take it to the Extended Opportunities Programs & Services Office, Room 621.
  3. Once the form is signed off by EOPS, bring it back to the Senior Account Technician in the Student Activities Office.
  4. The Account Technician will contact you when the book is available at the LRC.

Discounts

  1. The ASGC, Inc. does provide discounts at the Campus Bookstore and Ross Books Store by use of the Benefits Package.

Methods

  1. Buy used books when available.
  2. Ask instructor if older editions are suitable.
  3. Ask instructor if they have loaner copies.
  4. If more than one book is required or recommended, check with the instructor before class begins to ask when in the semester the book will be needed – they usually put this information in the syllabus too.
  5. If you are eligible, consider financial assistance for the cost of books from financial aid, EOPS/CARE, CalWORKs, or New Horizons.
  6. Check with the library and ask if your textbook is available for limited loan. If the library does not currently have the book, ask the instructor to request a desk copy for the library.
  7. Compare prices from several book sources on and off campus. Ask instructor for the textbook ISBN number to facilitate this.
  8. Ask the bookseller for discounts.

BookAse-New!

BookAse.com – Compare Book Prices
http://www.bookase.com/

It’s a free service, allowing you to easily compare prices of any book among major online bookstores worldwide, and find a price which is 30% – 80% off the market list price. It also provides discount coupons of the online bookstores to further reduce on the cost of the books. This site aims at replacing traditional bookstores with a price comparison engine for the major online bookstores worldwide connecting both buyers and sellers directly.

LexisNexis-New!

Law Textbooks from LexisNexis

The LexisNexis Store provides law students and professionals with authoritative legal documents, books, software and resources. LexisNexis has recently upgraded their website and now features the most respected law textbooks to help professionals stay on top of the latest developments, standards, and best practices in the legal field. Here, visitors can also learn more through their direct links to free resources throughout the LexisNexis online community.

Websites

  1. whywaitforbooks.com – Grossmont College online bookstore.
  2. book.ly – Provides price comparisons between Amazon.com and Half.com and Retail price.
  3. chegg.com – rent books at a fraction of the textbook list price. Find out how it works.
  4. textbooks.com – More choices. Lower prices. Fast, Reliable Shipping. Better Buybacks.
  5. cheapesttextbooks.com -Discounts on textbooks up to 95% off.
  6. booksprice.com – BooksPrice is a free service that searches for the best deal in books, cds and dvds among the main on-line stores.
  7. campusbooks.com – Buy and sell textbooks. They also have a textbook gizmo you can read here.
  8. textbooklink.com – TextbookLink is an online used bookstore specializing in used college textbooks, enabling students to both buy and sell their used textbooks from the same user-friendly site.
  9. TextbookAid.org - Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s (ARRA) textbook and other course material expenses may be claimed as a tax credit on that year’s tax return.