I think that Kew doesn't wholesale its books except now, apparently, to Amazon.co.uk. In any case, when NARGS had a book service, they were not able to obtain Kew books, and I don't think the AGS book service offers them either. Jim mentions Oxford UP (for which I presently work), but of course they wholesale their books readily and also offer substantial sales, especially toward the end of the calendar year. Timber Press will also sell small quantities wholesale to groups to resell at events such as study weekends, and they will take back the surplus sometimes, depending on the title. NARGS discontinued its long-running Book Service two years ago because it was a big money-loser. They could not sell books as cheaply as Amazon does, nor could they pay the manager of the book service enough to compensate her for her time and space. The AGS has a substantial publication program of its own (including excellent books on bulbs), as well as a very large endowment, both of which NARGS lacks. The PBS is nowhere near large enough to support its own book publications (though we might consider digital publications on CD-ROM or DVD, which are much cheaper to produce and distribute). The alternative to a book service, and one that NARGS chose to adopt, is to list books on our website with links to Amazon.com, having contracted with Amazon to be an "affiliate." When someone clicks the link on our website and then purchases the book from Amazon, the PBS will get a small percentage of the purchase price. You can see how this works by going to http://www.nargs.org/. I've noticed that some books not supplied by Amazon.com, the US service, can be obtained from Amazon.co.uk, so it's useful to check both when you're looking for something obscure, especially a non-US publication. I was amused by Jackie's comment that the Marin County Library was willing to purchase any book she suggested. If all public libraries operated within a tax base like Marin County (one of the wealthiest areas in the United States), more people could enjoy that privilege. Here in Oregon, at least one county has had to shut down its public libraries recently because of falling revenue. Regarding Marek's problem getting access to botanical journals, you will find that if you search for information on a particular plant, you often end up at a journal site such as JStor, where you can read only the abstracts unless you are a subscriber. Most university libraries subscribe to these services, so if you can get access to their terminals you can read or even print out the articles there. Some universities extend such access to alumni, too. Individual subscriptions to journal and reference sites are quite expensive, but the institutions pay far more; however, it is a great saving in shelf space as well as paper and shipping. It is sometimes possible, though, to get access to a journal article by searching out the author's personal web page (often part of an institutional website), where he or she may have posted the article -- or be willing to supply a digital copy if asked nicely. Finally, if anybody wants to know about "fair use," I can explain that. Jane McGary Portland, Oregon, USA Jim Waddick wrote: > Perhaps this is time for the PBS to step in. Regular book >sellers expect a very low number of sales of expensive specialized >books, thus you will find no discounts at amazon or barnes/noble. , >But, even when a book is published at a seemingly high price to a >small specialized audience, the publisher is often quite willing to >make a deal for a quantity purchase to a direct targeted audience. > > I suggest someone from PBS approach Kew Publications and see >if they can negotiate a discount for a quantity of books. I did >this for a book from Oxford Univ. Press a year or so ago for another >group.