Re: “SFBC shutting down”

On Fri, 3 Jan 2025 16:01:40 -0600, Lynn McGuire
<lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> wrote:

“SFBC shutting down”
   https://www.reddit.com/r/printSF/comments/1hsnqmd/sfbc_shutting_down/
>
“Reported in Ansible 450.”
   https://news.ansible.uk/a450.html#14
>
"The "How it works" page now says this:"
   https://www.sfbc.com/how-it-works
>
"How Your Membership Works<br>Cancel anytime."
>
"After 2/1/2025, orders will no longer be processed at Science Fiction
Book Club."
>
"You can still redeem your existing credits on the site as normal until
2/1/2025."
>
"You can also still purchase books using a credit card on the site as
normal until 2/1/2025."
>
I am surprised SFBC lasted this long.  I have not ordered a book from it
since the early 1970s.  I think that “Dune” was the last book I bought
from it.

I found them (and some of the other Doubleday clubs) /very/ helpful in
the 50s and 60s. Before I was old enough to have a checking account, I
would give my mother the money needed to pay for the recent purchase
and ask her to write the check. This was in the days of the "Book Club
Edition" which, for most of that time at least, cost $1 each. Of
course, MMPB were about $0.35 but these were hardbacks. Sort of.

I let them lapse for a while, but restarted (some) of them. Eventually
I gave up on them, as they were selling their books for Trade PB
prices plus a large S&H fee -- basically, a $15 book became a $20
book. I could do better buying the Trade PB at the local bookstore, as
the sales tax was a lot less than 33%.

And I am surprised at their longevity as well. They were part of a
mail-order culture which has mutated into ordering online.
--
"Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,
Who evil spoke of everyone but God,
Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"