Cost of College Textbooks is Outrageous

My 17 year old daughter is starting her second year of the Running Start program at Green River Community College (GRCC) in Auburn. I am appalled at the cost of textbooks, especially compared to when I went to college a little more than two decades ago.

For the winter quarter of 2010/11 I purchased 3 books for my
daughter at a total cost of $349. At the time of the purchase, the bookstore at GRCC told me that I could probably sell them back to the school at the end of the quarter for around 60% of the original purchase price. When my daughter sold the 3 text books back to the book seller at the school bookstore, she only received $66. She was told by the buyer that the books are being revised, therefore the books she was trying to sell back aren't worth much anymore. These were brand new text books when she purchased them.

Also note, these books are all soft-cover books, not the high quality hard-cover books that one might expect. Now my daughter is about
to start the autumn quarter of 2011 at GRCC. She has been told that she has to buy brand new text books, because the books have all been revised again, therefore you cannot obtain used books. Her 'soft-cover' introductory chemistry book alone will cost $174! She will also be required to buy a brand new revised intermediate algebra book, which will cost $163.

I asked the bookstore why my daughter is continually required to purchase brand new text books. They told me it is because the books
are being constantly revised, therefore the bookstore has to purchase the newest version. Really?

This brings up some obvious questions. Why doesn't the school bookstore buy a supply of books that will last for the next 5 or 10
years? Why are the publishers constantly revising their books? Why does a basic algebra or chemistry text book need to be continually revised? Why does a revised intro-chemistry soft-cover text book cost $174? I mean, how much work goes into a 'revised' edition anyway? How come these cheaply made soft-cover text books cost many, many times as much as the hard-cover books I bought when I was in school?

I kept most of the hard-cover text books I purchased when I was in college. They were relatively inexpensive, well made, and were not
outdated for many years. How does a math book become outdated anyway? I have contacted those in a leadership and/or authority position at GRCC several times over the last year, and left a detailed message with their answering service. I have yet to receive a return phone call. I can only conclude they do not desire to discuss the issue of the extremely high price of text books, and why they, and most other colleges, are supporting such a questionable practice.

I have been told by good sources that many of the professors of the colleges in this country are involved in these constant revisions of
college text books. What could the motive be for forcing students to buy expensive brand new revised soft-cover text books on a continual basis? The only logical answer I can come up with is pure greed. A struggling student and his/her parents should not have to spend around $1,000 per year on text books to send their child to college.

Something needs to be done about this obvious abuse in the college system. College text books should be well made, inexpensive, and
expected to last for many years, and only be revised when it is necessary to do so because of major advances in that particular field of study.

Sincerely,

Curtis Lee Hall, Buckley