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A book is a treat in prison

Larry collects books to give away at La Mesa gas station

Emerald Oil, a gas station on the corner of Lake Murray Boulevard and Baltimore Avenue, not only boasts about having the lowest gas prices in La Mesa, but it also has a wide variety of free books and magazines!

The owner of Emerald Oil said that some books were donated by a “mystery man” about a month ago. Then, last week, the man showed up and unloaded a truckload of books and left. He has since shown up with more, leaving them on a table outside the store and including a “donations” jar. There are mysteries, romance novels, biographies, magazines, oldies dating back to 1969, religious books, and self-helps. The only downside is that people are allowed to take one book per visit.

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Originally, the gas-station owner suspected that the “mystery man” was buying lots of books only to try and find valuable ones, but that was not the case. In this instance, the books were a present to the community from a man who wanted to do something good.

The man’s name is Larry and in a way, he went from a zero to a hero. A fit man of about 42, Larry said he had spent some time in prison for doing drugs. He said that the prisoners used to fight over books. In prison, a book was Larry’s big treat. After he got out 20 years ago, Larry said he started grabbing as many books as he could.

Larry said he has been going to mainly swap meets for 22 years, where he would wait until the swap meet closed to accumulate as many books as he could find left behind. Today, Larry has a collection of about 6000 books that he plans to bring to Emerald Oil.

When asked about his dreams, Larry said he wanted to open a thrift store one day and keep supplying books.

“To me, it’s worth it to keep bringing the books, if somebody reads them.”

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Emerald Oil, a gas station on the corner of Lake Murray Boulevard and Baltimore Avenue, not only boasts about having the lowest gas prices in La Mesa, but it also has a wide variety of free books and magazines!

The owner of Emerald Oil said that some books were donated by a “mystery man” about a month ago. Then, last week, the man showed up and unloaded a truckload of books and left. He has since shown up with more, leaving them on a table outside the store and including a “donations” jar. There are mysteries, romance novels, biographies, magazines, oldies dating back to 1969, religious books, and self-helps. The only downside is that people are allowed to take one book per visit.

Sponsored
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Originally, the gas-station owner suspected that the “mystery man” was buying lots of books only to try and find valuable ones, but that was not the case. In this instance, the books were a present to the community from a man who wanted to do something good.

The man’s name is Larry and in a way, he went from a zero to a hero. A fit man of about 42, Larry said he had spent some time in prison for doing drugs. He said that the prisoners used to fight over books. In prison, a book was Larry’s big treat. After he got out 20 years ago, Larry said he started grabbing as many books as he could.

Larry said he has been going to mainly swap meets for 22 years, where he would wait until the swap meet closed to accumulate as many books as he could find left behind. Today, Larry has a collection of about 6000 books that he plans to bring to Emerald Oil.

When asked about his dreams, Larry said he wanted to open a thrift store one day and keep supplying books.

“To me, it’s worth it to keep bringing the books, if somebody reads them.”

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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