Donate Zane Grey Books — Free Albuquerque Pickup

I accept Zane Grey donations anywhere in the Albuquerque metro with free pickup — the whole collection: Riders of the Purple Sage, The Heritage of the Desert, The Lone Star Ranger, the Western novels, and the fishing and outdoor books. You don't sort or price anything. Bring it all, including the old hardcovers you might not recognize; the true 1912 Harper & Brothers first edition of Riders of the Purple Sage is collectible (the common Grosset & Dunlap copies are reprints), so I check the publisher and date on everything and the rest funds New Mexico literacy.

Published June 2026 · By Josh Eldred, New Mexico Literacy Project

Zane Grey practically invented the popular Western, and his books sold in the millions, so a Grey shelf — usually a long row of matching old hardcovers — turns up in cleanout after cleanout across the Southwest. Most people clearing one assume the old hardcovers are valuable or assume they're worthless; the truth is "it depends on the publisher," and that's exactly the kind of thing I sort. I take the whole thing, free, and I check every book.

What I take: all of it

You don't have to know what's valuable

Here's the reason to call rather than dump: with Zane Grey, the publisher is everything. The true first edition of Riders of the Purple Sage (1912) was published by Harper & Brothers and is genuinely collectible — often four figures, with the 1912 dust jacket being notoriously rare. But the millions of common copies printed by Grosset & Dunlap are inexpensive reprints, and to a non-collector the two can look almost the same. That's exactly the distinction people get wrong — giving away a Harper first as a "fifty-cent old book," or hoping a G&D reprint is worth a fortune. You don't have to learn it; bring the whole shelf and I'll check the title page and publisher on each one, protect any true firsts, and keep the reprints in circulation, with any hidden value identified and handled properly.

Why donate instead of selling it yourself

For a confirmed Harper first, selling on your own can pay. But sorting a long row of look-alike reprints to find the one that matters is exactly the tedious work that keeps these collections sitting in closets until they're dumped. Donating handles it in one call: no research, no pricing, no listings, no shipping, free pickup at your door, the reprints straight to new readers, and any true first recognized and supporting New Mexico literacy. Here's where donated books go.

How free pickup works

Call or text 702-496-4214 (or schedule online), tell me roughly how much there is and where you are, and we set a time. I come to you and load it all. I cover Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Corrales, the East Mountains, and the surrounding metro, and I handle whole-house and estate cleanouts regularly.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I donate Zane Grey books in Albuquerque?

Right here — free pickup anywhere in the metro for the whole collection: the Westerns, the fishing books, the lot. Call or text 702-496-4214.

Is an old Riders of the Purple Sage worth anything?

The 1912 Harper & Brothers first is collectible (four figures, jacket very rare); the common Grosset & Dunlap copies are cheap reprints. They look similar — bring it all and let me check.

A big box of reprints too?

Yes — reprints and paperbacks make great reading copies. Bring the whole box; just don't throw any of it out first.