By Benjamin Rothstein

DOVER — Opportunities to support the Dover Public Library can be found right inside the facility’s front door.

There, visitors can find the Friends of the Dover Public Library’s Book Shop. In only a few aisles, they will discover a variety of used books, both fiction and nonfiction, across various genres — for only $1 per paperback and $2 a hardback.

According to longtime Friends member and secretary Mary Kaltreider, the store has been operating for some time.

“Well, the Friends predates this library, (going back to) the library that was on State Street, I think, that opened in 1960 or ’61,” she said. “The Carriage House had the bookshop there, and they had the Friends handle that. ... It started out as selling the books that the library (had decirculated).”

The first iteration of the shop was staffed by the Friends and, as such, was only available about once a month. That all changed when the group was granted space in the new library, which opened in 2012.

“When the Friends got the space here, they could sell books, and it would be open anytime the library was open because the circulation desk handles the sales. Huge, huge game changer,” Ms. Kaltreider said. “And, also, it was more obvious since it was in the library. The Carriage House was a separate building. More people donated books (here).”

That is something that she and Friends president Janet Carter find special about the bookshop: Because donations are coming in constantly, every time a shopper visits, he or she has a different inventory of works.

Many of the books are in near-mint condition, too.

“Some people, literally, when they move, they clean off their bookshelves and bring us everything on their bookshelves,” Ms. Carter said. “So, you never know what people read and what they enjoy, but we kind of get to see that because the donations vary over the course of the (year).”

The location has a little bit of everything, but the pair said the armed forces population in the area creates a robust selection of military books. And they surprisingly find that vintage cookbooks fly off the shelves, as well as the massive number of fiction pieces.

All Friends members are volunteers, and many are responsible for stocking shelves and sorting through donations. It’s $10 annually to become part of the organization.

The bookshop’s proceeds are often used to benefit the library, mainly for expenses and projects not covered by the main budget — like the Seed Library, where people can obtain literal seeds; a $17,000 audiovisual system upgrade for the meeting rooms; and a 3-D printer pen for the teen area.

The Friends board votes on these initiatives, and not every request from the library is fulfilled.

Meanwhile, the group is hoping to fund author talks, similar to ones that have found success at the Lewes Public Library. The first in Dover is planned before the spring.

More information on the Friends of the Dover Public Library can be found at dover.lib.de.us/information/friends.

The cash-only bookshop is open any time the library is open — 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; and 1-5 p.m. Sundays.