Parents hunt for cheaper textbooks in Senen

Leo Wahyudi S, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Last month parents were worried about making sure their children were accepted into the school of their choice. Now their concerns have to do with textbooks, or more precisely the cost of textbooks, which many parents find prohibitive.

It is for this reason that many parents buy their children's textbooks from street vendors, who sell new books at lower prices than those found at bookstores. Other parents simply purchase used books, which are even less expensive.

"Books are the most important thing for a child's education. But new books are expensive. I can barely afford the textbooks offered by my children's schools," said O'oy, a father of three from Bekasi.

He said he just paid Rp 2.7 million in school entrance fees for his three children, who attend state elementary, junior and senior high schools. This has left him with little money left to pay for their books.

O'oy said that was why so many parents went to the book market in Senen, where they could find new and used books at discounted prices.

O'oy said he went to the market to buy used textbooks for his three children.

"Regardless their physical condition, they will still serve the same function," he said.

He said he was able to purchase used elementary school textbooks at the market for Rp 6,000 each, compared to the Rp 18,000 he would have had to pay if he bought them direct from the school.

Besides textbooks, customers can also find new and used novels, magazines, comic books and other kinds of reading materials at the Senen book market.

A number of book sellers at the market told The Jakarta Post that book sales had increased recently, with many parents and students having to purchase textbooks for the start of the new academic year.

"People can buy both new and used books here at much cheaper prices," said Rudi, who has been selling books in the Senen market for about 14 years.

However, he said, most people who came to the market preferred to buy new textbooks rather than used ones.

Guntur, a father of two children, one of whom goes to elementary school and the other to junior high school, said he preferred new textbooks.

"I'm afraid that if I buy the used books my children would be embarrassed about studying at school. That's why I want to buy new books, which are also cheaper here," he said.

But for parents who still cannot afford new books, despite the lower prices at the market, used textbooks are the only option.

Adi, another book seller, said: "The prices of used books are negotiable. Sometimes it depends on the appearance of the buyers."

But many parents said they did not care whether the books were new or used. They said that what mattered to them was what was between the two covers.

"It is the contents of the books that matter, not whether they are new or second-hand," said Chris, a mother of three from Matraman, Central Jakarta.

"I could have bought new books but if there are used ones that are still in good condition, why not? That's why I came here (Senen market)," she said.