Brittani Lusk

Heather McDonald was tired of buying her textbooks at the bookstore where the prices were high and it was always a hassle. She was a senior at Utah Valley State College before she heard about campusbookrentals.com while listening to the radio.

"I was like, this is awesome, because I'm poor and I need a better way than the bookstore," McDonald said.

The company, which is like Netflix for textbooks, allows students to rent books and send them back at the end of the semester for a fraction of what it would cost to buy them.

She was so excited about the Kaysville-based company that she told many of her social-work classmates because she wanted them to know how to save money, too. She said the rental fees were about half of what she would have paid to buy the books.

"They were a heck of a lot cheaper, so that's what I did," McDonald said.

UVSC spokeswoman Megan Laurie said UVSC's bookstore only keeps 5 cents for every dollar it makes selling textbooks. She blames high prices on book publishers.

"The bookstore is not out there to gouge students by any means," Laurie said.

Alan Martin, the founder and president of campusbookrentals.com, said it depends on the book, but many can be rented for 50 or 75 percent less than what it costs to buy the book.

Martin is a graduate student and was in the process of buying textbooks when he decided he'd had enough of high book prices.

"There's got to be a better way to get cheaper textbooks," Martin said. "I was sick of how expensive [they were]."

He and friends started the company last August, aimed at students of Weber State University. Now he ships books to all areas of the country. When renters are finished with a textbook, campusbookrentals.com sends them a prepaid envelope to send it back.

Martin said he hasn't had problems with students not sending books back or taking a hit because a professor chose to use a newer edition. If a professor in Utah stops using the book, another professor across the country will probably still be using it.

Martin said the service is "just like Netflix," the online movie-renting service where the DVDs are shipped to houses and then shipped back. The service is easy for students, and it's meant to save them money.

"They can use the money (they save) for more important things," Martin said.

Many students at UVSC were unaware that renting textbooks was even an option, but they like the idea.

"That sounds good. If I had known, I would have done something like that," said UVSC freshman Melissa Parra, who paid about $300 for three books this semester.

Many students use Web sites like Half.com or Amazon.com to save money on books. That's what McDonald was about to do before she heard about campusbookrentals.com. But now, it's no more online buying; she'll rent instead.

• Brittani Lusk can be reached at 344-2549 or at blusk@heraldextra.com.