The website of the Foundation and Friends of the Santa Clara City Library has added a new feature that allows the community to purchase a donated book online, with proceeds going to support the library.

The community can also still purchase donated books at the Friends Bookstore at the Central Park Library, and at the book sale held on the third Saturday of the month.

For online sales, volunteers sort through donated books to select those most likely to sell well. They also take care of pricing, data entry, order processing and shipping. A web service called Alibris.com provides the website and technology to allow online buyers to browse through the virtual bookracks and purchase their selections.

Last year, the Foundation and Friends of the Santa Clara City Library sold almost a quarter million books through its bookstore in the Library and Saturday sales. Several thousand books are expected to be sold this year through the online service.

To explore the database of available books, visit www.lovethelibrary.org and click on “Buy Our Used Books Online.” The host site, Alibris, offers secure transactions.