McClatchy Washington Bureau

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Summer Horton, an 18-year-old freshman at Winthrop University, spent $459 of her IHOP waitressing money this semester on textbooks.

Brandi Baker, 20, is waiting on her tax refund check to pay for the rest of her load. Eventually, when she can afford it, Baker expects to pay around $400 on reading materials this semester.

Charlia Crawford, 22, spent $560 but browsed Tuesday for her list of activity packs — another $6 to $10 each. Chris Vaughn, 19, got off easy: $189. But he bought only two books.

The average college student will spend more than $1,000 on textbooks and supplies this year, according to the College Board, up more than 40 percent since 2000.

Read the complete story at heraldonline.com