For Carisa Siljander, buying books at the MSU Bookstore on Thursday also meant getting her palm read.

"I'm not one for horoscopes but it was pretty accurate as far as personality traits," the physiology junior said.

Siljander was one of many students who encountered free promotions while buying books.

Bookstores serving MSU students have been offering special promotions such as palm reading, free soda, pizza and candy.

Many provide these promotions in an attempt to lighten the mood, whether customers are waiting in line or searching for books, MSU Bookstore Assistant Manager Shawn Bourdo said.

"It brought me in," said international relations junior Ian Randall. "I just got out of work and I needed something to eat, so I came down here and got some pizza."

Bourdo said the store sponsored a six-day party for the first week of the semester.

"We have had a tarot card reader in a couple different days, a palm reader, and a magician," he said.

The store gave away pizza from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day this week. Bourdo estimates the bookstore will have given away about 1,250 pizzas, or 15,000 slices, by the end of today.

"A lot of our focus has been on building a tradition by committing ourselves to some of these promotions so the students remember that every year they can come back and stop by to get lunch every day," he said.

Palm reader Sally Holliday, from Triple Goddess New Age Bookstore, 2142 Hamilton Road in Okemos, first started reading palms for the bookstore in the fall.

She began reading palms as a hobby in the 1970s and started professionally eight years ago.

"A lot of people want fortune telling and I don't do that," she said. "I do more of a personality analysis."

Many customers said they enjoyed getting their palms read and agreed that Holliday was accurate about personality traits.

"I'm a skeptic, like she said, but a lot of the statements are so generic that they can apply to a lot of people," said Lynne Frechen, a secretary in the College of Education.

In addition to providing free food and palm readings, the MSU Bookstore is having a drawing for free books.

Marketing Associate Professor Forrest Carter said things like free food and palm readings are valuable tools for the book stores.

"This certainly makes sense for them because most of the things in book stores are commodities," Carter said. "The promotions help book stores distinguish themselves and they need to do things that are unique to them."

The Student Book Store, 421 E. Grand River Ave., is also trying to draw customers.

The store gave shoppers coupons to get discounts on T-shirts and hats during book buyback.

Student Book Store general manager Howard Ballein said the return of students and the promotions have kept the store's employees busy.

"Monday we had our biggest day we've had in 42 years," he said.