Question

Cameron brought a set of 7 classic paperbacks to a secondhand store to sell. He was paid cash for the entire set. Before he left, Cameron used $4 of his earnings to purchase a used book light. He had $6.50 remaining. What was the value of each paperback in the set?

Answer 1

Let's denote the total amount Cameron earned from selling the 7 classic paperbacks as \( x \).

According to the problem, after selling the paperbacks, Cameron used $4 to purchase a book light. Thus, the amount he had remaining after the purchase is:
\[
x - 4
\]
We know from the problem that this remaining amount is $6.50. Therefore, we can set up the equation:
\[
x - 4 = 6.50
\]

To find \( x \), we add 4 to both sides of the equation:
\[
x = 6.50 + 4
\]
\[
x = 10.50
\]

Now that we know the total earnings from selling the 7 paperbacks is $10.50, we can find the value of each paperback by dividing the total earnings by the number of paperbacks:
\[
\text{Value of each paperback} = \frac{10.50}{7}
\]
Calculating this gives:
\[
\text{Value of each paperback} = 1.50
\]

Therefore, the value of each paperback in the set is **$1.50**.