There may not be such a thing as free lunch, but there are such things as free comic books — all part of the Free Comic Book Day taking place around the country Saturday.

Among the many comic book stores taking part in the event is DeKalb’s Graham Cracker Comics, 901 C Lucinda Ave., headed by manager Rich Berg.

“They [the customers] just say ‘I want free comics,'” Berg said. “And then we beg them to spend money, and they just point to the huge free sign.”

Participation in the event is far from mandatory, as all of the comic book stores have to purchase the free comics from Diamond Comic Distributors, the largest comic book distributor in the country. According to Berg, especially overseas, comic book stores are frustrated by the large shipping course and not participating. Still, the event itself has been growing successfully for the last of couple years.

“Free Comic Book Day is a four- or five-year-old industry-wide celebration of upwards of twenty comic book titles for free,” Berg said.

According to Berg, the event is a way of attracting more of the non-regular comic book readers into the store. This is especially true of the independent titles which aren’t as widely read as industry giants like Marvel and DC. Berg cites Avatar Press, an independent company which released comics for Free Comic Book Day, as an example of a company which has seen rising sales in return for participation in the event.

“I just see it as an opportunity,” said physical education major Tony Kuzera. “Last year I picked up Ultimate X-Men free and I was hooked. And it gets you in the store.”

Still, not all comic book store regulars participate in the event as heavily as others.

“Sometimes, I read so many comics, it’s really a matter of ‘do I need any more comics to read?'” said law student Brian Gerken.

In spite of this, Berg looks forward to Saturday’s event.

“It’s really cool, because most of them are new material,” he said. “It’s a great introduction. And plus, since it’s free, if you don’t like it, you can give it away to people.”