Are They Gilded with Gold?

Looking at the online bookstore for upcoming college classes, and discovered something horrifying. I haven't bought college textbooks in 20 years, and apparently they're now made of vellum and inlaid with gold and precious stones. The books for NURS 101 alone add up to over $550. Of that, about $390 are required, and $160 are optional. Other book prices:

BIOL 221 (Anatomy and Physiology): $225.00
CHEM 111 (Intro to Chem): $155.00
PSYC 111 (Intro to Psychology): One book, $70.00

That's about $1,000.00 in textbooks, just for four classes. I'm gonna go broke just buying textbooks, never mind the tuition and lab fees. Time to hit the online college textbook sites and see if I can save about $500...