New vs. Used Bookstores

Well over here in South Africa new books tend to be considerably expensive. Most of the new books I've purchased was done online and luckily I haven't had any arrive damaged.

On the rare occasion I actually get to a physical bookshop I tend to browse and buy from their sale sections. Some very nice bargains can be had.

I've also recently discovered the joys of buying secondhand books online through a local site similar to eBay. Extremely nice bargains can be had that way.

In Finland, it's the same as it is in South Africa: new books are expensive. I live in the capital (Helsinki), so there are good bookshops as well as numerous used bookshops which stock also English books, but I prefer buying online. The price for new books bought online is usually about half of the price in the bookshops.

The past year I've really discovered amazon's used booksellers as well as the British sites www.bookdepository.co.uk and play.com. The latter also has its PlayTrade which sells used books. When I'm looking for books, I check all the sites, amazon's US, UK and German sites as well as the Book Depository and Play. Amazons may sometimes surprise me with their low prices, but mostly I've been buying from the BD which sends its books singly in jiffybags so they arrive asap and does not charge any postage. A definite plus for a buyer from outside UK. I've had only a few bad experiences with substandard book condition with used books bought from amazon, so I trust the website to monitor their sellers. The new books have always been in excellent condition, no damages during transit.

I've used B&N on occasion (especially when I had the Member card for a 10% rebate, bought when visiting the States) as well as the British WH Smith, the Swedish adlibris.com and the Finnish www.bookplus.fi. Unfortunately, the latter two are more expensive compared to the British, US and German sites.

I love browsing actual bookshops and used bookshops, but it takes time and you can never be certain of finding what you are looking for. They are great for spending time with books, but usually I just note down the books that have been published recently and go home to buy them online.

I work for a bookstore. I am the Bargain book & Sci Fi Buyer. I get gallies and free samples, but I still buy a lot of books in our store, and then hit at least 3 different used bookstores on a regular basis. My 'to read' shelf is looking a little out of hand, but I don't want to miss anything as books sometimes only last a few years anymore. I try to read the new stuff to help get the word out, but get sucked into the past alot with my used book finds.

I get my books all kinds of places. As I seldom reread any I swap them on PaperBackSwap and BookMooch. I get some at a used bookstore in town, I buy used ones on Ebay(if the shipping not too high) buy new and used ones from Amazon(where I have a wishlist so my family knows what I want) and get them direct from the publisher- Harlequin, Harper, and Random. It depends on the price and availability as I'm as likely to be looking for older books as new books. I often "discover" a "new" author or series and then proceed to get all of the books. I even occasionally buy them from an actual brick and mortar store but not often as I keep a running inventory of what I have on hand and what I have read on my computer(Readerware). This way I don't buy a book I already have.(which I've been know to do in the past). And last but not least, I swap with friends, even though I probably read 10 to every 1 they read.

I used to stop at Borders on the way home from work every payday. It was my reward for putting up with the job. Now I am disabled so I don't get out much or have much money. Luckily, my last splurge was to buy a used Kindle off of e-bay. Last count, I had gotten 19 free books from Amazon in November, 4 books from the Early Reviewer program at LibraryThing.com and a few others from here and there. I pretty much download anything free thinking I can just delete it if I don't like it. This is working out great for me. I have found several authors I liked by getting the first book free and then went on to buy their others. The Kindle versions are almost always the least expensive and always the easiest since you can go into the Kindle store right on the Kindle, find something interesting, download a sample, read it, one-click to buy it and it downloads in less time than it takes you to pour another cup of coffee. I prefer reading on the Kindle because it's not backlit so it doesn't make my eyes dry out and get blurry like the computer does. It's also easier for me to hold. There is a "Kindle for PC" app you can download now if you want to try them out.

Anyway, I stopped at Borders last week to see if they had a magazine & CD I wanted. Yikes! I guess they missed me. No more CD's, very few DVD's, fewer magazines and the book was full price. Got a coffee and went home to shop at Amazon. The Kindle books are about the price I paid at used book stores so don't shop there much anymore either. I did order a Dead Tree Book of the new Charles de Lint because the Subterranean Press books are gorgeous and I wanted a signed copy. Knitting books are still better in hard copy.

There you go. Thanks for asking.
Diane

Well i somehow agree with you when you say that the books comes damaged when they are purchased online... I have just recently started purchasing books online... and till now i have ordered 4 books out of which 2 have already arrived... they are in pretty good condition though, as mentioned by the publisher/seller on the site. I was happy with this and went on to place an order for two more books. but i prefer a1Books, a US based online bookstore over amazon or B&N. I had a good experience in shopping with this site..they are genuine and often reply to your queries instantly...

I think we people should now try thinking beyond the amazon thing ;)

Happy Reading!!!

Nail, thinking beyond Amazon can be a very good thing!

I work hard with my small business to ensure the books are packing appropriately so they arrive undamaged and unmarked. I receive kind words all of the time from people about it. It can be done but the bigger companies seem unwilling to devote the resources / time to it. I'd be far more prone to order from Amazon if they would merely package their books correctly.

I had a terrible time with a UK online vendor who ships to the US. I even wrote their customer service before I ordered asking how they packed their books. The service rep convinced me, of course, that the books would arrive as they were shipped.

The books arrived severely bumped and the corners damaged. Even dirty in some places. If I could have turned into the Hulk, I would have! Ha!

Sub Press does a great job of packing, Diane. Love those guys! They are one of my best customers and in turn I am one of theirs. :)

Brian, you have a fun job!

All right. Back to boxing books! Happy Holidays everyone!

Shawn

Well the one place that I visit all the time is our public library in Orange California. I have been lucky enough to have read 20 plus books over the last 2 1/2 years from there.

I think this has made me a more committed reader because you only have 3 weeks to read the book, while you can renew, I generally am finished with them in the time given. Also a great used book store out here is "Bookman", they always have a great stock of great books. I visit the chains and on-line sites and see whats new then do the hunting. I always have 1 or 2 books going.

Mainly Amazon and with two local bookstores closing at the end of January, I'll have to drive 20 to 40 minutes in several directions to buy a book. So Amazon is faster and with the price of gas, cheaper.

Besides, used books off Amazon are cheaper. For example, the book Barbarians, Marauders, Infidels and Ways of Warfare in the Middle Ages was only less than $8. So I prefer used since I'm usually broke haha.

abebooks.co.uk a fantastic online site for second hand books they have sellers all over the world it's a great site.