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GrenadeStar t1_iw87fvr wrote

I get mine from the Thrift Books website. The description of condition has been exactly as described. So much so that at this point, if I got one that was off, I wouldn’t be mad because they’ve been so consistent.

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_scorpioqueen26 t1_iw88q2z wrote

Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Half-Priced books, Goodwill, or other local bookstores. Barnes and Noble is probably the most reliable out of them all for me, I know I'll be getting what I'm looking for (there are rare occasions when I don't).

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Significant-River429 t1_iw88wd8 wrote

Sometimes Amazon. I probably buy the majority at the local Half Price Books store we have in town.

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Cat_hehehe t1_iw89a4x wrote

I buy used from several sites- all with good experiences/ no damage- Thriftbooks, Abebooks, SecondSale, and Better World Books!

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eschuylerhamilton t1_iw89z39 wrote

Amazon or thriftbooks. I've never had an issue with my books arriving damaged.

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pineapplesf t1_iw8a1iq wrote

Used book stores > Thrift books > Alibris

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Chicachikka t1_iw8e5j4 wrote

Buy? I steal em from my friends houses.

Kidding, Im kidding!

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Aniya0 t1_iw8gc7e wrote

I buy (and sell) my books used on rebuy and medimops (Germany). I also own a kindle, so that's amazon for ebooks.

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mmwhatchasaiyan t1_iw8hi8j wrote

The thriftbooks website is great. But don’t sleep on actual thrift and second hand stores. They usually have a lot of books, they are very cheap, and most are in great condition.

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Jack_Whitlock t1_iw8ijic wrote

I imagine a psychopath selling used books with the last page torn out.

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Complex_Meringue9954 t1_iw8jytj wrote

For paperbacks or hardbacks my first port of call is my local bookshop, which is fabulous. If I have a book in mind that they don't have (a rare event) and they can't get hold of it I look at Waterstones and Blackwells in town. If I can't get it there I'll go to Amazon.

If I'm ok with the ebook I go straight to Amazon.

I enjoy a walk around my local Oxfam bookshop, but that's more for a serendipity find than looking for something in particular.

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RaccoonRepublic t1_iw8km1y wrote

Thrift stores and eBay are pretty much it. The eBay seller is usually Thrift Books.

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pbc120 t1_iw8km4j wrote

Your local bookstore. Don’t buy off Amazon 😔

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AESilva1 t1_iw8kwu1 wrote

Replying to GrenadeStar (#520,312)

I also use thriftbooks (almost exclusively) and while I would recommend it, I haven't exactly had a similar experience. I love the app/website but it's pretty common to get a book in worse (sometimes better) condition than advertised. I made the mistake of buying some books as presents last year and several of the "Like New" were falling apart and not giftable. I've probably bought somewhere around 200+ books from them in the past 2 years and had to buy craft glue and book tape really early on because of all the repairs I had to do. I've also received the the wrong book occasionally, once they sent me the third book in a series instead of the second and another time i spent extra to get a first edition (advertised as very good condition) and they sent me a damaged 3rd edition (I was able to get a refund for that though, and they didn't make me send it back). It's a fantastic option for cheap books, but don't expect the quality control to be perfect

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DustOfTheEndless t1_iw8mxgf wrote

Usually I get used but for new I do my local bookstore, if they don’t carry it they can get it if I ask them.

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BookeofIdolatry t1_iw8or0m wrote

But what do you mean by purchasing from Amazon? Directly from an Amazon warehouse, but not FBA (fulfilled by Amazon, from a 3rd party seller)? Or from a 3rd party seller who sells on Amazon but ships themselves? The latter is made up of hundreds (thousands?) of sellers, many of whom also sell on Ebay, AbeBooks, Alibris, etc. Many are actually "local brick & mortar" stores, which should be encouraged though Amazon takes their cut from these sales.

Thriftbooks, whom evidently so many like, sells through Amazon and Ebay as well as their own site.

There are so many potential issues to go into. New books from Amazon direct these days seem more likely to be damaged than they used to. At one time they were plastic wrapped and packaged carefully, now not at all - my experience. Just thrown loose in a box and left to slide around, so the covers are scratched up. Many third party sellers describe their books well and package carefully, and are a pleasure to deal with. Many more are just in it to make a buck because Youtube told them they could, and overgrade their books so a VG book is junk, missing the dustjacket, dirty, ex-library, etc. Amazon encouraged this behavior by re-defining their condition guidelines a few years ago so you don't know what you're likely to get now. This was to support the mass sellers of ex-library books and reject books, and this really damaged the on-line book buying experience while maximizing the profits of the mass sellers, also maximizing Amazon's cut.

Thriftbooks packaging is absolutely terrible, so if you order a hardcover in my experience it will most likely be damaged in shipping. Paperbacks tend to fare better because they are lighter and corners are not as vulnerable to getting "bumped". Any seller that ships in thin plastic with no other protection doesn't care about the books, so be warned. There are many of them, another mass-seller example is Betterworldbooks.

My refund rate from the mass sellers is greater than 50%, and I only order VG or better, and the listings cannot state "ex-library". Again the new Amazon guidelines which the online make-a-buck sellers have adopted allow ex-library to be listed as Very Good. Which is 100% BS, by the way. Not that I have an opinion on it.

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twee_centen t1_iw8ton0 wrote

A locally owned small business for physical books and libro.fm for audiobooks. The store I shop at will also order in any books I want, even if it's not something they'd choose to stock otherwise.

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pettythief1346 t1_iw8y6ld wrote

Abebooks. 4 dollar books and free shipping.

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Alive-Fisherman-8502 t1_iw8yktn wrote

Book depository (shipping worldwide) and bol.com/ bruna but they are only available in the Netherlands.

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existential_atheist t1_iw8z2mx wrote

I live in an area that doesn't have any good locally owned book stores. So my only option is BAM or ordering online. But I prefer to physically browse through books so BAM is my go to

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mary48154 t1_iw8znbs wrote

I actually download all my books from library app so I don't pay. I do audiobooks and regular books. I'm not a saver of books so this won't work for many.

Sometimes I have to wait a while to get a book, but it's doesn't cost me anything so I don't mind waiting a few months for my turn.

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Mr_Truguy t1_iw8zur3 wrote

there's this store called the bookmine where i get them. other than that just amazon i guess or even walmart if i see something i want (ie new stephen king book)

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Edd7cpat t1_iw93m52 wrote

Hey! Leaf X Leaf has done a review on Bookstores. It was published like 2 weeks ago. Highly recommend. (If he is not in the top 1% of well-read people, nobody is.)

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artaig t1_iw95624 wrote

Alibris. It's a page for local libraries to sell books internationally. You check all libraries with all prices. New or 2nd hand. I once got a 70 year old book at cover price, meaning I paid more for shipping than the book, which was in impeccable condition.

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inf_lazy_bunny t1_iw95n7t wrote

abebooks for specific titles that's been published for a while

local, second hand bookstore for whenever I want to get new books, but ok with buying outside of my list

As for new, hot books, I don't buy them, because I'm cheap.

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Jabroni504 t1_iw95wez wrote

I buy almost exclusively from my local bookstores. International editions or out of print books I’ll source online from book depository or abe books.

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AFSAlameda t1_iw96wut wrote

Replying to pbc120 (#520,957)

Local bookstore is worse than Amazon/Book Suppository. I hate standing at a counter for minutes while the clerk completely ignores me for minutes. This is not exaggerating 30 seconds into minutes either. Minutes goes through awkward and into a breach of the Geneva Convention articles on the treatment of PoWs. I have another local 80 kilometers away who always come through and are fast and friendly.

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Katerade44 t1_iw99r4m wrote

Used book shops, both from actual stores and used book stores online. Mostly, though, I just use the library and the Libby app instead of purchasing books unless they are for my child.

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cloudeeec t1_iw9babf wrote

bookoutlet, bookdepository, or a thrift store are my go-tos

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ashfay100 t1_iw9ckve wrote

So I've used thirft books. The books i got were never in the as described condition always worse. I'm glad it works for some people. I use books a million or Barnes and Noble. I also have a decent 2nd and Charles near me.

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Dgfreeman t1_iw9fe78 wrote

Replying to AESilva1 (#520,967)

I too have had marginal experience with Thriftbooks. I find that I can really only purchase books from them when listed as "Like New" and that is even a risk. It doesn't help that the books are always thrown in a thin plastic bag with no protection whatsoever. I bought a "Very Good" hardcover last year that arrived with the cover RIPPED. Yes the hardcover board itself was RIPPED about 2". There was no damage to the shitty little bag it was in either.

I have had some OK purchases with them but I find the condition is always much worse than listed. I just assumed this is how they are. It's interesting to see others have had seemingly opposite experiences.

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belongtotherain t1_iw9g2mj wrote

An independent book store that I live near OR ThriftBooks. Amazon is my last resort.

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A_Adorable_Cat t1_iw9lkx6 wrote

I try and buy local. One of the bookshops near me will order the book if they don’t have a copy on hand.

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nerdcredred t1_iw9ov0n wrote

Kinokuniya Bookstore! There's a location here in Austin and they have a great selection, plus will order whatever they don't have in stock.

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NefariousnessOk3471 t1_iw9q1xv wrote

Try book depository. It’s free shipping and they package the books up really well. I’ve bought hundreds of books from them and only had an issue once, which was quickly resolved at their cost. Plus, screw Amazon. Www.bookdepository.com

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el0011101000101001 t1_iw9qgzl wrote

I'm lucky that I have 2 very good used bookstores near me so I exclusively buy from there.

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MonteCristo85 t1_iw9tcdd wrote

I don't but a lot anymore just because I don't want to store them, but I try to buy at local bookstores, though occasionally I'll get something from a brick and mortar Barnes & Noble.

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raytay_1 t1_iw9tjr3 wrote

My library has book sales about once a quarter and you can fill a whole bag for $5. They also have a “shop” which is open all the time and books are usually $1-2.

I also like ThriftBooks and have ordered a lot from them with no issues.

2nd and Charles is also a fun place to shop for books and they have used and new. Surprisingly, Ollie’s (an outlet store) has a very good book selection for very cheap. They don’t have an online presence, so you have to have one nearby to frequent or maybe take a road trip!

I use Amazon as a last resort for books I haven’t been able to find anywhere else.

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ceazecab t1_iw9vk52 wrote

Thriftstores, half price books, facebook marketplace & eBay

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books-ModTeam t1_iw9voum wrote

Hi there. Per rule 3.3, please post book recommendation requests in /r/SuggestMeABook or in our Weekly Recommendation Thread. Thank you!

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