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Online resources for out-of-print books
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(AP Photo/Washington and Lee University)
Last week was the spring Friends of the Seattle Public Library Book Sale. Readers and collectors from the general public had two days to find their treasures amidst the bounty in a hangar in Magnuson Park, but the savviest bibliophiles knew to become Members to gain access to the Friday night preview sale. Bookshelves all over the city are creaking under the weight of the bibliophiles’ harvest.
The next Friends of the Seattle Public Library Book Sale will be in September (dates TBA), but if you are on the prowl for some used books, there are websites that can help.
First, the web can help you discover used book stores near you, so you can visit in person, establish a relationship with the staff, and browse to your heart's content. My favorite way to find loveable, unique, independent book stores is IndieBound, which evolved from BookSense. IndieBound’s search tool helps you find not just bookstores, but also independently-owned movie theaters, pet stores, coffee shops and more. My one quibble is that in order to see if a store is all new books or has some used, you have to click on the store’s profile. You can click here to see a sample—the profile of one of my favorite new and used stores, Powell’s in Portland. The IndieBound site is a fun, useable way to find bricks-and-mortar stores and their websites. Because you search by zip code, you can find indies from all over the country, go to their sites, and support businesses in communities of your choice. (This is also a very nifty gift-giving tool for finding gift certificates for out-of-town friends.)
For a luxurious online rare and out-of-print shopping experience, treat yourself to a stop at Bauman Rare Books. The antiquarian bookseller has “galleries” instead of stores, and their collections are amazing. If you read the New York Times Book Review in newsprint, you have probably found yourself salivating over their back-page ads. They often offer books with historical significance or highly-sought signed copies. Their website has the classy, sumptuous feel you would expect from such an establishment. I particularly enjoy their photo gallery and browsing tool.
There are several used book search sites online, but my favorite is AbeBooks. I started using it years ago, back when it was a simple, no-frills site representing the network of independent used bookstores. The “Abe” in AbeBooks stood for “Advanced Book Exchange,” and the company had global reach, with headquarters in Canada and Germany. However, the website used to feel a little like an old library search engine. Things changed last year when Amazon acquired the company. The merging of the internet giant and the indie darling caused me some concern, but the site remains true to its mission of connecting professional booksellers (i.e. not a cash-strapped chain smoker offering his personal library in the online equivalent of a yard sale like the person who sold me “Russian Beauty” through Amazon.com) to readers and collectors. You can search by state (or even country) for booksellers and search by title (and specify your price range and special attributes, like signed or first edition). There is a special search for textbooks and a fun new featured section on the home page. I find myself exploring their online book club, reading about their featured booksellers, and enjoying their original articles in the archives, like this one about Book Hoaxes.
Please share your favorite on-line resources for used and out-of-print books in the comments.
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