# Online book stores



## paflairl (3 Nov 2005)

Hi all,

I usually purchase my books in bulk at amazon.co.uk, but after my recent set of purchases seem to think that it is now nearly cheaper to purchase on the main street due to the exchange rates. 

What other sites do the bookworms amongst us purchase from? Which ones are the best value?

I'm certain this topic has arisen many times before so I'm sure one of the excellent admin persons will provide a link to the appropriate thread.

Thanks in advance.

paflairl


----------



## extopia (3 Nov 2005)

Easons.ie sometimes has cheaper rates than they charge in the store. And if you print out the rate and go into the store they will honour the lower price. At least they did for me some time ago.


----------



## Kramer (3 Nov 2005)

paflairl said:
			
		

> I'm certain this topic has arisen many times before so I'm sure one of the excellent admin persons will provide a link to the appropriate thread.


No offence intended, and as I'm new here myself I may get corrected but could you not use the search facility yourself?
http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=3444&highlight=online+book
I found this topic above in about 10 seconds


----------



## SteelBlue05 (3 Nov 2005)

use amazon.com

I find them the cheapest (espeicially currency rates for US to Euro are good).

I find buying from the "used and new" link the cheapest, the sellers generally beat the amazon.com price.


----------



## Seagull (3 Nov 2005)

You can also look at play.com. They have free delivery, which makes quite a difference compared to amazon.


----------



## SteelBlue05 (3 Nov 2005)

Seagull said:
			
		

> You can also look at play.com. They have free delivery, which makes quite a difference compared to amazon.


 
they dont have the range that amazon and their sellers have...

just checked prices for the last 3 books I bought from amazon.com, each one was between 4-8 euro cheaper delivered than the play.com prices.


----------



## Sherman (3 Nov 2005)

You should also check out the world famous Kenny's of Galway - http://www.kennys.ie


----------



## MissRibena (3 Nov 2005)

But if you buy from amazon.com will you not get books in American-ese and not in British English (if you get what I mean)?  Pedantic, I know but it drives nuts and distracts me when I see all the z's and the more phonetic spellings of the Americans.

Last time I checked the Amazon.com website delivery times were quite a bit longer and would the US-->EU importation factor attract VAT and duty issues?  I like the "look inside" feature on amazon.com, mind you.

I buy from play and amazon and sometimes thebookpeople.ie or the secondhand websites like abebooks.  That said, I still would prefer the tactile experience of buying in a "real" bookshop.

Rebecca


----------



## SteelBlue05 (3 Nov 2005)

MissRibena said:
			
		

> Last time I checked the Amazon.com website delivery times were quite a bit longer and would the US-->EU importation factor attract VAT and duty issues? I like the "look inside" feature on amazon.com, mind you.


 
I never noticed the american spelling style, I probably will from now on! I dont think it would bother me much, its only the odd "z" replacing a "s" etc.

No VAT\Duty to pay on a good imported valued less than a certain amount, think its 170 euro or something. So you wont be affected.

Also, in general the delivery times are a lot shorter than they quote. The odd book might take 4 weeks but in the last few years I'd say on average I havent been waiting more than 2 weeks.


----------



## MissRibena (3 Nov 2005)

I thought the threshold was more like 30 odd euro.  

I know I had this issue with an electrical item that cost less than 170 euro a couple of years ago but the seller included the duty & VAT and settled it at his end to make the delivery run smoothly.

Rebecca

PS  It's not just the z/s issue.  When you start noticing it it's everywhere.  A lot of silent letters get dropped for example and words like licence and license are reversed or only one is used, I think.  It's not that any of it is a bad thing in itself, it's just drives me mad and I could not read a novel in the American version unless there was absolutely no other option.


----------



## Seagull (3 Nov 2005)

You quite often find that the American covers are different as well. A prime example is Terry Pratchett books, where you get a really bland cover instead of one of Paul Kidby's glorious creations.


----------



## SteelBlue05 (3 Nov 2005)

MissRibena said:
			
		

> I thought the threshold was more like 30 odd euro.
> .


 
didnt realise it was this low, but I have bought a few books around the 40-50 euro mark without any problem. Maybe customs dont bother with the small amounts. I did pay 21% on the purchase of an electronic item imported from the US once. It still worked out a lot cheaper than the cheapest price I could find in dublin.


----------



## huskerdu (3 Nov 2005)

I know someone who lives in the US and who lost the book he was reading when on vacation in Ireland, so bought it in the States when he got back, to finish reading it. 

It was a translation into English and the translation was different in the American
addition, not just spelling, but different language used.


----------



## Red (3 Dec 2008)

Sorry for bringing up an old thread, but can any one recommend some good online book stores where P&P is not excessive. I have several nieces & nephews to buy for.


----------



## ClubMan (3 Dec 2008)

Sherman said:


> You should also check out the world famous Kenny's of Galway - http://www.kennys.ie


I found them terrible to deal with. They were listing books online and accepting orders for them even though they did not have them in stock. I submitted two orders for such items and they never told me that the orders would not be fulfilled. I had to chase them to find out what was going on. They told me that they were having trouble updating their website to reflect actual stock etc. I found The Book Depository much better and cheaper. As ever shop/price around as many places as possible.


----------



## ClubMan (3 Dec 2008)

Red said:


> Sorry for bringing up an old thread, but can any one recommend some good online book stores where P&P is not excessive. I have several nieces & nephews to buy for.


_The Book Depository _above have free worldwide _P&P_. Obviously compare the prices there to those elsewhere including _P&P _in case...


----------



## Red (3 Dec 2008)

Thanks Clubman will have a look

What an unfortunate website name !
Rhymes with........


----------



## mell61 (3 Dec 2008)

I've used amazon.de as its one of the cheapest P&P ofany of the amazon sites, I don't speak german but find it easy to place the orders, basically the interface is exactly the same!
Play.com is also good, I just got my latest delivery today 

I've also used a US site called bookcloseouts.com, they sell end of line / damaged stock, and some of the prices are excellent, P&P can be high, but I've found it does usually balance out to be better than amazon (if the stock is available).   I used them last Xmas to buy heaps of kids books, which were Eu10-15 here and I got many for $3-6, so the total was still a lot cheaper.


----------



## Red (3 Dec 2008)

nice one Mell. 
Would never had thought to try & use the German Amazon.
At least my prices will be in euros.
Do they have many children's books in English on the site  ?


----------



## mell61 (3 Dec 2008)

If you click on the 'Bucher' there is a tab called Engliche Bucher.  I've usually used either the title / author / ISBN to search and only once not found what I was looking for.
I think you will probably find most of what you are looking for, but check the availability timings, as occasionally they can be 7-10 days, my suspicion is that they are shipped from the US to germany, before they can despatch to you.
In fact while checking to answer this posting I've jsut found they are about half price of a graphic novel I was looking at in .com!   I might be ordering yet!

Down side is that I do occasionally get some german special offers emails, but for the savings I can hit delete!


----------



## DoctorEvil (3 Dec 2008)

mell61 said:


> Play.com is also good, I just got my latest delivery today



I especially like the Play Trade option where you can pick up second hand books for very little including free delivery.


----------



## enoxy (3 Dec 2008)

[Amazon is the best. The marketplace sellers often good.


----------



## Bluebells (4 Dec 2008)

I use the Book Depository mostly.  Abe Books is good, and ibuk is great for hard to find books. If you can't find the book you want try Bookfinder.com


----------



## Latrade (22 Jan 2010)

Bluebells said:


> I use the Book Depository mostly. Abe Books is good, and ibuk is great for hard to find books. If you can't find the book you want try Bookfinder.com


 
Sorry to bump. 

Have been looking around for two books that I couldn't find anywhere else on line. Searched here, found the Book Depository and bingo! In stock, 50% off and free postage.

I left posting this to see how long they took to process and to arrive. Processing was a bit longer than amazon, overall process was 7-8 days from order to arrival (about the same as Play).

No connection to the site, just from checking against amazon, either comparable (with the free delivery) or cheaper, plus seemed to stock the obscure books I wanted that amazon didn't.

I've also used booksunlimited.ie. They're stock can be limited (despite their name), but they're very quick to come back and say when a book isn't available and you have the option of cancelling or waiting. Can be slightly more expensive on some stuff, but they're the pick of the Irish sites/stockists.


----------



## fobs (22 Jan 2010)

I too have found book depository very good. Amazon is good now too if ordering more than £25 worth of books as qualify for free postage but the former gives that no matter how small the order.


----------



## Complainer (22 Jan 2010)

You can get pretty much any book in the country for just 50c via http://borrowbooks.ie.

The only catch is that you have to give it back after a few weeks. It is a great service for these recessionary times.


----------



## smiley (22 Jan 2010)

Ive used the book depository for 4-5 years now and have found them superb!

i save a fortune v buying books in Ireland


----------



## Westie123 (23 Jan 2010)

Hi,

I would give my vote to the Book Depository as well. I have bought a good number of books from them. Their prices are very good and they are alwaws spot on with delivery.


----------



## cernunnos (23 Feb 2010)

Just purchased 4 books from Book Depository now and it was €14 cheaper than amazon.co.uk. (amazon.com was more expensive - they were computer related books


----------



## lisakelly (31 Dec 2010)

the book depository facebook page gives 10% discount codes


----------



## ramble (4 Jan 2011)

alibris.co.uk cheap books, cheap delivery, have got a few second hands that were in mint condition for very little


----------



## greenfield (8 Feb 2011)

http://www.awesomebooks.com/help/shipping/
Great for second hand books - shipping is £0.59 for the first item and free for any subsequent


----------



## BillK (8 Feb 2011)

Do you a a shop chain called "The Works" over there or up in the North?
I recently bought the 2011 Whittaker's Almanac in my local branch for £14.99 instead of the list price of £45.00. Many other books of all sorts for very cheap prices.


----------



## BillK (8 Feb 2011)

Just Googled and the web site is www.theworks.co.uk

Worth a look.
Had a look on the website and the shops on your side of the water are in:

Belfast, Lisburn. Bangor, Newtownabbey.

Not much good to you unless you live near to the border, or they deliver to the south.


----------



## T McGibney (9 Feb 2011)

The Works have also have stores in Enniskillen, the Banbridge Outlet and, for some weird reason, Killarney. 

Last autumn they took over (or at least rebranded) the stores of the Bargain Books chain across NI. Bargain Books stores were great for all sorts of books, especially kids books and fiction.

In contrast, The Works stores have a comparitively narrow range of books and a lot of art materials and 'novelty' rubbish. Although you will find the odd bargain in The Works, I think that their prices are not cheap, and in overall terms they're not a patch on the old Bargain Books stores.


----------



## tvman (9 Feb 2011)

I just ordered 15 used books from awesomebooks at an average of less than £2 and the postage was free. Brilliant site.


----------



## greenfield (9 Feb 2011)

LOL tvman, I bought 12 books for £17 (total) last week from awesomebooks... the problem now is that I need new book cases.   It is a good site if you have the patience to trawl through the listings.


----------



## tvman (9 Feb 2011)

Billy bookcases from IKEA are the business - I was up north last year and picked up a load of them for dirt cheap. May have to make another visit soon


----------



## BillK (9 Feb 2011)

T McGibney said:


> The Works have also have stores in Enniskillen, the Banbridge Outlet and, for some weird reason, Killarney.
> 
> 
> In contrast, The Works stores have a comparitively narrow range of books QUOTE]
> ...


----------



## T McGibney (10 Feb 2011)

BillK said:


> T McGibney said:
> 
> 
> > The Works have also have stores in Enniskillen, the Banbridge Outlet and, for some weird reason, Killarney.
> ...


----------



## Mpsox (10 Feb 2011)

Complainer said:


> You can get pretty much any book in the country for just 50c via http://borrowbooks.ie.
> 
> The only catch is that you have to give it back after a few weeks. It is a great service for these recessionary times.


 
We started up our own library here at work, employer bought some shelves, most people brought in 15-20 books and there's probably 4-5000 books in it now. It's great


----------



## horusd (10 Feb 2011)

Mpsox said:


> We started up our own library here at work, employer bought some shelves, most people brought in 15-20 books and there's probably 4-5000 books in it now. It's great


 

 That's a brilliant idea. Might borrow that one!


----------



## Sophietk (2 Mar 2011)

You could also try ordering online from O'Mahonys although I also find  that the book depositary as mentioned works out the cheapest.


----------



## BillK (2 Mar 2011)

If you invest in an Amazon Kindle (I got one for Christmas) you can get a lot of books from Amazon free, some at 71p (sterling) and some at £3.99.
You do need a wireless connection to avail of the books.


----------



## putsch (2 Mar 2011)

BillK said:


> If you invest in an Amazon Kindle (I got one for Christmas) you can get a lot of books from Amazon free, some at 71p (sterling) and some at £3.99.
> You do need a wireless connection to avail of the books.




You don't need the wireless connection if you buy the 3g version - about 50euro more expensive but will connect to internet for free anywhere and anytime for downloading.


----------

