Basement Books

What happens when a bookstore orders too many copies of a particular book? I found out the full story only a few years ago.

It costs a lot of money to ship books around, and often publishers don’t charge the stores up front for the books, so the books will often be:

1. Remaindered, meaning marked with a pen on the bottom next to the spine and sent off to be sold cheaply elsewhere.

2. Have the cover stripped off and be destroyed (I’d always wondered why books often have an odd warning message about not being sold without the original cover in them – the publisher wants to be sure the books aren’t re-sold).

Well, I’ve found a place that sells remaindered books, and it’s fantastic. It’s called Basement Books, it’s near central station in Sydney, and I make every excuse to visit.

Yesterday I bought:

• A hardcover of Brandon Sanderson’s Warbreaker (Don Dos Santos cover) – $15 (retail $55.95)
• Tintin collection volume 5 (3 complete Tintin graphic novels in one hardcover) – $3.95 (retail $39.95)
• Two Disney storybooks – $2 each (retail ~$10)

Remember, these books are brand new, and often good titles (even very popular titles) it’s just that somebody overestimated demand and ordered too many.

The shelves aren’t always alphabetised, and they don’t have everything, but you can get some great books for a heavy discount. Next time you’re in the neighbourhood, check it out.

Note: I’m not affiliated with Basement Books. I’m not being paid for this. They don’t know I’m writing it.