Basement Books

Used to love visiting this place whenever I was in the vicinity of the City. I was shocked to see that it (along with many other shops) had closed down due presumably to the extensive alternations and modifications to Central station. Does anyone know if they set up somewhere else in the city ? or did they close down for good ?

Come here first before you look elsewhere. Heavily discounted books and extensive genres.
Good children’s and cookbook and art book selection.
If they don’t have if then do a quick walk to Central Station and hop on a train to Town Hall and go to a mainstream bookstore. No harm in looking here first — you will get a bargain.

You know, as a bargain bookshop this place is fantastic.
They don’t have all copies of series or complete sets, but they have super cheap classics, fiction, non-​fiction, cooking, biography, comic, art, crafts… Bits and bobs even.
Like canvases. And colouring in books in the childrens section. And holiday specific items that they get in.
And the best bit? It’s all cheap as chips m’dears! CHEEEEEAP!
Actually I think they might be cheaper than chips.

Basement Books is so good because you can experiment with books you’d never usually read without care because they’re all so cheap. I don’t shop there very often but whenever I do I always end up with a few different hit and miss books but there is always at least one that is amazing. Its great for all of those people who suck at making decisions and the idea of picking one expensive book in a normal bookshop stresses you out!
It’s also really good for gift shopping as most the books are completely undamaged and unmarked but at significantly lower prices. Nobody will ever be able to tell how much of a cheapskate you are anymore

This place was such a good find! I’ve been to Basement Books on several occasions since randomly stumbling in a few months ago and just can’t get enough. With such a wide variety of genres and titles, every time I come back I find something new (or old) and wonderful.
A really great place to browse and get lost in the wall to wall racks and tables of incredibly inexpensive books! They also have a nice section for stationary and arts & crafts.
Love this place!

I found this place at random. I just saw books and paper stuff next to a «REDUCED PRICE» sign. That convinced me to get in: and indeed, there are a LOT of stuff very cheap: besides the books, you get pens, pencils, drawing paper, calendars etc etc. You’re almost sure to buy something when you get in, but it’s so cheap anyway that you won’t regret it!

I sometimes end up on this end of town and usually swing by this place this to shop for some good reads.
Basement Books has numerous titles on offer in a variety of different genres. Its changeover is so frequent its like the first time every time that your rummaging through books and finding that gem. Not just about the decent book finds, but everything in there is a real deal for your dollar, with art and craft supplies and other stationary on offer. You have been warned, its easy to go crazy in this place and purchase up.
Unfortunately the online store is not a great substitute — it lacks showing the diverse range of titles. So whenever you may be in the area — pop in to Basement Books for a chance to grab some ridiculously cheap reads. You never know what this store may have for you!

I usually hit up Basement Books just prior to an overseas trip because I don’t want to pay top dollar for a book I am going to read once and pass on to the next guy.
Cue Basement Books.
There is always a good bargain to be had here and you can generally pick up books for under $ 5. My pocket likes the sound of that. They have a large genre of books including fantasy, romantic, travel, recipes and kids.
And while I’ve never read an earth-​shatteringly good book from here, I’ve definitely been kept entertained. And every time I can swap the book out in good faith knowing that I haven’t wasted my money.

Another hidden gem. You won’t believe this but I bought a Russel Crowe Biography for $ 2.95. Now that’s not an insult in anyway to the genius that is Rusell Crowe, but it sure is a little treat for my wallet. This store buys books from other bookstores that aren’t doing so well and heavily reduces the price and sells them off in a bargain basement type scenario. It is quite big, so there is a variety store aspect to it as well. You’ll notice racks with insence sticks, diarys, gift ideas, but mainly books. There were some really fantastic coffee table books with photographs of the stars of yester-​year like Sofia Loren and Marilyn Monroe but all for under $ 10. I really like this bookstore and I will be back soon.

I came across this gem after university one evening. Tired and bored after several hours in a lecture, I was after some reading material to keep me awake and entertained on the train. While I enjoy both trashy and educational fiction and non-​fiction, I was after some decent chick-​lit. If your train is yet to arrive for another 15 minutes or so, delving into the bookshelves at Basement Books is a fine away to wile away the time.
I began to browse the shelves and found multiple books that interested me. There is always a mixture of best sellers, new releases and classics which are unbelievably cheap. Instead of leaving with one book, I left with two bags full. Why buy one book for an RRP of $ 32.95 when you can buy a dozen for around $ 60! At unbeatable prices, it is very tempting to buy out the whole store. You will have to exercise sheer willpower to emerge with money in your pocket.
Prices can range from $ 2.95 up to $ 6.95-$ 7.95. Some hardcover books might be more expensive, but are still very reasonable. See accompanying photograph for a look at some of the books I purchased.
The staff are very friendly and always have a smile on their face– perhaps because the smile of their customers is so large having found this treasure trove of reading material!

If the ancient Mayans and deodorant commercials are right and the apocalypse is imminent, then stockpiling should commence. Right at the top of my list is adequate reading material. And hygiene products. But that’s another story.
Basement Books is the perfect place to start on your own emergency reading pile. It’s a remainder bookstore (ie: brand new books at the end of a print run that the publisher will otherwise pulp). Yes, you heard me, pulp. As in reduce to squishy indeterminate matter losing all inherent meaning and making the death of the original tree killed to make it an exercise in pointlessness and environmental degradation.
So really, by buying a huge stack of books you’re actually saving them for future post-​apocalyptic generations to puzzle over and/​or supporting the notion of recycling. You’re saving the enviroment AND the intellectual heritage of our possibly crumbling civilisation. Ok, maybe not if you buy the latest Bryce Courteney. But there’s so much more on offer here.
I’m the one hobbling down the tunnel struggling under a load of Lit twice my own bodyweight. See you on the other side.

In this day and age of Kindle and Kobo and Nook, a solid read (and I mean one that you can literally hold and turn pages beneath your fingers) comes pretty cheap. You really do need to head in to see what they’ve got because I find their online catalogue lacking and sometimes the staff don’t even know what they’re stocking. The outside disguises how big this place really is, as it has sections for anything from classic fiction to travel books and bios. It has a pretty decent selection of art supplies as well (I’m no art student, but it does cater for scrapbooking hobbies or the amateur artist if you’re after it).
Right in the back corner they have a little children’s section which I found perfect for my six year old sister who’s going through her first reading phase. I bought her a collection of these tiny Winnie the Pooh classics, and a special anniversary edition of Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit and Friends stories which averaged around $ 4 and $ 12 respectively. They have tons of different hard cover books (some of which are pop up!) which were surprisingly cheap, but more importantly, were invaluable in keeping kids (of all ages) entertained for hours.

Things I saw when I walked into Basement Books last week:
1. Gumby: The Complete 1950s and 60s on DVD. For $ 6.95.
2. John Cassavetes’ classics Faces and Shadows. For $ 2.95 ea.
3. The autobiography of Charles Bronson, the convict. For $ 5.95.
I almost crumbled to my knees, throwing my wallet on the floor and just demanding that they take my money and allow me to slink away with my chosen goods. Thankfully, I caught myself and walked through the rest of store, overindulging in the selection and turning myself off of buying anything.
These are the kinds of things you should do to avoid spending a ridiculous amount of money in here. Yes, everything is cheap, but as basic math has taught us, it all adds up.
Despite this, if you’re a stronger man than I and have a house with plentiful storage, this should be your first stop if you’re in the area. The sheer number of books on my «to read» list that have turned up in here at a third of the price is astounding.

Basement Books is a dangerous place on many levels.
Danger number one: It’s in Central. It is right in Central. Central is a place you meet people, so you might say, meet you in central at 4pm and then you get there at 3.30pm and you have to wait. So what do you do? You go to Basement Books and peruse their countless books with bright yellow stickers advertising their low and affordable price.
Danger number two: Because these books that you’re perusing are cheap, you can justify the price even if you’re not sure whether you even need the book. ‘Oh, a history of Physics’ I’ve always been interested in Physics, and it’s only $ 9.95 I should probably buy this and learn about Physics.
Danger number three: Their range is gigantic! I almost said ‘ginormous’, but that’s not a word. What I meant was Hugantic! There are literally thousands upon thousands of books and they’re always receiving new stock. They have art sections, computer sections, history, film, personal growth, science fiction, literature, even books like the dictionary, which, had I purchased a copy last I was in, would have saved me the embarrassment of using a non-​word like ‘ginormous’.
So beware of Basement Books. You have been warned. The bookshop is in a great location, the titles are cheap and the range extraordinary. I have a pile of books in my room almost as tall as I am that I have yet to read, opportune purchases that came at me as I strolled amidst the aisles killing time. A book on deadly diseases for $ 4.95, I’m not going to find that bargain again. Buy! Buy! Buy!