I purchased the three volume set of 'The Savoy' , probably the crown jewel of Fin de Siecle periodicals in English circa 1896. A lasting monument to the great Aubrey Beardsley, dead too soon at age 26.... But what an astonishing legacy in Art and book design- and this, published less than two years before his tragically untimely demise is an Immortal testament in print to his daring and transgressive genius. And the price! Not a 'steal' but definitely at the low, low, low end of current pricing amongst book dealers and auction houses. And the owner, John Tribone, in the business over 30 years and a member of all the respected professional associations. I requested close up photos that I received in short order. The volumes were delightful!!! NO damage, still some uncut pages, bright gilt covers, unfaded in over a century's existence. Obviously a well loved set. It was so carefully bubble wrapped in a sturdy box and posted signature required as I requested. So I saw a few nitpicking complaining reviews. I spent two grand and I am DELIGHTED with my purchase read more

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I ordered a book "Fine/like new" from Abacus via Abebooks and it arrived quickly, very well-wrapped, and was indeed fine/like new. So I'm very satisfied. Not all booksellers pack books this well, though some others do. read more

Well, much as I don't like to, I'm afraid I have to add my voice to those who said that this seller was neither good nor a good experience. He was not directly rude to me, and so I did not leave a 1 star review. However, I ordered a book from his store on Abebooks and twice requested tracking information from him, as I live in apartment complex and things are often left at the wrong building. I not only received no information, I wasn't even graced with a response. I finally contacted Abebooks help directly and explained the situation. I don't know what happened, but they stated they would contact the seller, and the next day I was given a refund for the entirety of my purchase and told I could keep or donate the item if it arrived. For me, I will never do business with this bookseller again, and were it possible to leave a review like this one on Abebooks itself, I gladly would. Whatever value he may have in his books is more than negated by the seemingly complete lack of interest in anything resembling decency toward the customer. I would advise anyone reading this to steer clear and find another online bookseller. read more

If I could leave a zero star review, I would. I had a perplexing interaction with the proprietor of this business. Using one of the notable book sites (Alibris) I asked if I could have a couple of pictures of a specific book prior to purchasing. I just wanted to get a visual on the item I was buying. John (owner) responded with a one-word answer: "why?". I wrote back to explain my reasoning and he responded that I was "wasting his time". Now, let's hypothetically say he didn't want to take the time to provide a photo or two of the item but still wanted to potentially sell a book. He could have simply replied "Certainly, if you are an interested buyer I'm happy to". That would have allowed me, the customer, the opportunity to express my interest in purchasing said item and convey to him that I am indeed a buyer if the description matches the photos. I guess there is the possibility that John (owner) has so much business rolling in that he has no time to interact in a more cordial way with potential customers. But, I would have to genuinely wonder what he says to a patron when he actually WANTS to sell them a book? read more

I kindly requested one photo and was met with a response from John Tribone saying, "Fine copy in fine dust jacket ... what more could you possibly need to know?" I was taken aback by this slightly rude statement. Looking at other reviews, it seems asking for a photo to verify his description looks like the correct thing to do. However, I was actually wanting to verify the edition, as in my experience, editions can greatly vary with books on the internet and don't always match the description. I was after a particular dust jacket. I briefly explained this, but also (admittedly sarcastically) thanked him for his poor customer service and stated I wouldn't buy from him after all. This was met with: "thank you for sharing your most important feelings ... my business will be devastated by your momentous decision, but I have no one to blame except myself. "next time, use common sense and explain what you want up front and then you won't have to spend your time complaining when the other person hasn't guessed what's in your mind correctly." I could have left it there, but I was absolutely baffled by this berating message. I sent one last response explaining that I did in fact ask what I wanted up front; I asked for one photo. What did it matter why I wanted it? I threw in that I also work in the secondhand book business and would never speak to a potential customer like that. But, "to each his own. I wish you all the best with your business." The final email takes the cake: "it matters because it takes time, lots of time, everyday with people requesting photos and then never even bothering to acknowledge that they got them or responding at all. huge waste of time in most cases. "do the work yourself ... if it's not condition that your concerned about (which is 99% of all inquiries), then explain and show me exactly what you are looking for. I don't have time to do the work that you should do for yourself; if you were as courteous as you purport to be, you would have thought of this already. "and my way (snark, etc.) is way more fun than yours, even though you are slyly approaching a decent amount of sarcasm with your last sentence ... I appreciate that." The thing is: (1) Why is my time any less valuable than his? I was living my own full life when I decided to send a quick message requesting a photo, thinking it would be the most straightforward way of evaluating whether it was the book I was after. That said... (2) Had he simply said something like, "I'm afraid I'm not in a position to send photos, but what are you wanting clarification on?" I could have then taken another friendly approach that would have been suitable and he would have had my sale. (3) Telling a customer to "do the work yourself" in a world of secondhand selling when so many things don't match up to descriptions is absolutely an unreasonable way to do business. Overall, if you're happy to blindly trust John Tribone's descriptions, by all means buy from his shop. However, don't expect any sort of reasonable customer service. His time is far too precious - although not so precious as to save himself multiple emails of lowercase paragraphs. read more

Horrible experience with Abacus Bookshop. They were very misleading in their book description. Book received was in far worse condition than they advertised. Communication was nonexistent. Had to go through Abebooks in order to receive a refund. Avoid this seller like the plague. Wish I would have read their other negative reviews before making purchase. This seller shouldn't be allowed to sell books on the internet. You have been WARNED! read more

I purchased a book at Alribris from John Tribone of Abacus Bookshop that he described as "Fine", but when I received it, it had an ink inscription written on the first page that shows the title. In addition, there was a electronic tracking theft tag glued to the dust cover. When I contacted the seller to return the book since it was not in "Fine" condition as he listed it, he replied by adding this rude comment about my email address: QUOTE "P.S. you might want to rethink your handle ... doesn't sound too friendly (or smart or clever or whatever else you were trying for, just kinda juvenile). My two cents." UNQUOTE I did not buy his book so I could be lied to about the book condition or insulted for no reason other than arrogance. I replied to his email that I would let Alibris handle this matter along with pictures of the inscription and tracking theft tag and he again replied with more insults and his take on the book he listed as "Fine": QUOTE: "Your handle is not subtle ... there's no mystery to "understanding" it ... and my comment is not a "lecture" and is not nearly as rude as your "hateful" moniker; in fact, it's intended to be helpful. You might be 58 but that doesn't mean a crude name is not juvenile; it is. Of course, you don't have to take my advice or be offended by it; think about it or ignore it as you please. The security device can be removed with absolutely no damage; it's nothing. The brief inscription is not on the title page as you claimed (and as I suspected since I would have seen & mentioned it); minor things like this are trivial to me and the value is not affected at all. If it were on the title page, that would be qualitatively different in my mind; I don't like that and would consider it a flaw. Now that I have the full picture, I can guarantee that I will not refund shipping either way -- there's nothing wrong with the book unless one likes to nitpick over the briefest of gift inscriptions. UNQUOTE I would caution and in fact warn book buyers to think twice about doing business with John Tribone of Abacus Bookshop. He is not only rude and insulting, he does not care about grading books properly so buyers know what they are buying. Avoid this book seller! read more

Ordered book described as like new/fine, book arrived with a horrible stain/soiling to the pages. Requested a refund and promptly shipped back, seller refused to issue full refund stating I was "nitpicking". Received full refund by filing claim with Amazon. I should have read the Yelp reviews for Abacus Bookshop before purchasing - seems to attract nickpicky customers I guess. read more

I just received my first order from Abacus Bookshop. The book came quickly, was very well-wrapped, was in pristine condition and exactly as described. Very pleased. read more

I ordered a book online from Abacus through the website Biblio.com. The book I received was not the one I ordered. The ISBN numbers did not even match. When I requested a refund, rather than trying to rectify the situation, John aggressively insisted that he had sent the correct book. Mistakes happen all of the time and are no big deal; but he stubbornly refused to acknowledge he made a mistake and instead simply repeated that I was wrong. In his emails to me, he was curt, rude, and unprofessional and showed very poor customer service skills. He did not want to CC Biblio in these exchanges, of course. I would avoid Abacus. read more

I simply asked about the condition of a book. He replied that I only had to decide whether to buy it or not, because his time is precious and if I made him waste more time, the price would triple. read more

Owner is a rude person. Definitely doesn't care whether customers have a good buying experience. Would I recommend buying anything from Abacus Bookshop? That would be a big NO. read more

I ordered from Abacus thru AbeBooks. Book was as described, packaged in bubble-wrap, and shipped very quickly. Very happy!