So much cuteness in such a small shop. This bookshop has a cute area for the kids, lots of books by local authors and artists. Not just books but souvenirs and post cards too. read more

Basically Books - Store front - Bookstores Near Me - Hilo, Hawaii

Attended a Book Signing "He Huli 'Ula'ula" A Study in Scarlet A Fevronia Watkins Novel by Leilehua Yuen Cannot wait for the next book. If you enjoy books, be prepared to lose track of time at "Basically Books" Eclectic collection of Hawaiian items with an attentive staff. read more

What a great find! It's a beautiful bookstore with so many Hawaiian books for adults and children as well as a variety of gifts. We stopped by to by a pidgen book for a friend and found so many treasures! If you're in Hilo, I would highly recommend this very lovely bookstore! read more

Basically Books - Bookstores Near Me - Hilo, Hawaii

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Best sellers, unique finds, and books about as well as published in Hawai'i Wonderful finds - just off the path of Hilo's downtown. (Would recommend driving over if you have the option.) read more

A very nice local store with a great selection of classic and modern books. Friendly service and well organized

I just made my first purchase from Basically Books online! They have an abundance of selection ranging from Hawaiiana tales to graphic novels, keiki books and more. Im super happy with my purchase, a hardcover book about Hawaiian Gods that I want to share with my students at Kula :) read more

Basically Books - Hardcover Book, Titled Akua Hawai'i - Bookstores Near Me - Hilo, Hawaii

This is an awesome local bookstore in Hilo near Suisan. There is a huge section of local Hawaii/Hawaiian type books and music published here, as well as a nice sized childrens section, and they have nice gifts and reading glasses, perfect for your flight back! It's off the beaten path in a stand alone building, we went here twice during our two days in Hilo. It's no Barnes and Noble, but then again Hilo is not a very large metropolitan city. Support local, we loved it! read more

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Such a great bookstore. I was looking for some Hawaii specific books to take home while on a trip in Hilo. I wasn't expecting to find a shop like this - exactly what I was looking for. When I was in, they were in the middle of moving to their new location, so things were a bit in understandable upheaval, but they didn't deter them from providing excellent recommendations on books about Hawaiian plants and horticulture. Will definitely check out their new place when I'm back on the island! read more

Great bookstore! Fantastic selection of books about every aspect of Hawaiian life, culture, history, cuisine and nature. There are entire sections dedicated to Hawaiian language, geology, flora and fauna, etc. Great kids and young adult sections. Unique gifts. Very knowledgeable and helpful staff. read more

I absolutely LOVE this place!!!! They have books that I have not been able to find anywhere else. If they do not have it in stock, they will do their best to get it for you. The will also ship items for you. The staff is very knowledgeable and super friendly. Everytime I go there, I leave with a stack of books since they have such a great selection. read more

This book store has everything! From the best sellers, children's books and an assortment of amazing souvenirs! The customer service was awesome! I highly recommend this bookstore if you're in the area. read more

High quality merchandise, reasonable prices. Lovely selection of children's books. Hawaii themed books as well as classics. Many adult books about Hawaii and Hawaiian culture. Beautiful jewelry and nick nacks. read more

Basically Books - Bookstores Near Me - Hilo, Hawaii

I visited Basically Books for the first time in March 2017 on my trip to Hilo, and I had a list of about 5 books I needed for my Hawaiian culture studies class. The woman behind the desk knew exactly where to find every single one without looking them up on the computer! I had everything I need in a jiffy. Just recently back home on the mainland here in California, I had to get three other books, and I emailed Cassie at Basically Books. She was responsive, kind, and quick to get all my books in order and ready to ship out. I kept changing my order, adding and deleting quantities, but she made the changes and always kept me in the loop. One of the books was on backorder and she promptly ordered copies for me. Cassie and the staff made it super easy to make the transaction and I received my books in less than a week! They even threw in a few freebies :) I know I could have gotten those books on Amazon, but I love supporting local kine bookstores, especially ones that have such unique, hard-to-find titles and a huge variety, and service with genuine kindness. If you ever get a chance, visit this bookstore - it truly is your one-stop shop for everything Hawaiian! I can't wait to visit them in their current location! read more

I would not recommend this business. I was so excited to patron basically books today, knowing that it's a local business and being genuinely interested in local history. I came here specifically to buy Hawaiian and Hilo history books for my aunty for Christmas. The sales lady asked if I needed any help and when I asked her if she had any history books on Hilo she said "there are no Hilo history books, no one has written it yet". Regardless of the fact that this statement is untrue, I pushed forward and asked her where the Hawaiian history books were located. How dare I?! She told me where they were in a very rude and condescending manner as if I should have known. I was so uncomfortable I simply left. I had a better experience at Target in their book aisle the other day. But I really wanted to shop local. If you looking for a book on Hilo, I purchased one at the Botanical Garden where they were very kind to me and were happy to take my money. Owner wrote back. Upped stars for that. read more

Not just books (though there are plenty -- on Hilo history, cooking, folklore, ocean & natural history, Hawaiiana and travel, plus out of print materials): this store also offers an array of gifts, toys, cards, shotglasses, magnets, maps, posters, postcards & regular cards, soaps and essentially Hawaiian-themed everything. Nicer than your average gift shop -- and smelled really good! Basically, it's the best! read more

Excellent selection of Hawaiian books of all sorts. They have tons of Hawaiian history, arts and native crafts, children's books, cookbooks, and rasa and out of print books. There are CDs and DVDs, and Merrie Monarch recordings from past years if you are in search. The staff here are very friendly and knowledgeable. Sistah Debbie Otah is happy to help you find what you need or just talk story. read more

Lots of good books, souvenirs, snacks, jewelry updates of our active fissure 8 and kid friendly. My kids could stay in this store all day. Highly recommended for everyone. read more

Real cute bookshop has lot of local books and some interesting reads. Along with small gifts. Worth a stop and I picked up couple books!

Basically Books is part bookstore and part Hawaiiana gift shop. You'll find a small section of current bestsellers, and a more substantial section of Hawaiian history and nonfiction titles. I asked the booksellers for recommendations on Hawaiian folk tales and endured a fair amount of patronizing commentary ("This book is the bible of Hawaiian folk tales, but it might be too much for your tourist brain." --Er, thanks, lady. I got my degree in Asian literature, but I'm sure the cultural analyses in this book will break me.). That said, I do love me some independent bookstores and small presses (Petroglyph Press has a strong presence on the bookshelf), and it'd be well worth your time to drop some tourist dollars here. read more

The booksellers here always seem to either laugh at you when you ask a question, or give you the answer in a patronizing tone. Really? I don't come here often, mostly because of that. They do have interesting things, but if you're a local, it's better to just go in, buy your stuff and leave. Don't ask questions. They don't have time for you seems like. read more

I recently visited Hilo and my Aunty told me to make sure I go to this store, because I would love it. She was right! There are so many different books for adults & kids that are in hawaiian. I loved the games and different playing cards. I just wished I had more time to spend in there. I gave myself a half an hour before heading to the airport and that was not enough time. I definitely will be back here! Mahalo! read more

So glad I wandered in here... yes they have a lot of Hawaiiana literature and nice kids section... but they also have a great local music section, dvds, and MAPS AND POSTERS. They have the 3-D relief maps of all the islands, and the whole series of agricultural posters like "the avocados of the big island" "the mangos of the big island" etc. I thought there were 2 kinds of avocado and they each came in small, medium and large.... WRONG! There are about 50 types of avocado on the big island. Ditto for mangos. They also have reproductions of historical maps. Anyway, they have a lot more than books here. Salespeople were knowledgeable and friendly. I bought the big island in 3D and last year's Na Hoku award winning cd, and was very happy. Very cool little shop. read more

OK my standards are high. I grew up familiar with FOYLES BOOKS of Charing Cross Road fame. Perhaps planet earths best known/loved bookstore for English language readers coming in as best runner up in the UK for French,German, Spanish and more choices as well. SO what could win me over in a small town of Hilo Hawai.? Service, Smiles, Knowledge base, willingness to please, locate both newly released and out of print hard to find items, talk story, entertain, present new talent and last but possibly most importantly support of Hawaiiana in not just literary terms but also music, arts, crafts, non fiction resources, the Hilo Community and reference materials for varying levels of education. Basically Books has devoted, knowledgeable staff and owners representative of their particular kuleana for sections of inventory- Hawaiian Music, Maps, local authors, Sciences, visual arts,*(many more than space affords here). Basically Books is an "ohana", and members of the BB Ohana take to heart their essential locus for information stop over to Malahini as sincerely as kanaka maoli. MAHALO Basically Books for your decades of entertainment and dedicated No'eau. read more

Great selection and service. Nice place to get different type gifts or cards from Hawaii.

This is no Borders, but if you are looking for offbeat children's books or Hawaiiana, Basically Books is a great place. We returned several times to look over the collection and buy. If I lived in Hilo, I'd visit here often. read more

Loved their display window. That's what brought us in there. So many different things to look at. Purchased some cute children Hawaiian story books to take home for the kids. Friendly staff. Thank you for helping me with choosing of the different Hawaiian cookbooks. There were so many to choose from. Can't wait to go home and try them out myself! read more

These guys stock every major book on Hawaii - across every subject - that I've ever come across. Great service too. I mostly shop here for books on natural history and USGS maps. read more

Awesome local bookstore chock full of an extraordinary selection of books, Hawaiian music, unique cards, toys and cool gifts. The people here are super friendly and knowledgeable so if you're looking for something special just ask. I always stop by here on First Friday when they have book-signing or music going on. read more

I just wanted to say what a lovely bookstore this is. They've moved from their previous location into this much larger spot (also within convenient walking distance from Ken's house of pancakes), and I found some great local children's books, toys, and other crafts to give as gifts. They have a great selection of items and a very friendly staff making it a very fun stop. Highly recommended. read more

Don't get me wrong, this is an amazing bookstore with an astounding selection of Hawaiiana, and great crafts and toys. But the book keeper ladies are just as astoundingly condescending and judgmental. I have been shopping there for years and almost every time I have an interaction with the ladies and in particular the older hapa one, it's always negative. I guess who cares about my feelings but it's a shame to have such a nice bookstore but with such condescending, rude and judgmental service. Change it up basically books. read more

Love this store! They know their stuff, can make good recommendations, and if they don't have what you want, if it is on the planet, in or out of print, they can find it for you. Great non-book gifts,too, and lotsof stuff made by local artisans. They just expanded, so there are even more goodies, and I found somecool out ofprint cookbooks in the new part, as well! read more