BU is only the 4th university I've had the pleasure of attending (1st was summer school for early college courses and 2nd was where I did my undergraduate, 3rd was the Sorbonne) but I must say I was shocked to learn that the college bookstore was Barnes & Noble. How commercial and sad. I was happy to see that they sold university stuff like t-shirts and even futons until I realized that they have a complete monopoly on BU gear. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I have yet to find an alternate bookstore that will help out BU students. Coming from a college town, I find this distasteful and inconvenient. It also seems kind of dirty which is probably because it's always packed. I also do not like the fact that if you are waiting for books to get re-ordered, by the time you do get to purchase them, all return policies are off the table. This is not a surprise for a corporation and is merely another reason I don't like Barnes & Noble being my university book store. I'm also rather surprised BU doesn't have their own bookstore in the union. Next semester I will be ordering as many books as I can online and trying to limit the amount of money I'm forced to give to Barnes & Noble. I mean, what's next, paying our tuition to Wal-Mart because they sponsor the BU buildings? Where does it stop once it starts? read more

BU Barnes n Noble - I do not like you AT ALL. The only reason I'm giving you two stars is because you have a Starbucks inside and you are doing the noble cause of selling books. THATS ITS. What is with the monopoly eh? I thought the whole idea of calling it B & N at BU was to help BU students. I guess not. Yeah, you have a 20% discount at Christmas time with a BU ID. But thats it, what about the rest of the year when you're ripping us off on textbooks?! read more

I like stopping by here and doing work at the Starbucks area. There's really so much to see in each floor. First floor books (fiction), 2nd floor books (non-fiction) 3rd floor "dorm-stuff" 4th floor expensive books (textbooks) 5th floor smart books, I think people rarely venture to the 5th floor. read more

What's all the B&N@BU hate? I think it's a perfectly fine bookstore. I'm not a BU student, but when I'm in the neck o' the woods of Kenmore/Fenway, I'll usually pop over and browse. They've got a decent periodical section too...it's no Trident, but it's not bad. The coffee shop inside (is it actually a Starbucks?) is pretty nice and has a better selection than your average Starbucks. read more

Great B&N, but avoid while school is in session. My fiance and I love to spend a few hours here reading, browsing and shopping for books. However, we hate all the BU kids, their BU parents buying all their diapers for them, and their BU related knick-knacks and various dorm gear. Its a great store, but avoid like the plague when classes are in session. read more

This is the official BU bookstore so they sell a lot of BU items (textbooks, clothes, etc..). They also have starbucks on the first floor and a couple tables which is nice for studying. However, I don't like how it's right next to the entrance so you hear/see a lot of people coming in and out which can be distracting. The place is not that big but they have multiple floors. Another thing I don't like about this is they only have 1 elevator and 1 tiny escalator to go up/down between floors....and sometimes they brake down. Overall it's OK. I've been to better barnes and noble bookstores, but this is the BU one so if you're looking to buy BU stuff, this is the place. read more

This bookstore is awesome! It's huge, five floors, lots of BU stuff and normal books too. Ok, I'm biased, I work there. But seriously, as far as bookstores go it's pretty nice. Right in Kenmore Square, so there's lots of baseball-related stuff. Good cafe as well. read more

Being a Facebook 'fan' of BU I constantly get alumni discount offers for the good ole' Barnes and Noble on Beacon, so I finally gave in and decided to order a pair of embroidered Ralph Lauren sweatpants - unfortunately the item arrived with the ink security tag still attached, bummer. Maybe they got some CGS kid working in shipping (I get to make that joke - I spent time there). read more

Couldn't use the 25% off with the app on a diploma frame, so they tossed some pity 10% alumni discount at us, which didn't come close to offsetting the ridiculous $29 shipping fee, which was apparently used for expedited shipping (you're not given the option for shipping speed, and they cite a 2-3-week estimate, yet ours arrived next day). Restrooms are a mess, but signs are OK. read more

Was super excited to get some BU gear as I start grad school there, and unfortunately, if you want BU gear, this is pretty much the only place to order it from. Ordered a hoodie and a tank, then got an email saying my order was cancelled due to the item no longer being available. Over a week later, the item is still being offered online. Sent an email asking for an explanation. No answer. Finally called, and was told (by a really sympathetic employee - best part of the whole thing, he was great) that the web administration is so inefficient that items that no longer exist are often up and for sale weeks and months after being actually sold out/no longer available. So, basically, anything you might want to buy may not even be available anymore. BU, PLEASE license your logo/products to other vendors so that students have more than one choice! read more

Based on 3-4 visits, as a Barnes and Noble, I think this place ranks average because of the modest size of their stock (a let down if at first you think it's four stories high), it's cramped feeling and its modestly-enthusiastic staff. It's close to Kenmore (Green Line), so the situation is a plus. As a place to study, the cafe in this place is not too great. If you're looking for corporate sterility and peace, look elsewhere. You won't care if it's corporate or not if it'll save you from someone's misguided idea of music and equally misguided idea of acceptable volume level. Power sockets, sunlight, and table-space aren't totally absent, however -- so it's better than many other places. This location overall reminds me that Barnes and Noble is a suburban phenomenon for a reason. Its urban locations, in my experience, thrive by emulating their roominess with architectural ingenuity. So it's what you expect, with half the space and half the good humor. There's a 20% student discount in effect this month (doesn't stack with member discount) (12/08). read more

While this is a fabulous college bookstore with everything "BU" you can think of and a terrific Barnes & Noble, their children's book selection is limited. My son bought the last Tintin book today. If you go there on occasion, the selection of books for kids is totally fine. But if you frequent the store, you'll soon find that the selection gets thin. We prefer the Harvard Coop. Great place to relax with a Starbucks coffee and lots of nooks to read. Super convenient location right off of the Kenmore Square "T" and bus stops. read more

Horrible service from the bookstore department. Understaffed, rude, and don't have textbooks ready by their scheduled delivery date. There's a reason why Amazon is beating out these guys in the retail space... read more

This is a mixed review. If you go to the physical store it's a 5, tons of stuff, multiple floors, usually helpful staff. However, online ordering is close to the worst I have dealt with and get ZERO stars. Using their online store and having items shipped seems to always include a problem (not exaggerating, it's every time). Stuff gets cancelled or back-ordered and sometimes no email is sent. I usually find that when I check the shipping history and see something listed as cancelled. Seriously? Then I reorder it and get charged full shipping again. Every flipping time I have an order that is not sent out in one order this happens. I try to not use them at all and if I can find the items at another place, I will buy them there. But this one unfortunately is also the BU bookstore and they carry things that are not found elsewhere. Luckily this should be the final year I have to deal with them and then I will not use them again (online). read more

Another place I can get lost for hours, like any Branes and Noble this place is packed with books and magazines that you can sit and read all day. The BU apparel takes up much of the ground level and is far overpriced, though you cna occassionally find nice souvenirs to send home to relatives. The textbook floor is crazy during the first week of classes so I suggest buying as early as possible. The dorm room level has been transformed into an Urban Outfitters clone, with trendy clothes and accessories. Staff throughout the building is alright, but with a lot of part time students working, they can sometimes be pretty apathetic. read more

Terrible service. Having a summer course here, yet they told me the book is out of stock and it needs another week to arrive. They even didn't check how many students are taking the course with professor? Yeah they can say they expected some students will order from online. But seriously? The course takes six weeks, and they even can't guarantee the book supply? Anyway, worst bookstore ever. Was considering here for my graduate school, but not considering anymore, based on the service they provided (not only bookstore, but also many other departments). read more

The store may be clean and pretty but their manager is RUDE. They cancelled my order because (unbeknownst to me or B&N) Visa had a confidentiality leak and had to cancel thousands of credit cards, including mine. It's not that resubmitting my order was a huge deal, but at least act like you give a shit about the incident rather than making me feel like I am being a huge nuisance to you by inquiring about my order. Its just poor customer service! read more

IF YOUR BOOK DOES NOT ARRIVE BEFORE SEPTEMBER 9th (fall semester 14) AND YOU DO NOT CANCEL YOUR ORDER, YOU HAVE NO WAY OF GETTING A REFUND UNLESS YOU DROP THE CLASS THAT THE BOOK IS FOR. Ordering books from Barnes and Noble is something I would suggest students avoid at all costs. Their return policy is slanted against students. I ordered a $200 textbook which did not arrive until September 10th. Because the book didn't arrive until 2 weeks into class and I had homework due from the textbook before then, I was forced to shop elsewhere for my textbook. When I went into the store to return my no longer needed book I was politely informed that I had already missed the return period for my textbook and that the only way I would receive a refund is if I dropped the class. This doesn't make sense because their return policy isn't based off of when your book arrives! Note, that at no time was an email sent stating this. Perhaps it was said in some fine print buried within a contract but it's really just dishonest. This bookstore is supposed to cater to BU students' needs, but instead just leeches money from students who are already overpaying. read more

Under no circumstances order anything for shipment from this location. I received the wrong item 2 months ago. 7 telephone calls later, it is still sitting in my living room. I have spoken with every manager in the store, each of whom promised me they would take care of the issue right away. This has been an incredibly frustrating experience and I cannot stress enough how much I discourage others from using their services. read more

They are very overpriced. They try to take advantage of the fact that they are located near a college because they know that they are the only nearby option to buy certain things. They do have some good books though. Textbooks cost an arm and a leg and a foot. read more

One star for the Cafe and four for the rest of the bookstore. I work in Kenmore square and go to BU so I frequent that B&N cafe. My first experience of that cafe I give the cashier my order then give her my B&N card for a discount. Her reply was, "You have to give me the card before the order". I was very confused since this is different from all other B&N Cafes. I asked her if she could just void the order and start over, and she replied "No." which is bulls&*%. I have worked at a register before. It's not hard to change an order... I'm sure people do it all the time! I'm was so shocked by her rude answer that I just left. Thankfully I'm pretty sure that girl doesn't work there anymore. I haven't seen her in a while. Although the rest of the staff is pretty incompetent. I worked at a Starbucks, so I know all the ways in which baristas try and cut corners, and I don't appreciate it. Don't give me milk that's been sitting there for ten minutes and is no longer hot. I will send it back. Do not try to give me a cup that still has an inch of room on top, for a latte this is uncecessary and lazy. I will send it back. Do not top off my decaf coffee with hot water because you ran out of it. You think you're sneaky, but you're not. That is lazy and I will send it back. And do not roll your eyes or whisper to your collegues just because I called you out on your laziness. I did not ask rudely. I just want what I paid for. Seriously need some more mature workers there. It's ridiculous that I can't get a decent latte in Kenmore Square. read more