I'm so happy this bookstore is in my neighborhood! It's surprisingly large, with a great selection. I went in a few days ago to get several kids books for party favors for a birthday party, and was really impressed by the selection. The books were in great shape and cheaper than other used bookstores I'd visited recently. It's like buying brand new books, but for literally half the price. I'm more than happy to give my money to this store rather than Amazon. read more

I've been to this store a few times. Today I arrived @ 10:50 after stopping in to the Maplewood store to ask if hey had the Hair dvd? The cashier said she found a copy at the St Paul store but "it's at the buy back counter and it hasn't been shelved yet so I can't request it". I darted out of the store, making haste to SP before it hit the shelf and was bought!! I walked in, where the buy back counter is right inside the door. I excitedly told the fellow of my prior conversation. I was met with "She shouldn't have sent you over, there is a lot of places that it could be!" I didn't tell him "she wasn't stopping me". Feeling a bit defeated I had a seat while he looked for the dvd.... as I began to worry if I would have to change my noon oil change appointment? There he stood in front of me, holding out the dvd for me to take, as he said "here it is". I let him know "you are my hero!". Proceeded to the checkout where I told that cashier "he is my hero". She politely said "I hope you enjoy the movie!" So 10 minutes, $2.16 and two lovely employees later I was out the door. Thank you Half Price Books St Paul!! Day? Made! read more

Half Price Books - Hair - Books, Mags, Music & Video Near Me - St. Paul, Minnesota

This chain should be called Half Wits Books. I know - I used to work there. Here's just one example of many I could cite: Around 2014, when books that weren't going to be shelved were simply recycled, a buy came in that contained a number of movie-related books. I wasn't involved in the buy, but I became aware of it when one of the buyers (who later became a manager) asked aloud, "Who's Clara Bow?" I explained that she was the 1920s "It" Girl of the movies. Later, after the buy had been processed, I noticed that a number of books from it were in the recycling bin, including the Clara Bow book. I picked out that one, as well as a few others. One of them was "My Diary" by Margaret O'Brien, a book from 1948, with a dust jacket in very nice condition, encased in mylar, with a post-it on it that said "Autographed." How many red flags are required for someone to take 30 seconds to look up a book? I grabbed it, and then showed the 4 or 5 books that I wanted to the manager on duty (as required by the rules), who glanced at them and said I could have them because they looked "old and outdated." As soon as I got home, I looked up the Margaret O'Brien book (I knew she had been a child movie star of the 1940s). Online, I found one copy with a dust jacket that a seller was asking $50 for, while I found another copy without a dust jacket with an autograph that another seller was asking $300 for. My copy had a dust jacket AND was autographed. (More recently, I've seen autographed copies with dust jackets online in the $50 range.) It was obvious that the book which I'd gotten for nothing was worth some money. It was equally plain that I really should not have been able to obtain such a book for nothing, yet I had. That seemed wrong to me, so I called the Regional Manager, whom I'd known for many years and who had helped get me my job at HPB. I explained the situation to him, and he advised me that I should probably tell the store manager about it. So I did. What was his response? Did he ask me which employee did the buy? Did he ask me which manager let me take the books for free? No, never. His only response was: "You might have to give the book back." The store had two chances to buy the book, and passed both times, but all of a sudden, the store manager decided that the store did want the book. I had obtained it according to the rules as they were then, and I saw no reason to give the book back. (Besides, the Regional Manager had already told me I could keep it.) I had seen a problem in the way the store was doing business, and I was trying to make management aware of that problem, but all the store manager wanted to do was recover an item that he now realized was valuable. And so, although my motivation was to try to correct a problem that I had found, I was turned into the bad guy who "abused" the system and got a valuable item for nothing. It is true that I got a valuable item for nothing, but I got it according to the rules. And then I voluntarily tried to fix the system that had led to obtaining that valuable item for free. The real abusers were the store manager and the District Manager, who tried to change the rules after the fact. I followed the rules; they didn't like the result. And the really ironic thing is that they never would have known about any of it unless I had told them. The real, basic, continuing problem is that HPB has people working at their stores who wouldn't know a collectible item if it bit them on the ass. read more

Half Price Books - My Diary by Margaret O'Brien - Books, Mags, Music & Video Near Me - St. Paul, Minnesota

I love a good book store and this one did not disappoint. Great selection of both old and new and the pricing is pretty fair - in fact very fair to be honest. I will be back when I visit the cities again! read more

Half Price Books offers a great selection of used books at fair prices. Recommended!

I've always loved Half Price Books. It's like my happy place and this one is so cute! I came here to look for some of the books I need for school and they had one and when I asked the employee about other ones, she was very kind and helpful. read more

These stores are a resurrection from the onslaught of ebooks to humanity. These stores are packed with book lovers and especially fun to hang out at during a rainy day. I didn't even know that there are places who would still pay you for used books so kudos to this business. The selections here are incredible, from books to vinyl to DVDs and etc. As I browse through the young teens section, my emotions were overwhelmed by the memories of my childhood favorite reads such as Nancy Drew, The Town Mouse and Country Mouse, Enid Blyton and lots more! In the adult books section, you can find many acclaimed authors in rotation. It feels so good to see people shopping for books, like there is hope for a further growth in the literary community. Even the sight of a mother sitting in a corner of the store, surrounded by her children eager to listen to her stories and reading out loud to them brings joy to the heart. Especially, when you catch the occasional squeal of delight from the little kids as they flip through the array of illustrative books. Overall, a positive family and community environment. read more

Today I took 14 paper bags of books to the store to receive a buy offer. I called earlier in the week and they told me that any children's books that they did not buy would be donated. When I dropped the bags, they told me it would be a few hours and would call me with an offer. They asked me if I was likely to take the offer, and I said yes. When I returned I saw hundreds of children's books in the dumpster. Many books I had brought in. Before I had the opportunity to take or decline the offer, they had already chosen to recycle my books. I had no choice, but to take the offer. For the amount offered, I would have preferred to take my books back. Ike, the assistant manager, only apologized for the miss information and processing my books prior to formally excepting the offer. When I asked them why children's books were not donated, he told me that they currently do not have any requests for books from schools or other organizations so they had nowhere to donate the books. I am totally flabbergasted as I have dealt with half-price books for decades, even the flagship store in Dallas. Never have I seen such a total disregard for books and literacy opportunities for children. I will not be doing business with half price books again. read more

I'm somewhat of a book hoarder. I don't like to part with books I loved and even liked. I guess hoarding books is better than hoarding, uh, let's say cereal boxes or stuffed animals. But that's just my opinion, and I'm sure doll collectors would vociferously disagreed! But I digresss... So, I passed by Half Priced books and thought, what the hell, I might as well give it a go. I was a little skeptical about the selection I'd find in here...and, wow, there was no reason to be! They had a great assortment of books, many of which were of the most recent edition, and true to it's name, they were half price, and sometimes more! It's also where VHS tapes go to die, so if you are still hanging on to your VCR, this is a great place to stock up. They also have a nice assortment of DVDs as well. read more

Half Price Books - Books, Mags, Music & Video Near Me - St. Paul, Minnesota

This half price books is different than any other I have been in. Their fiction section is down the stairs at the front of the store which I was not expecting. It seemed like there were lots of little cubby book areas of this store to explore. The staff were knowledgeable and helpful. Since it is in highland the buildings are older and you could tell that here, that being said it to me gave it a book store feel. My only complaint is that parking around here isn't always the easiest luckily I got a front row spot on the street out front. read more

I love this place! They always have a wide selection of books at great prices, the staff is very very nice, and now during the pandemic they do enforce mask wearing. read more

In my opinion this is the best one of them in the metro area. Have been to the other locations and this one by far has the best selection. I usually walk out with an arm load of books. Can't go wrong in their clearance section downstairs. They have a great variety in the humor section as well as the sociology area. I usually buy all my christmas cards and birthday cards here. Most of my family recognize the birthday cards that they receive because I do the packs of them. Unorginal I know.. They used to give the calendars for free, but now you have to spend a certain amount $25( I think) to receive the calendar. Service can sometimes be hit or miss, but most of the time they are pretty friendly. Resale can also be hit or miss. Bringing in arm loads of books and getting $4.00 can be a little frustrating, but I usually take the tiny amount and put it towards the next purchase. Great place to hang out at on a rainy day. Great titles and a lot of variety. Books, CD's, Games, DVD's this place has it all! read more

This little store has some nice surprises. I had visited a Half Price Books in Roseville and was not favorably impressed. This one is much better. It's not quite as good as a secondhand bookstore you might find in a college town, but there is a pretty eclectic range here. I found two photo books of Wing Young Huie, and several books I could use for research and teaching. I was shocked to find an expensive language dictionary in the basement apparently dropped off by a local university professor. And today, I went to find a specific children's book and DVD, and found both. I didn't need to visit the new bigger bookstore in the neighborhood. I miss the secondhand bookstores from places I've lived in the past, but this one will keep me going for a while. read more

Just went here for the first time today. Great selection of books, movies, music, and video games. The location was super easy to get to and they had a parking lot which is a lifesaver in St. Paul! As a book lover I was amazed by the amount of books in the store and the variety available. I didn't pick up anything this time but I anticipate I'll be back soon! read more

HORRIBLE customer service. They advertise, online and at the store, that they buy books until 8 pm. However, upon arriving at 7:20 pm was told they could not buy my books and I would have to come back another time unless I just wanted to donate them. Frustrated, I asked the rude store employee why they didn't have that information (that certain amount of time was needed later in the day before closing) and that Half Price Books needed to communicate better, employee said "well I'm communicating with you now." UNACCEPTABLE. read more

This is my favorite book store ever!!! You would think that the books are such low prices because they are used and bad quality but they are always like new! Every time I think of getting a new book I just stop by and they always have the one I'm looking for. Everyone there is so friendly and helpful! Please stop here! read more

This was the very first HPB location I ever visited, beginning in the mid 1990s (I've since visited their original Dallas, TX, store). Their Clearance Basement, the best part, made a fundamental change in the amount of money I was willing to pay for books generally. And all of the beautiful fine atlases I possess (far superior to the ones I paid others money for!) I rescued from their recycle dumpster back in the day. Well of course there's a dark side to this buyer's market. The HPB business model (which applies to the whole chain) is based on getting seller's books basically for free. I long ago stopped trying to sell my books at their stores, because they were offering me laughable prices for quality books that I was later able to sell at garage sales, etc, for a reasonable amount. For the most part, you are donating your books to them, not selling them. read more

This is the one that is closest to me. They have all kinds of stuff for every kind of collectible. A lot of the shit you end up hoarding will have come from here. There will be days you have all the time in the world, and go downstairs. You will come back dizzy. Upstairs since things are in close proximity, it's easy to browse, and often find something very entertaining or obscure. In mysteries don't forget to look up and notice trade paperbacks too. If you don't find the book you've been searching for, call all the other locations and they will deliver it to the store of your choosing, no charge. The last week of the year they have a big 20% off sale. It gets packed. Pick up their calendar, and in the back they have 15% off coupons every two months. That's when I buy mine. read more

One of my mom's problems is that she's a hoarder. Not the kind you see on Dateline NBC where the host has to climb over mountains of crap to get through the house, only to discover the owner's dead body covered in cat litter and newspapers from 40 years ago. No, my mom's hoarding tends to be more focused with her money mainly going towards toliet paper, video tapes, chapstick from Walmart and books. Oh, the books. Before she retired last spring she had this big set up with her coworkers where they would all share books. The problem? Somehow she ended up with all of the books, no matter who had originally owned them. My mom already had too many books to begin with, but add on this new source and suddenly my old room was packed (almost) to the ceiling in some places with boxes and boxes of books. I won't even mention how most of the cupboards in the kitchen are (now were) filled with cookbooks, many of them she had forgotten she even owned. ANYWAY, thank god for this Half Price. Sure we only average $10 (even for 24 cardboard boxes filled with mass market romance novels,) but they have never once run away when my Honda Element has pulled into their lot overflowing with bags of books. The parking is kind of crappy and the last guy who looked over our books was kind of a dickhead but, whatever. I may like the St. Louis Park location for the CDs and the Crystal location for their DVDs, but this one hands over cash AND my mom's house is cleaner so I'm not complaining. read more

Goodbye, paycheck. It was nice hanging out for an hour or so. This is the cleanest, most ridiculously well-curated cheap book place in Minneapolis- and I've probably hit all of 'em. A bibliophile to the max who lives on a nonprofit salary, I'm constantly hunting down places to get books on the cheap, and up until this point it was a choice between driving to the Unique in Burnsville (PAINCAVE: aggressive drivers for 30 minutes, the store is constantly slammed) or the sketchy, claustrophobic, perhaps-that-old-man-is-leering-at-you? shop on Snelling and University. Half Price Books manages to sell books that you actually want at insanely do-able prices, sans the dirt, sans the sketch, sans the commute. Because their selection is huge and varied but really well-organized, I found exactly what I was looking for in triplicate so I could choose what kind of cover I wanted. (Ridiculously luxurious for a cheap, used bookstore) This is kind of a specific grace note, but I was delighted to find a huge variety of REALLY GOOD children's books. It's not very often that you go into a bookstore and find multiple Chris Van Allsberg books, or Susan Jeffers, and here there were tons of 'em. For $5 each. (When did kids' books start to be $20 each new?? Yeesh!) Also, I've been searching for a place in the Twin Cities to get super duper cheap quality DVDs, and BAM! They had THOUSANDS. For $3-8 each. And to top it all off, as though my bank account wasn't already groaning with anticipated pain, I found the ENTIRE Sex and the City series for $35. I mean, really. Wtf. Best day ever. read more

Bring a lawn chair: you're going to be there a while. Two floors, two floors, two floors of books and music. This is the place to go when you're on a budget or need to kill time before the movie starts. read more

I love Half Price. I love the web site, I love the physical stores. Oh gosh. Total love all the time like whoa! Half.com has become a guilty addiction of mine. I love the physical stores because they have this exciting feeling about them. You never know what treasures you'll uncover when you commit to a couple hours of digging around inside. Love. Love. Love! read more

I always like this Half Price Books and most recently picked up 3 Arturo Perez-Reverte novels (still have one to read) and an over-sized Sister Wendy Beckett art book. They really have everything there at one time or another, so don't get frustrated if you don't find what you're searching for, it may turn up in a week! Or you may find an equally useful book. I bought a few DVDs from them also, but if you are like me and often like more obscure titles you may be out of luck. The selection is fairly common and mainstream. read more

Half Price is still a bad bookstore. No changes from the last review. I'm hoping that it gets torn down so that Tiff's can expand.

I went here late on Saturday afternoon when it had been busy but all the employees were still sweet, the store was still clean, the books were still organized, I still talked myself into buying way more than I should have. read more

I came here recently with my partner and found that the ground floor was a decent space, but I can't review the basement because I was not up to dealing with a long flight of stairs and the business is not complaint with the ADA: if you can't climb up and down stairs, half of this bookstore is off limits to you. Want to browse literature or poetry? Too bad, that's for abled people only. Further, the sections for children and teen are up small stairs - very small, but big enough to be a problem for someone in a wheelchair or a mobility scooter. Apparently no one with a substantial mobility disability has kids, or buys presents for kids, or likes literature or poetry. I don't know what else is downstairs because I couldn't go. Staff were helpful and asked if there was anything specific I was looking for, but let's be serious: I go to used bookstores to browse and dig around, and not being able to do that means you miss out on things. The ADA passed in 1990. At the time of this review, that was 27 years ago. read more

An OK bookstore. I like used books, and they have two floors of them at this location with the addition of some used media. Something has usually annoyed me whenever I would come here, so I usually went to an Uptown used bookstore location to get away from the animals that would usually be growling at each other here. read more

Back in my day Half Price Books was on the corner of Minnehaha and Snelling....I come here to this "new" location about 3-4 times a year to sell books and comics. The sales process is super efficient, and while I always wish I would get more for my books, I understand the pricing and now can predict with some accuracy what I'll get for what I bring in. My kids enjoy the kids area, and the whole store is laid out well. Their island displays are almost always well thought out. My only sadness comes from their sci-fi section, which has a ton of selection, but seemingly never that it is that I am after, though I totally get why, and have seen things I came back to buy later just to find them gone. It is a minor issue in what is overall a fantastic store. read more

The HPB in Seattle's Capital Hill is literally one of my favorite places in the world!! So, any other branch is bound to pale in comparison...but this one does pretty well. (Lucky for me or I would have had to move right back to Seattle!) Its 2 floors of used books, you really can't go wrong with that! Details though; organized well, shelved in an accessible manner, aisles big enough so that you don't have to awkwardly back out just so someone can reach their copy of the latest vampire nonsense, and it smells amazing (used books, why has nobody bottled that?)! read more

Good selection of books and gift, and really great people watching. The staff here is really friendly and funny too. Brought in a box of VHS and DVD's and left with $30 cash. They'll take any kind of book/dvd/vhs off your hands (when I asked about the VHS tapes and whether they even take them, the adorable guy behind the counter said that basically take anything except a library book). Love this place! Parking is tough - they have a small lot that fills up fast, and street parking is always a crapshoot in the area. read more

Book lovers will love this little nook. Venture downstairs for the real deals. Don't expect a whole lot of cash for your trade ins. read more

By far my fav. HPB in the TC area. The staff is always funny and kind. The selection is great. The layout is easy to understand. The store is always clean and well kept. I also love the clearance shelves downstairs. There's always at least 4-6 bookshelves FULL of a variety of books. I walk out of there with at least one book I wanted each time I go down there. I really prefer a local independent bookstore, just for selection, comfort and the economics, but for a chain, this is about as good as you're going to find. read more

If you are handicapped and want to shop the children's section, this is not the store for you. They specifically have it set up for people that are not crippled and can use stairs and steps. If you ask if they have any way to access those areas, they will act patronizing and ask what you would like them to show you. Disabled people not welcomed here. Go to a different location that has no stairs. read more

The Highland Park branch of Half Price Books was one of my favorite bookstores when I lived in the Twin Cities. This funky, crammed-full shop has a really large and good selection of used books. Usually I'm seeking books in the sports, music and TV categories, and I have found several out-of-print gems in all of those sections at this Half Price. I've heard other people say similar things about the genres (fiction, poetry, etc.) that they like. The great thing about the Half Price stores is that -- unlike at a big-box chain such as Barnes & Noble, which doesn't sell out-of-print books -- you never know what you'll find. The treasure-hunt aspect of shopping at Half Price is fun. I also have enjoyed perusing the vinyl record and CD offerings at this Half Price. While the selection can be hit or miss, I have still found some nice collectibles. The store also sells used TV shows and movies on DVD and Blu-ray. The Twin Cities metro area has multiple branches of Half Price, but the two best are this store and the one in St. Louis Park. The stock at those two locations is consistently the most interesting with the highest turnover. One minor criticism: If you decide to sell books to Half Price, don't expect to get much money in return unless you have something truly rare or have a ton of items that you're unloading. Overall, though, a big thumbs-up for this Half Price store, which offers book collectors the chance to land some out-of-print titles that can't be found at Barnes & Noble. read more

I used to come here all the time when I was a poor college student who still wanted to read books, so I have a lot of fond memories of this place. They're books are really cheap, even for hardcover books, and I haven't been able to find a used bookstore that lives up to my memories of this store. The only reason I took off a star was because when I had to move and tried to sell some of my books to them because I had to downsize, they paid me next to nothing for my books, many of which were relatively new hardcovers and in very good condition because I had only read them once (I also don't mark or fold pages in my books). All in all a great store though read more

My Husband and I were traveling thru the area, and as usual, we stopped in to drop off some videos to sell. It's in a nice area, parking lot is a little tight. And there are stairs inside, so if you are handicapped, it would be near impossible to get to the basement to see any clearance items. We always seem to find books we have been looking for. The staff is very friendly, one of them tried to help me find a book, and even looked up the title in their other stores. We didn't find it, but it was great that he wasn't going to give up till he was sure it was not in the inventory. read more

Great place to buy PC Games! I never would have thought it, but they have a great selection of video games. The used ones for xbox or playstation are competitive with gamestop and nothing special but they have a large selection of new, sealed, PC Video games. All at really bargain basement prices. This is my secret spot for picking up software. Such a good deal! read more

Buying books,magazines or comics great prices.But selling them books or anything I would not do! They do not follow their own policies! Several occasions I went to sell them books and was shocked at what they offered me verses what they were going to sell them. They offered me $5.26 for 8 books that they were going to sell for around $150.00. Was very disappointed. THEY DO NOT FOLLOW WHAT THEY ADVERTISE ON THEIR WALL BEHIND THEIR CUSTOMER SERVICE AREA NOT EVEN CLOSE. read more

Walked into here last week with books that another used bookstore was not interested in, and some dvd's and VHS movies, and I walked out with $13. Yeah! Somehow, I maintained my self control over not buying more books... read more

Half Price books is a fantastic find for me. It is two floors of cheap books, movies, CDs, records, notecards and other random finds. The movies showed a good and eclectic mix of movies. I was excited to pick up a 4 pack of Child's Play movies for $9.98 as well as Art School Confidential for $5.98. Both good deals. I had to hold back on not caving into my Buffy the Vampire Slayer craving and buy the whole box set for $100. I spent a good hour roaming the books they have a great selection. Some of the specialty books, such as, Psychology I could not find anything up to date and relevant to use at work, but for those looking for basic foundation on the topic there was a plethora of books. There was a very good selection on a lot of topics such as the Holocaust, the American Wars and other special topics. The music selection I could not find anything too out of the ordinary and obscure but I did not look too hard... the books and movies were calling my name more at the time. Overall I have fallen in love with the store. It could only get better if it were not a chain. It is definitely a place I have to visit sparingly or I will be broke all the time. read more