Used Books

I'm a big fan of used-book stores. I think it's the combination of cheaper books, the thrill of the hunt (because the stock depends on what people get rid of), and the idea of saving a book from oblivion. My main haunts around here are various Half-Price Books stores and the local paperback trader. (My online stores are Amazon's used-book sellers and Better World Books.)

I saw an add for Recycled Books in Denton a few weeks ago in The Dallas Morning News. I put it into my Mapquest app on my iPod, then didn't get to go there for several weeks. Until yesterday.




It's in a big building that says Opera House in the town square of Downtown Denton. I would have liked to explore the area a bit more, as there were a lot of interesting-looking shops there, but I didn't have time for that and the bookstore.

The place is huge. Much better selection than most Half-Price Books, although the one on Northwest Highway in Dallas is comparable. I was impressed by the size of the Christian section of the store. The art section was massive. I guess being very close to 2 college campuses (Texas Women's University and the University of North Texas) helps with more scholarly sections. The children's section was fantastic. I had to laugh when I saw several shelves devoted just to horse stories. I spent a happy hour-and-a-half browsing the shelves.

The downsides to this store? Well, it smelled moldy, and it had orange shag carpeting that kind of freaked me out. Carpet that old can't be harboring anything healthy! My eyes were streaming in there, and I was sneezing a lot, which tells me it was more than just a moldy smell in there. The other not-so-great thing is that all the books are half price. Doesn't matter if a book is old, outdated, and not in demand; it's still half of its original cover price, which made some of the books way more expensive than they should have been.

Regardless, I had a great time there and spent some money. Definitely a nice way to spend a hot summer afternoon!