One of the better selection of books in a used bookstore and the man at the counter could not have been nicer.
Awesome place. Great selection and friendly staff.
Hours of browsing material. They had free black and tans on Saturday night. Got a nice LP from the 70s for $13
Great selection and service
Saturday night beer and books are are a greet low key and fun activity when you’re feeling like getting out but not wanting to commit too hard. The staff and people who come through are so friendly and warm!
Hands down the best used bookstore! Knowledgeable and friendly staff, with a wide selection of books - well organized. we love their beer and books events!
Fabulous used book and vinyl record store. A variety of stock that is quite inspiring. Fabulous, engaged, and knowledgeable staff.
Great price on books but they’re terrible at pricing any other media. $30 for a scratched Miles Davis LP that’s also missing a whole disc? Wack. Stick to books
Love this store and the staff is great! We stop in often to sell our gently used or very rare books! We absolutely love this place!!
It's a nice shop
Found nice books to buy there and the owner was nice! :D
Great owner, great music, friendly environment. It’s always a pleasure. Support the local bookstore owners. It is good for the soul and the mind. Did I mention that there is social gatherings on Thursday night every week? Come and support Amazing Books and Records. A great, warm and inviting experience.
Great selection of books!
Floor to ceiling shelving! Books galore! Free beer nights are super chill
Tucked away, this is a small but pretty packed used bookstore. The guy on the desk was friendly and seemed to have a good rapport with the other customers so I think there's a lot of regulars. There's a selection of books and LP's in the store. Books are priced on the inside first page- of the ones I picked up, general fiction paperbacks were 12-13 which is a touch higher than other used bookstores I've been into however the books seemed in good condition which is great and you have to support your local bookstore!
really quaint and smells just like an old bookstore should. they have a good collection of pittsburgh/local books as well as really cool records to flip through.
A book store with grit, they have a large selection of both friction and non friction books. Also pretty decent foreign catalog.
Nice small book shop. I found a few bargains. Friendly staff that know where things are...
Staff working here are have a really passion and a good taste to great books. Being able to sell my books here convinces me that all those helped me during my academic journey will help others in the future.
Very overpriced used books (typically only $2 less than list) and poorly organized with incorrect or missing section labels. Great selection and friendly staff though.
This place has a vast array of books. If you go on Thursday or Saturday after a certain time the owners offer free beer or a non-alcoholic drink while you browse. If your looking for an older book, most likely they have it. They also have newer selections as well.
Friendly bookshop with a good organized selection.
Muy buena librería enviaron el libro en el menor tiempo posible y esta en perfecto estado, ¡recomendadismo!
Great folks selling great books. I always find something neat that I never expected to find. Free beer night on Saturday nights are always a good time.
Nice collection! Also really appreciate the staff was friendly and helpful :)
Former employee, current customer... Eric, the owner, is a great guy and a genuine family man. It's a really pleasant bookstore with a pretty extensive selection in most categories.
Visited both locations and had a most excellent experience at both. Good selection of books and vinyl at reasonable prices. I live out of town but I will return when I visit Pittsburgh again!
Such a gem! There is something for everyone here, and the pure variety is such a joy. Loved the experience here and the staff was so friendly and helpful.
As you enter your mind starts to ponder where the "treasures troves" are - books meant for *you* to find. Relaxation sets in - time ebbs into the background. You are now exploring in a boundless sea of possible worlds within arm's reach: all you have to do is start to read... And that is why whether for a few moments or for a few hours your mind deserves a stop at this shop!
What a cool experience. Wide variety of books, owner is kind and helpful, and we got a great beer from @Liberty Pole brewery. Definitely recommend checking them out.
A nice little book store with a decent selection of books
Amazing Books and Records is aptly named. This is the sort of store where I can lose track of time. They carry a great mix of genres, and there is something for everyone!
What a gem. It rewards the rummagers and repeat visitors. I like this location much better than the last one because it's bigger and there's not as much awkward bumping into other readers in the stacks.
Amazing place. Lots of fascinating old books and records.
Thursday and Saturday evenings they have a happy “hour” (from late evening to close) with a free beer. Very clear that these guys love books. Prices better than Amazon. Lots of literary fiction, biography, a good science fiction section, plus a few high-end items. They also buy books, and I found the prices offered very fair.
Lovely staff, very kind and amiable. Lol, I meant amicable
Nice little place fair prices when buying books not the best place to sell records too though
The owner, whose name I’ve now forgotten, asked me what I was looking for, and hand picked books according to my verbalized need to feel all the feelings post breakup. I ended up buying “The Interrupted Life: The Diaries of Etty Hillesum” and I cried the first time I read it (and many subsequent times). This book holds such wisdom and I find myself coming back to this book time after time, having not yet finished, but rather, enjoying the process of growing together with Etty and the way her writing serves as a guiding light, taking me down into my own depths. Thank you so much for introducing me to a book you so thoughtfully picked out while I was in internal crisis mode, that I would never have found otherwise, and that will stay on my shelves infinitely longer than the pain of any breakup.
Great customer service, friendly owner and staff, and always a great selection of used books and records. Example of how good of a literary city Pittsburgh is with the eclectic offerings passed on from other readers. Best used bookstore in Pittsburgh in my humble estimation.
I've lost count of the amount of books I've picked up here. I find something every time I come in
Adorable little book and record store. Small and kind of tucked away on the street so was definitely a good fine to stumble across walking downtown.
Great selection of used books.
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First off-- the choices and selection are amazing, whether literature or music. You'll find something you're looking for guaranteed. The people who work there actually care and can help with what you're looking for, and aren't ever pushy or rude, usually good conversations. Always enough space (Sq Hill in particular) to walk around and people who visit are usually willing to strike up a good chat.
Great store! So much fun, great selection!
The Squirrel Hill shop may be newer and larger, but don't sleep on this one. Very good selection of books and always friendly staff.
Delightful little used bookstore
Fantastic selection and the staff was very friendly and helpful.
Very friendly. Reasonable trade-ins and a lovely selection of books I wouldn't otherwise find.
Great selection of books and records. Weekly beer and browse event is really cool too!
support local
Decent stock.
Great bookstore! Very friendly people that really know books and their inventory. I did one of their packages where they send me 3 books based on my preferences and their picks were spot on. Their late-night hours are also fantastic!
Kind and knowledgeable staff are there to help through the nice variety that they have. And they'll order books for you too! Wonderful place to visit.
This takes me back to a good book store wich is unique nowadays.
Great selection!
Amazing!
I didn’t purchase anything, but there’s a few records that I should’ve snagged. The place is packed with a ton of books. It’s just one of those places you have to check out.
It's a very cute shop right downtown. I really liked the selection and the guy behind the counter was very friendly. I will definitely visit again
Very friendly staff- we had a nice conversation. Great book store!
Quiet please! Wonderful building, laid-back feel of this store offering books and vinyl! Plan to spend some time and enjoy the search for treasures!
The atmosphere on Saturdays Nights is pretty nice. They are very kind when you need anything.
Great selection of used books and super friendly staff.
Great selection overall. Also interesting Judaica selection (better than the Judaica store) Nice and neat inside!
I've always enjoyed this bookstore. Everytime I go in I find something new that I wasn't looking for. Their unique selection of books has always made it an enjoyable experience. The staff has always been very helpful and kind, would definitely recommend.
Snagged an amazing comic there. Great friendly folks and good finds for pre-loved books.
Top dollar prices for records in bottom dollar condition. Records aren’t even sleeved or clean in their records marked NM. Shame because they have some good records but they ruin them with their storage practices and the fact they place the pricing stickers on classic record covers that will definitely leave a residue. Not sure how they price the records and even more grade them but would never buy there.
Vinyl is usually in terrible condition and over priced
A fool and his money are soon parted must be their pricing philosophy on record lp's. Fairly common $5 records priced at $19.95 or even $50.Their condition isn't tops either. There are any number of local flea markets like Trader Jacks, Rossi's etc. Ebay is far cheaper, even with shipping. There are thrift stores galore and just about every other local record store seems like a thrift store in comparison. Used record lp's are not becoming an endangered species; you would think so based on their prices.
Uber friendly staff and the BEST collection of vinyl I have ever laid my eyes upon. Can’t wait to return!!
We stumbled on Amazing Books and Records on our way to dinner, and the only reason that I left was because we had reservations (we ended up being 15 minutes late). They don't just have a bunch of used books, they have have a bunch of GOOD used books. I can't count how many used bookstores that I've gone in that didn't have anything but old diet books and paperbacks you buy right before you get on a plane (not that there's anything wrong with that, mind you, we all like Jack Reacher). I found books I've never seen new, let alone used. We just took a quick glance at the records, and while it didn't seem to be a large selection of records it's definitely curated. You can tell that the owner really loves this stuff and is putting it out for other people to find. Just a great, great selection of really great stuff. If I lived in Pittsburgh I'd be here at least once a week.
Wonderful! This is the locally owned, conscientious, thoughtfully curated book store we’ve been looking for. What a pleasure to shop here. Thank you!
If you have not seen the new store on Forbes in Squirrel Hill you should check in out.
Everything a local book store should be! The owner is knowledgeable and very kind. They have an awesome selection of used books and some cool rare and vintage books I had never heard of but fell in love with. Books and vinyls - what else could you ask for!?
I went there in the fall after stumbling upon it with a friend. Very extensive collection and friendly staff. Generally very good vibes! Sure beats Amazon...
Very nice collection of books
Great!
gently used books priced at retail rate. "kind of an unorganized mess"
So happy to see this store open. It's always wonderful to walk in and find something
It's great to find a REAL bookstore. Great selections and a real feel good place
They do ask you to use hand sanitizer when you enter and also wear a mask, which to me is smart. I had a contactless checkout. There are soooo many books! If you can't find something to read in there, there's something wrong! Great place and the owner and other staff person were wonderful!Beatles were playing on the stereo! Perfect experience!
What a wonderful bookstore! If you love books and records this is your place. If you're looking for something new or something used they have a great selection. Come in and get inspired.
Great shop. Helpful staff. Fair prices. I felt safe walking in the area. Finding parking was difficult but it was worth the trouble.
staff is very helpful and the prices are good
I love this bookstore & have been shopping here ever since I moved to Pittsburgh in 2011.
The courteous owner took his time to help me find the right books I was looking for, and seemed to be very knowledgeable in his trade. There's also an impressive selection of rare, "hard to find" and out-of-print books that make this store a must visit for any serious bibliophile.
Thoughtful and perseverant will to give me advice and recommandations. Thank you!
If you love books this place is exactly what you want from a book store. It's not Barnes & Noble, makes no attempt to be, and God willing will never try. The owner is friendly, helpful, and occasionally funny. There is a general subsectioning by genre or subject matter and mostly in order by author's last name, but the real beauty of this store is that it feels less like a store and more like a personal collection of well-loved books. While the old school laid back feel is ever present, the entire catalog is digitally inventoried, so if you'd rather snipe out the specific copy of your dreams they can quickly let you know if it's on hand or it would be better to check back next week. I prefer casually strolling the narrow isles and nudging one title aside to see what treasures lay in wait to those who care to peer. I've never felt pressured to purchase, yet rarely leave empty handed. A truly enjoyable experience every time.
I just ordered their book subscription deal. Their store on Liberty was part of one of my first dates in Pittsburgh after my husband and I moved here. Great shop and would love to be able to go visit again.
I just got a book subscription order from Amazing Books and Records for me, my husband and our two young children. The books arrived today and they are wonderful, especially the books for the kids! My daughter wanted me to read them immediately! I can't wait to start my books, too!
They did an absolutely fabulous job of sending me curated books for a low price with brilliantly fast shipping. Highly recommend.
Great browsing experience. Great selection and prices.
I love the smell of books!
Absolutely stellar! A gorgeous selection of vintage books and plenty of pre-loved vinyl. A comfortable, laid back vibe with something for everyone. GO. HERE.
Levi herman is incredible! Got exactly what I needed! Thanks
Wonderful shop! Extensive selection.Very friendly and helpful staff
This is one of those amazing cultural and intellectual backstops that make the tapestry of Squirrel Hill so vibrant. It features a very well curated selection for any hungry mind.
What an enjoyable experience.
Great used bookstore with a fine selection of fiction and non-fiction books, for the size. I myself have bought several great used books here for a reasonable price. Staff is very friendly as well.
Small bookstore. Kind of cool and gitchy. They can do a better job organizing their centerpiece... The vinyl collection.
I love this place is a convenient little bookstore and it sits directly on the main drag
Cool place. Good selection for books
Friendly and helpful. Very nice selection.
An interesting little book shop with a nice selection of vinyl records. Reasonable prices and efficient employees. Stop by for a good read!
The fact that they don't pay their workers but the books are so expensive is insane.
Truly an amazing bookstore. Staff is excellent, very helpful and knowledgeable. The store is very cozy and perfect for browsing and reading. And the selection is great! They always have something I absolutely need. One of my favorite bookstores ever.
Good experience here, they bought my books although they could not take all of them
If I lived in Pittsburgh, I would SO hang out here. What a great vibe!
Bibliophile niece from out of town enjoyed browsing, added 2 valuable titles to her collection. Thanks as always, Eric!
Nice little place with good used book prices and a decent selection.
Always a great vibe and selection.
The clerk there was very polite, duteous, honest, and patient. He went through about 14 45's and priced them all, I didn't get much cash, but that was fine. They have a large collection of books and LPs that I quickly browsed through. I do recommend, but if you want to sell an item for what YOU think it's value is, please use eBay
Cassettes aee waaaaaayyyy over priced. Took me a couple months to get there because they are closed at the most convenient hours.
Good place
Downtown Pittsburgh's only bookstore is a wonderful gem of hidden treasures. A great place for new and used books, you're never quite sure what you may stumble upon there. Prices are great - I picked up a hardbound Robert Galbraith novel for $5 - and the selection is always changing. Their history and fiction selection is quite large for the space, and any fans will undoubtedly find something they'd like to take home with them. I do wish their non-fiction selection was a little larger at times, as it's heavy on the biographies and memoirs. They also usually try to feature some local Pittsburgh based books, for those of us who love to see how this city has changed over the years.
Selection is limited and priced high for a used book store. Employees are nice.
This store had a lot of pretty cool records, the guy who checked me out with the beard was super friendly and nice to have a conversation with. I got some harder to find records there which was great! I will definitely be returning in the near future! Thanks Amazing Books!
Interesting selection of used books, neatly laid out. Very knowledegable staff. A pleasure to visit!
Amazing Books is a treasure! I always find a stack of new books to take home! The staff and especially owner Eric are attentive and helpful. I am so grateful to have this store in our neighborhood and I live the Saturday night shopping hours and frequent parties! Do not miss the chance to visit often as there is always something new!
There's a lot crammed into this little store. I just wish more of the stock could be displayed on shelves. I ended up having a delightful conversation with the owner before I left. I wish him all the best in life and business. Be sure to stop by and buy something to help him support his growing family. :)
(Translated by Google) Always good readings, with good price. (Original) Siempre buenas lecturas, con buen precio.
(Translated by Google) Always good reads, with a good price. (Original) Siempre buenas lecturas, con buen precio.
Nice used bookstore
Amazing store and an amazing owner. I brought my kids in the other night.
The shop owner is incredibly friendly and helpful. Great experience.
Truly my favorite bookstore
Great little store with lots to look at and check it. Very friendly staff
Amazing owner and super friendly staff, large collection of the right books. Prices are real low, great atmosphere for book reader
The staff is very friendly and helpful. Great place to find some rare books.
The staff are very friendly and helpfull the store is clean and the price are cheap
Great friendly service and great selection of books.
Very nice and friendly place !
Tried to visit several times, closed each time. Looked great from the outside.
If you work Downtown, It's a good place to break up the work day with lunch visit. Lots of interesting stuff, nice people.
Always a great place for good books
has great books at great prices come check it out!!!
Great deals on used, softly used, semi-new and new books. My favorite bookstore in downtown Pittsburgh! Pleasant staff. Service is always friendly. I do wish they would expand the store, but it has a priceless cozy feel to it.
Looks good through the windows and doors, but it isn't wheelchair accessible so I don't know for sure. :(
One of the best small book stores in America. Superb curation. Helpful staff. Can’t wait to return.
Nice book store with friendly and helpful staff. Not really big, so selection is limited, but we did find some good books at a fair price.
Love the convenience of the downtown location! Always welcoming and helpful in my reading inquiries!
A lovely old fashioned used bookstore and vinyl Emporium that is great for browsing.
They had books and records. There wasn't anything really "amazing" about it. It was okay, but a little underwhelming.
We, 2 parents & 2 kids, went to the Story Hour on Sunday. The owner and his young family were there, and they were super nice! The story teller was really good. Over the past year, the selection at the South Side location has gotten better and better. As we were checking out, I told the owner that my daughter was curious about Passover. He did an impromptu 10 minute talk to everyone in line, since we were all interested, about the upcoming holiday. It was a fantastic experience, as is every time we shop in the wonderful store!
Fabulous bookstore. Ask about a book and it magically appears. Owner/staff helpful, friendly, knowledgeable... can I say enough good things about this place? In Pittsburgh downtown for a few days and wanted to find a really good bookstore to complete my tour of a great city and this was it. Go!
Disorganized not a great selection of books.
I just popped in here (as an out-of-town visitor), and really like the little shop. Books are organized by genre, and there are a mix of commonly-recognizable titles with unknown titles waiting for discovery. Prices are good. I was tempted by a couple of history resource books (which can be expensive) that were priced at $7 each. This is a little shop that doesn't require a lot of your time, so there's no excuse to skip it. :)
Great staff that will help you sort through a pretty large selection of books and records to find you what you want .
Been going here since it opened and always finding something new. Good selection of science fiction and history.
great finds. love this place.
Ok it's a second hand book and record store which buys, sells and exchanges the aforementioned. I have sold books and records here and yes sometimes you won't get a lot for what you've got, but they have to make their business work and you don't have to accept their offer. They can be cluttered which is likely down to the turnover of acquiring and selling new stock constantly and having to move it around the store to the correct genre section etc. However they are a gem of a find for university students as they have a huge range of academic titles and even textbooks on current syllabi at CMU, Pitt etc.
Hours aren’t accurate on google. Looks great! Was visiting from NY & definitely going to buy some records. Oh well!
Pretty amazing little bookstore. Lots of records and books if you find yourself with time.
Eric and his Team create a warm intelligent environment and provide a valuable and engaging textural and textual experience of title, author and topic gazing in a "let's discover together" environment. Important balance to our digital era; computers are amazing and important, yet they provide only a portion of the human experience. Thanks Eric, for helping to keep it all real. Best to you and yours in 2018 and may we celebrate Simchas ("Happy occasions" together,
This store has a great selection of books. The atmosphere was welcoming and the staff was very helpful.
Great to have a bookstore on the South Side. The staff are friendly and helpful. They have a huge selection of books,records,gifts, and greeting cards.
My new favorite stop after yoga class. The South Side location is a treasure trove. Every couple of weeks I bring my bag of books to sell and use the credit to buy more books. The staff is friendly and helpful.
Whenever I put in an order for a pizza at Mineo's, I always walk up to Amazing Books. It's such a treasure of a book store. You never know what really cool books you might find. And, the staff is great! One day, I walked in there and told them I was in mourning because there were no more Donna Tart books left for me to read. That day, the owner of Amazing Books found me 3 authors who he knew I would like, based on my love of Donna Tart. I LOVE Amazing Books!
This is one of my favorite bookstores. It's close and local and has a fabulous vibe.
Nice place to buy your out of catalogue book, look for old and used long plays records. At my visit they helped me a lot, making some calls to get the correct place to find the book I needed.
the book i bought could have been a little cheaper online, but it smells delicious- that perfectly sweet older book smell. and just the experience of being in a bookstore like that is worth paying a bit more for! im very happy to have discovered a location right near me, too!!!
Every book I came across in this store is a classic - it's amazing! Very helpful staff, friendly place.
I stopped in on Friday, 8/11/2017, and the gentlemen were just that: true gentlemen. They were genuinely interested in me and my interests, they were professional, courteous and extremely kind. It was a pleasure to shop, and not only the books are amazing, the gentlemen who offer this exemplary customer service are too! it is precisely the kind of bookstore I truly enjoy.
They have a huge variety of books! I didnt get the chance to look at their record colection, but I was impressed by the amount of books they had! The prices are also very reasonable. It is a nice place,very pretty indeed, and I was very well treated by the staff.
A great atmosphere and a wonderful selection of new and used books at reasonable prices!
Amazing Books strives to assist all customers; their setup is user friendly, and they have excellent customer service.
Nice little store. Needs a bit more on the shelves but I dig it.
I've been here a few times and they all have been wonderful experiences. They have a lot of vinyls (when I was there, a big selection of old school country and the Beetles). Newer and more popular vinyls are priced a little higher but it's understandable. They have so many books, and you can buy remarkably older ones for a collection. They also have some neat books in the clear display - some signed and they had an Italian version of a Star Wars book.
One of the best bookstores in the city!! It has a very nice collection of history books especially if you're looking for history books which I generally am looking for.
By far the best bookstore in the Burgh. Partly because they always have literary gems, and even more than that, Eric and the crew are just genuine people who love to have real interactions with customers. FEELS LIKE HOME.
Outstanding service and very nice stuff and store. Highly recommend!!!!
Amazing books is awesome. I enjoy sitting and reading the books. Eric is also really cool to talk too.
Small vinyl selection. No good deals to be had though at the time. All the stuff nobody wants is a few bucks, and all the stuff people want is similar to ebay pricing. Lot of books, of that's your medium. Clerk was nice.
So i finally made my way down to this businesses location and i must be honest this place is vastly better then the squirrel hill location in the sense its cleaner and more welcoming, but the selection is terrible (clearly the owner seems to have a favorite store; i wonder why?)first off the building was cold because apparently there is no heat so i wondered why the owner would have these employees working in such poor conditions, there aren't any good books reasonably priced and the record selection is non-existent unless you want warped copies of mass produced lonely dad rock. The employees there were very knowledgeable on subjects in both music and literature that seems to surpass the owner i met a few weeks ago, Chuck and tom (tim?) they were nice and gave an atmosphere of friendliness they even recommended a few items i plan on buy from abetter store. I gave this location a better score solely because of the employees.
I had walked by this store for years and never felt the need to enter but i had decided to give it a shot and i immediately regretted it, the entryway was dirty and the stairway leading down dangerously cluttered. It was atleast a solid 10 minutes before i had entered the store before i was acknowledged by the employeee sitting in what can only be described as a nest of dirt and cut paper hunched over his laptop. I began looking at a few books and it was terribly obvious that their books were overpriced for their condition and that their records were insulting on how much they charged for literal rubbish. Finally the employee mazed his way out of the nest of filth to introduced himself as the owner shockingly; he was unkempt and scraggly and smelled of old beans but we all have our bad days so i disregard that though he gave a fake interest and an air of prpretentious. Not to my surprise the rest of the store was covered in messes of books dangerously stacked and actual sawdust on the ground, i was surprised to see that they actually had flooring under all this chaos ( i can firmly get behind a store feeling cozy and unique but this was clearly from neglect and lack of caring) . Too end it short i do not plan on going back to this store anytime soon though ive heard they have two other locations so i may stop by those later this week
It's hard to make money in the used book selling business, and spending lots of money on buying used books (even in excellent condition) is a losing game. Give them a break about this sort of thing. Excellent service, friendly staff.
This store is aptly named. Chuck and Rahmeer are great at what they do. And from what I read of their collaborative writing is mind blowing.
Lots of vintage books and records. They have hard to find stuff.
Great selection
I cant even give no stars i bought a few comics from there an told them to send me a recite through messaing an now everyone on my plan has a bug in there phone someone please help me...
I happened across Amazing Books and Records today in Oakland and I will most certainly be back. Eric is a warm and great person to chat with while you look around and is very knowledgeable about what he has on his shelves. Books and records are a fair price and the selection is quite good! Definitely worth stopping by!
I went to sell almost 50 books in excellent condition. The employee working that day said many of the books looked like they hadn't even been read. After pricing the books (which consisted of flipping through them and reading their summaries), he said he would take all of the books and offered me $7 cash or $14 store credit. I was surprised at how little I was offered. I found 2 books I wanted to purchase and the store credit wasn't even enough to buy them. I basically traded 50 books for less than 2. I don't know if that's how it typically goes in used book stores. Next time I have a batch of books to get rid of, I'll either try a different used book store or donate them to a worthy organization and take the tax deduction.
It's so hard to find used book stores anymore, especially good ones! The books in this store are in good condition and are priced reasonably. The staff are very helpful, keep the store organized, and well stocked. One of my favorite stops in Pitt.
Amazing Books is true to its name. Go visit--there's always parking within a block of the store on Murray. The first amazing thing is the variety of books. In a moderately sized space, packed with books from floor to ceiling, you can find a long wall of fiction, an array of mysteries, a remarkably rich section of Judaica, aisles of new additions, a healthy handful of new releases, and hefty shelves full of poetry, biography, lit crit, African-American, music, drama, art, gardening, kids, travel, sci-fi/fantasy, American history, European history, religion, sociology, and philosophy. There are also interesting selections of LPs and DVDs. ***That's the key--the books are indeed well chosen, and the selection is constantly changing.*** Almost all of the books are used, and thus sold at good prices. And the prices are discounted if you buy a handful or join as a member. Used books are bought and sold there all time. The next-to-best thing about Amazing Books is the staff, who are great folks--friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. They throw parties about once a month, and the store is always up to something fun and interesting. Finally, I don't want to ignore the obvious. The best thing about Amazing Books is that it exists at all, in a great location, providing Squirrel Hill and all of Pittsburgh with a constantly changing selection of classic, popular, academic, rare, new, and always attractive books. Thank you, Amazing Books, for making Pittsburgh an even better place!
Excellent selection. And what they don't have they can order in. Last week I went in looking for an obscure title and they had it ordered in for me very swiftly. Plus they bought a bunch of books from me for a decent amount! But what I most like about this place is that they're Honest.
Honestly, not a huge selection, and what is there is extremely overpriced for used condition books (there are a lot books that were, for example, priced $8 new, and are being sold in this shop in obviously used condition [creased spine, worn edges, etc.] for $6). It's also messy, pretty disorganized, and if you have to pee venture elsewhere, their bathroom was seriously gross and needed a cleaning stat. Really unsanitary -- (actual toilet bowl was visibly soiled, there were tissues on the floor, a dirty bottle of dish soap on the sink to wash your hands, a loose roll of damp paper towels on the back of the toilet to dry your hands with, step stool with stuff on it directly in front of the toilet...) I've been in twice and both times the people working there were very friendly and helpful, so there is that, but it wasn't enough for me to come back.
Customer service ends with purchasers. They do not extend the same courtesy to their suppliers. The owner will actively discourage people from purchasing your book, but if someone wants your book enough to purchase it anyway, they have no problem accepting their commission. Will never do business with them again.
This was such an awesome place! I stopped by today with my girlfriend after passing by it for months on my way to work. The selection was excellent and really, if you can't find SOMETHING here then I you must just not be a reader :) Even more though, the owner was so friendly and sincere and really made you feel welcome in his shop. More places like this need to be supported, you don't get that enough. I'll definitely be back!
Hometown bookstore in the middle of the big city. Great selection; obscure titles; ability to do personal orders. Great customer service; personal touch; passionate about what they do... BOOKS! They host some fun events so check their Facebook page for updates and for sales also. I frequent the store and, if you are a book lover also, I highly recommend that you do the same.
Amazing Books cannot be bound to just one adjective. They're a great store with a lot of heart in the staff. The staff knows what they're talking about and are passionate about books and writing. Their sincerity and love of books shows through their engaging conversation and eagerness to help you find what you were looking for, as sometimes guiding you to authors and world's you weren't even aware of. The prices and selection are great and the atmosphere is phenomenal. The store is one of the few places left that truly appreciates books and conversation about them. Something that's become much more rare and fleeting.
Amazing proprietor! Amazing selection! Amazing quality! Amazing service!
