Posted by
foxmulder
15 yrs ago
Any suggestions as to biggest and most comprehensive book store in HK?
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dymocks or page 1..just commercial stuff
the one at ifc palace has a bit more variety
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Quite frankly I have not been able to find even a half decent "brick and mortar" book store in Hong Kong. Their selections of less than mainstream genres like Science Fiction (my own pet peeve) are abysmal. Even a relatively small city like Stockholm (2 million inhabitants) has a specialized SciFi/Fantasy/Horror bookstore, for goodness sake.
Thank goodness for http://www.paddyfield.com/mainstore2/cover.php . Their delivery times suck but their selection is excellent. It's not Amazon, where you can even get out of print or second hand books from third party vendors, but it's not bad at all.
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Dymocks or Bookazine are my preferred stores for fiction but that's mor a matter of convenience. I like Prince's Building and they're both to be found in there. As axptguy38 says and as many others have said in previous similar threads, the book store situation in HK isn't good. You can't wear books, hang them over your shoulder, tell the time with them or drive them...
My preferred 'local' book shops are in Singapore (more expensive than HK) or Bangkok (cheaper than HK). I've not tried paddyfield but was going to try Amazon (UK site). For many items, the book price or DVD price is heaps cheaper than HK even after allowing for delivery. Anyone had good/bad experience of Amazon deliveries to HK? I know they don't deliver everything (eg electronics) to HK but it appears books/DVDs would be delivered here.
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"I've not tried paddyfield but was going to try Amazon (UK site)."
They both work, but the results are different. Amazon deliveries to HK work fine. The delivery times are quite decent but you will pay a steep fee. Paddyfields books cost more but delivery is free once you order 3-4 paperbacks. On the whole, you save a bit. However delivery is 4-5 weeks.
In the US or UK, one can also order from Amazon third party vendors. This means that a wealth of second hand books, many out of print, are available for very low prices. What I've done when I want that hard to find item is have it sent to a friend who then mails it to me.
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beerboy, that's good news. However I think it depends on what you order. I don't think they have what I order in stock, so they have to order in turn.
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We order all of our English language books from bookdepository.co.uk . The prices are not quite as good as Amazon but it has FREE delivery worldwide and so at the end of the day you end up paying much less than with Amazon UK. I have ordered masses of books from them over the years and they are very good. Delivery to HK is normally about 7-10 days.
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Thanks for the tip. Excellent!
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Hi, I've been using US Amazon for a month now. I LOVE it because it takes only 1-2 weeks for delivery. It saves me from going to the bookshops because the English books selection here is limited.
I usually buy second hand from amazon, at USD0.01 per book. So far I've bought four and I did not have a problem with the quality. Most books will cost between HK$90-$130 each. I'd rather do this than travel all the way to the nearest Page One to find a book, only to find that they don't have what I need, then paying to travel back home again. The second hand books at Amazon are almost new anyways.
I am a happy customer.
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Second hand books on Amazon rock. But since they are sold by third parties through Amazon (as opposed to sold by Amazon themselves) you are dependent on the third party being willing to ship to HK.
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Yes, I do miss the browsing, esp. when I go to Singapore and see that huge Borders! But I agree with frenchfamily, I use bookdepository.co.uk - I usually compare prices with Amazon & Paddyfield, so it depends on the exchange rate, but as Book depository ships AIR MAIL for free, it's generally the best deal & gets here in less than a week. Don't know how they do it! (I mean $$-wise)
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Bookdepository (which I love) simply use the UK postal service, and sending one book doesn't cost that much. They also save on processing by putting each book in its own package instead of having to figure out consolidation per customer (if you buy several books). My guess is that they have low costs through a very streamlined process.
Play.com uses a similar model, and is a great place to get DVDs and video games.
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I use Amazon.co.uk for all my Karaoke cD's,I think they have a better selection than HK, and have also ordered Art technique books, delivery is fantastic. and websight is so easy to use.
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CN
15 yrs ago
One of HKs best secrets --- COSMOS BOOKS.
It's in Wanchai & has great selection of english language books. I have no idea who's selecting their books, but it's a great collection of intelligent, intersting books.
Massive selection of technical books as well fyi.
http://www.cosmosbooks.com.hk/topic_a/page_2.asp
I have only been to the Wanch Chai shop on Johnston road -- entrance is quite easy to walk past, they have a huge billboard on the 2nd or 3rd floor level. Note: walk upstairs, not downstairs for eng language section.
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