Reading has always been touted as an essential habit to cultivate, but for some, factors such as environmental concerns,budgetary restrictions, and the allure of having a book that has been held by several hands make pre-loved bookstores the ultimate haunt. Here, we’ve curated a list of the best used bookstores in Dubai.
House of Prose
What kind of books do you sell?
We specialise in all sorts of novels and children’s books. We also have separate sections for romance, cooking, self-help, art, comic books, health and fitness, diet, finance and business, classics, fantasy, and more. The only type we don’t deal with is academic textbooks due to the built-in expiry date, which renders them obsolete after a set time.
How are your books priced and what’s the average cost?
Most of our used novels are priced between AED 20-30, with outliers slightly above and below that price. Children’s books are almost always priced lower to encourage reading at a young age. The vast majority of our books also come with a buyback guarantee, meaning they can be returned to us after being read for 50% of the purchase value. This also applies to our brand-new books, which are sold at market price and sometimes slightly below. There is no time limit in this offer as it is the cornerstone of our system.
Can I sell my old books? How does the process work?
Absolutely! You just have to bring your books to our store and have them looked at by our employees.
Visit House of Prose in Times Square Center or Jumeirah Lakes Towers, follow @houseofproseuae on Instagram, or visit www.houseofprose.ae to learn more.
BookHero
What kind of books do you sell?
We sell all kinds of books across all genres, including educational books in multiple languages such as Arabic, French, and Russian.
How are your books priced and what’s the average cost?
Our books are priced between AED 10 and 20. Each book carries either a green or yellow sticker, indicating the price as AED 10 or AED 20 respectively. Some of our stores are unmanned and run on honesty – customers can simply deposit money in our trust box after buying the books.
Can I sell my old books? How does the process work?
We have been holding book swaps for educational books for years. Readers can simply bring in their educational books at our store and swap them for others. Recently, we also hosted an educational books giveaway during which we gave away 4,000 educational books for free.
Follow @bookhero on Instagram and @BookHeroUAEon Facebook to learn more.
Archies & Book World
What kind of books do you sell?
We have a collection of more than 90,000 books for all age groups, and almost all categories except school books in both our outlets, Archies and Book World.
How are your books priced and what’s the average cost?
The average price for fiction, including comics, starts from AED 10, but multiple copies aresometimes kept in our bargain baskets and sold at AED 2-9 as well. The Archies store in Karama also functions as a lending library. To borrow books, you need to take up a membership. The rates vary based on your needs and requires a refundabledeposit of AED 75. You can borrow four to six books at once for roughly two weeks, though this can be extended. Both our stores also offer buyback services, so people can return a purchased book for 50% credit.
Can I sell my old books? How does the process work?
Normally, we encourage buyback of books purchased from our outlets, but we’re also open to accepting other books from our customers. Please visit our bookstore to know more.
Visit Archies in Karama and Book World in Satwa or follow @DubaiBooks on Facebook to learn more.
Bookends
What kind of books do you sell?
We sell all kinds of books except textbooks and religious books. We now maintain an average of 10,000 books on our website in 11 different languages.
How are your books priced and what’s the average cost?
We try to keep our prices below 50% of the original market price. The average price on our site is AED 15, with some books going on sale for as low as AED 5.
Can I sell my old books? How does the process work?
Yes, you can! We operate as an online marketplace where people can buy and sell pre-loved books. After an initial conversation with us, a seller can send us their books with their suggested prices. We will add a service fee to each book and post it on our website. Once the book is sold, the seller is paid accordingly in cash or as credit to be used in our store. We also take extra care to review the condition of each book before listing it on our platform.
Visit bookends.ae and follow @bookendsae on Instagram to learn more.
