Raven Used Books

I have never written a Unilocal review before but I saw that someone had claimed that John Petrovato and the other staff at Raven is «rude» and unhelpful, and had to write this one. John is a mensch. A great person. And Stewart and Josh and the others are the same, simply great people. One thing that the person providing the negative review might not understand is that the Raven is a small-​scale operation. It does even have a website! It is one guy with a vision of providing extremely high quality books to people who love and understand books, which is the way I think of myself. I could not say how many great conversations that I have had with Raven staff over more than a decade, going back to its Northhampton days, and how incredibly kind and helpful all of them have been. And I understand that sometimes they are busy and cannot spare time to talk or provide extra help, they have multiple tasks to accomplish during their shifts and they have to watch the shop and the rest. But a one-​star review… Honestly, that is just incredible to me. What do you expect, that they polish your shoes with their tongues?
I have bought books at hundreds of bookstores on 3 continents over more than 30 years. The Raven is the best place to buy high quality books, anywhere, anytime, bar none.

Avenue Victor Hugo Books closed in 2004. It was an absolutely amazing used bookstore on Newbury Street. Does Raven Used Books make up for the loss? Kind of. It is certainly a fantastic used bookstore in it’s own right, and is especially good for books on history, politics, philosophy, and activism.

This is pretty much the best book store I have ever visited. There is an amazing range of books for very good prices, with strengths in fiction and history. There are also many books in art, philosophy, and religion. A cart on the patio features books for $ 2.95 or less. Get a discount card for 20% off a single purchase after you spend $ 100. Note that the store is somewhat small, so it can be difficult to find books that are either popular or relatively rare. Even with this constraint, you’ll find tons of interesting books to read here.

This is one of my favors bookstores in Boston. They always have a variety of interesting books I can’t find elsewhere

This is the upscale cousin of the Raven book shop in Harvard Square. Where the Harvard shop is somewhat dark and rough around the edges, the Newbury St. shop is bright and stylish. Each one is great in its own way but I think I like this location better. It’s streamlined, tidy, and warm. It’s also slightly bigger and seems to have a larger inventory. They have a great selection of fiction and literature, and the non-​fiction subjects are also well-​represented. Very high quality stuff here – everything is in very good/​new condition, and no filler crap to be found. Most of the books seem to be recent – i.e., published in the last 15 years or so. For older or rarer things you might be better off going to the Brattle Book Shop or Commonwealth Books on Washington St.
I didn’t notice the prices being any higher at this location, which is nice. As such it’s one of the more reasonably priced shops on Newbury.

This is a great little used book store! They have a ton of books and they get up to 800 different books a week, so if you don’t find what you want one week you might find it the next one.
It has wood floors that are a little creaky as you walk around, but I kind of liked it cause it added to the charm of it. They also have a few seats around that you can sit and flip through some books if you would like. And some nice music playing in the background as well.
I actually got two books, one for $ 2.95 and the other was like $ 7 or $ 8 and I swear that one was brand spanking new, cause it did not look like it had ever been opened/​flipped through at all.
If you’re looking for a book I would definitely suggest checking to see if they have it here first. You can save at least 50% that way, and who doesn’t like to save?!

This place is dangerous. A really great selection, some really awesome finds. I got a fantastic cookbook from here for a dollar. If you gave the time to browse, you’re most likely going to walk away very happy with at least 2 books.

I’ve been coming here for years! Be sure to get a Raven bonus card, so every 10 purchases of $ 10 or more, you get one book 20% off.
Books are priced 50% to 80% off the cover prices which I find to be a steal! Or, they are even cheaper.
The one on Newbury street has very friendly employees that will guide you to any book you wish or order any book you wish.

This is my absolute favorite used book store of all time. The books are in excellent condition. I just purchased a book (I think 50% off list is the price on almost everything) that looks like it has never been opened. Half off doesn’t sound like the best bargain for a used book, but the quality and selection are most definitely worth it. It’s also a very well kept store. Everything is shelved properly and easy to find. There aren’t piles and piles of random books on the floor. It doesn’t smell musty. They play ambient music and seem to attract the type of book lover that is quiet and mindful of other people. Also a great location on Newbury street; they’re near Trader Joe’s, my favorite bike racks at the Prudential center, and the library is a short walk away.
This is not the kind of shop for «antiquarian/​ephemera» type stuff. This is not the place to shop for $ 1 books from 1935. They have a very small selection of deeply discounted books, but again, they are not antique-​y or falling apart or shelved in disarray.
So if you enjoy a used book shop that feels more like a new book shop and isn’t saturated with what might actually qualify as junk, you will absolutely adore this shop.

Great selection of used books in perfect condition. The prices are very reasonable, probably one of the best used book store in Boston area.
I almost walked out with 9 books, until I decided carrying it to and from the T might be too much for my arms!

Nothing much to say other than the fact that they have a decent selection of lightly used and pristine condition books. Some older books are locked which I have yet to take a look at. Clean store and good prices. Doesn’t keep inventory on any books they have but it’s a worth a visit if you love buying books at lower prices.

Please note: My last visit to this place was in 2012 so please also read the more recent reviews to get a sense of what this place is like now.
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This was one of my most frequented bookstores in Boston and I miss it dearly! There are two Raven shops, one on Newbury St and one in Harvard Sq. I personally loved the one in Harvard Sq more cause they had all the eclectic, foreign (they had the original French version of Camus’ works), academic, and literary books. But when I wasn’t in the mood to trek all the way out to Cambridge (I went to college in Boston and very very close to Newbury St), I’d duck into the one on Newbury. The Newbury branch has somewhat more contemporary titles, though this isn’t the place to go if you’re looking for YA or popular fiction. (Twilight fans, shoo!) But, if you love classics, random scholarly titles, and foreign literature, this bookstore will be heaven for you. The Newbury branch is also housed in a nicer, newer space, whereas the Harvard Sq branch is housed in a fairly bare basement with concrete floors and untreated walls (which in my opinion has it’s own charm).
The book keepers at both these branches are also some of the nicest bookstore owners you’ll ever meet. You will leave this place with a book in your hands and a smile on your face. (Only thing that saddened me about this bookstore was the fact that there was barely any seating — I think there were 1 or 2 arm chairs in the Harvard Sq branch. Well, there are plenty of benches and cafes both along Newbury and in Harvard Sq so it’s not a big deal at all.)
Book selection: ³⁄₅ — their stock is fairly limited, as all used books stores, but they have a decent enough selection depending on what genres you’re looking through
Atmosphere: ⁴⁄₅ — lovely space
Prices: ⁴⁄₅ — fair and cheap most of the time
Service: ⁴⁄₅ — always helpful and welcoming
Overall: ⁴⁄₅ — great

Raven Used Books is a charming little store with an excellent selection. However, I will never shop there.
With some places, the employee does not make the store. But, my experience with John Petrovato has forever ruined this place for me. He is rude and doesn’t really care too much about other people. When you own a small store, you are the small store. The books speak for themselves but if the envoirnment is toxic, it’s not worth it.
If I want used books, I’ll go to the library for free.

What a great store – even better than the Harvard Square location I visited in 2011. Bright, clean, and full of interesting finds. A little light on hardcover first editions in the fiction section, but I still managed to find a few rare books anyhow.

Well above average selection at very fair prices! Books are in excellent shape. The store is quiet, peaceful, and well-​organized, and they are always stocking new books. My partner and I have been shopping here frequently for the last seven months, and the staff get to know you and your reading tastes. Raven Used Books is a great local business we love to support!
The poetry section is the best around (after shopping for used books all over the US), and fiction, sociology, and other sections are also top-​notch. Check out their Cambridge location as well.

I love this location because it is so peaceful and I always walk away with a handful of great finds! I’ve bought several barely-​read hardcovers (such as collections of Charlotte Bronte’s letters, biographies, and novels) as well as children’s books, language textbooks, and travel guides. It’s a nice, quiet, bookish atmosphere that is really hard to come by on Newbury Street. It helps that the booksellers who work there consistently have great taste in music (and are always happy to talk to you about music and books!).
Definitely worth stepping out of the bustle of Newbury Street for.

I can’t say enough good things about this place. I hate that bookstores hardly have different editions of novels, and I’m all about a pretty and unique cover on a classic novel. I found a couple of Austens with covers I’ve never seen before, and the spines were especially pretty. I ended up getting five books for roughly $ 26! If that isn’t a steal, then I don’t know what is.
Raven Used Books is a gem located in the midst of chain stores, and you’ll get lost for hours looking up and down and across their shelves. It has a calming feel, not in the least bit pretentious. If you’re looking for a good way to spend a morning, then I highly recommend coming here.

I came here looking for some books for a birthday gift. I managed to find a brand new copy of a very recently published hardcover book for about 6 $… how can you possibly beat that, unless, of course, you steal the book from somebody (which I do not recommend)!!!
The selection is quite huge, and I really need to come back with my «can’t find at libraries» book list so that I can add to my collection, which really doesn’t need any more books, but still…

I’m an extremely neurotic person. Nowhere is this so obvious as with my books. I have a lot of rules for my books: No bending the pages, no breaking the spines, no removing or ripping book jackets, and unless it’s a textbook, no writing in it. You might imagine that having such expectations limits my enjoyment of used book stores and libraries.
Enter Raven Used Books. If the store didn’t have the word «used» in its name, I would not have guessed that its stock was pre-​owned. Every last book is in pristine condition, inside and out. Finally, a used bookstore I can browse without crazy brain itch!
Prices hover around ½ of the original list price, and sometimes a few dollars lower. The selection is well-​edited, which is a sword that cuts two ways. On the good side, most of the books here are probably on a university syllabus somewhere – high-​end literary fiction, world history, biography. On the bad side, you won’t be finding your favorite cheesy murder mystery for half off.
The last time I was here, I overheard the following funny exchange between the clerk and a customer:
Customer: I am looking for something light and funny to read. Like David Sedaris, but a novel instead of short stories.
Clerk: I recommend the playful meta-​fiction of Italo Calvino.
So in short, don’t ask the clerks for book recommendations, unless you’re into reading something totally different than what you asked for.

Used book stores are like little pockets of heaven to me. I hadn’t had a chance to check out the new Raven location on Newbury until last night, and I really happy that I did.
I was lucky enough to see Noam Chomsky speak with Sasha Lilley about her new book there. The place was packed but no one seemed to mind. I think in the future they will try to squeeze in more chairs, since some people were sitting on boxes and others were forced to stand.
While this location is super small and the selection is limited I am giving it five stars because the owner is very gracious and is trying to use the space as a public forum for people to speak their minds, debate issues and most importantly share knowledge with each other.
If you hear about an event at Raven definitely go check it out!