The Book Trader

The Book Trader is a Philadelphia institution featuring floor to ceiling shelves of books, records, and VHS tapes. If you feel overwhelmed by the sheer selection of well priced goods ask the knowledgeable staff where to find the treasure you seek. The staff can pull rare books for you that are not regularly on display, but you have to have the courage to ask. The manager spent about an hour helping me pick out the perfect gift recently. Don’t let the scholastic mise en scèné or narrow isles of highly piled books intimidate you; it’s well worth becoming a regular at TBT.

Great selection — even though it is rambling, the bookstore is well organized. I found everything I was looking for.

The employee here long hair, long beard, blonde, white male, disconnected, was a TOTAL D bag!
I came down from the 2^nd floor where the bad condition vinyl records are mostly classic to ask where the bathroom was and his D bag very unprofessional response was, «outside» then he goes back to work. I asked him if that’s where he goes to the bathroom. The place is cool with lots of books, but the customer service with that guy in it will make me think twice before ever entering again. That is bad business and very unprofessional and that is not a nice way to talk to or treat possible patrons. Nietzsche said God is dead, I, McKenna say Customer Service is Dead!
Whoever owns this place I hope you read this and let that bone head go at which point you can contact me via Unilocal!And let me know and I’ll stop back in, but not until Mega D bag is long gone.

This place is terrible… for a bibliophile’s wallet! Every time I walk in here, I walk out with far more books than I expected to have when I arrive because I’ve managed to find too many cheap books. This place is absolutely full of books; I very much enjoy wandering through the stacks hunting for a gem and have found some really good deals in the past. Make sure you check the free table and the 3 for $ 5 table as well – you never know what you may find.
The people who work here are fantastic as well – they are friendly, laid-​back, and excited to talk about books if you ask. Otherwise, they leave you alone until it’s time to check out.

Coming here is a religious experience for me.

I walked by The Book Trader while on a trip to Philadelphia. I love random independent book stores so I was excited to check it out. While the store had a pretty substantial selection of books, the clerks were rude, unhelpful, and dismissive. I wouldn’t go here if you are looking for something specific. Its a great spot if you just want to browse!

The Book Trader is one of Philadelphia’s great institutions. A celebration of the idea of all great books, gently read and recycled for the next generation of readers. In a world where so many books are too expensive, the Book Trader provides a cornucopia of fiction, non-​fiction and foreign language books a reasonable prices. Worth a travel to come and visit!

I really like the business model. If you are only stop by to buys stuff, it’s a second-​handed book store w a lot of selection (include foreign books)
If you looking for trade, here is how they works. Basically, you brought in your books and they will give u store credit (10 – 20 percent of the book’s original price) and they are pretty open about what kinda books as long as there is no highlight or water marks.
I bought two DK travel books from their Travel section after trader my old stacks. A Little less than half price of those like-​new books, exactly what I was looking for. I am satisfied.
ps:
From their website, here is their offical trading policy.:
«We offer 10% of the cover in store credit for books traded by customers.
We accept books in good condition that we do not have too many copies of in the store.
We do not accept old edition text books, or books with severe markings, such as underlining or margin notations.
We do not require an appointment to trade books, however, we may ask you to leave the books so that the owner may process them. If you have five or more boxes, please call ahead so that we can make sure we have the space for them.
Please make sure that you give us a name and phone number so that we can ensure you get credit.
Your credit total is stored in our computer, when you come in to use it, just say that you have a credit.»

Found this place while walking back from Liberty Bell area towards Penns Landing. Soooo many books that easy to lose time just browsing, a bit overwhelming. On pricey side for used books but hard to pass up temptation and sheer volume make chances you’ll find something pretty good.

The Book Trader is a beautiful alphabetized floor-​to-​ceiling two-​story mess of books. What I enjoy most about the store is the availability of early published editions of classic fiction; it becomes a scavenger hunt to find these rarities. Regarding fiction, nearly every notable classic and contemporary author can be found and their nonfiction collection includes everything from fine art to military history to cookbooks. At the same time, all books are more than reasonably priced. Make it a point to spend at least an hour in the store the first time visiting.

If you love a place filled with wall-​to-​wall books, then you will be in heaven in The Book Trader. While I can always find something I like, the store organization could be better. There are small (very small) signs posted to let you know the genre, but you literally have to look for the signs. Books are usually piled and stacked everywhere, even on the floor and there are often boxes situated near the front door, so just be cautious when browsing!
Prices are less than what you’d purchase a new book for, but more than most used bookstores in the area. While the selection can be overwhelming, Book Trader probably has more newer releases than other bookstores too. If you don’t mind paying a bit more and searching a little longer for exactly what you want, this place is a book lover’s dream.

The Book Trader is an absolute heaven on Earth for a bibliophile like myself. There are floor to ceiling books: books in boxes on the floor, books squeezed onto shelves, books piled high on top of said shelves, and even books in a bin in front of the store (for FREE! How cool is that?).
All of the books are used, so that means they’re quite affordable (prices are in the front covers). You might have to do a little digging to find what you want, but more likely than not, they’ll have it somewhere. They even have an «old books» section from which I purchased an 1840s English Composition book just because I could.
The staff is always friendly and ready to help you out if you need it. They even give you a free bookmark with each purchase! That being said, I have at least 15 Book Trader bookmarks floating around my apartment. AND they’re open till 10 PM every night. Late night book cravings, anyone?

Books! Books everywhere!
They have pretty much anything: fiction, non-​fiction, mysteries, language books, history, occult, cookbooks, etc. They also have old comics and VHS tapes. Lol! VHS!

Pretty good selection, but it’s not easy to find a particular book or author you might be looking for since the store is organized by general topics/​categories. For example, I was looking a particular essayist, but his books were split between essays, literary theory, and politics.
Prices are generally fair, but I was annoyed at the register when I found out the completely illegible characters trailing all the prices were «95» making each of my purchases nearly a dollar more than I had thought. Might seem trivial to most people, but it was an unpleasant surprise to find out my purchases were ~$ 5 more at the register than I originally thought. Not a huge difference, but it was enough to give me buyer’s remorse.

This shop is dangerous. It may steal away my free time.
I mean, it’s practically floor-​to-​ceiling books. It smells heavenly. It’s beautiful. It’s *the* perfect store.
(And reasonably priced to boot.)
I’d like to move in and spend week after week just going alpha order down the fiction section reading away. That would be the ideal life.
I could retire here one day.
Yes.
That would be nice.

Walked in here after dinner on a Tuesday night and spent way more time wandering around than I planned. Tons and tons of books, and most in pretty good condition!
When you visit, I recommend either A) having a game plan for a specific genre or author, or B) not having plans for afterwards, because you can lose time in here pretty quickly — and they don’t close until 10 pm!
My boyfriend picked up a paperback book that was in like-​new condition for under $ 4. I guess that may be expensive by used-​book standards, but it seemed fair to me!
I checked in while here specifically to remember to come back. It’s a little disorganized, but more charming that way.

Well, this place definitely has books. If you don’t have a genre or topic you’re looking for, this place may be a bit overwhelming. Luckily, for me I’m a huge Lincoln fan so i knew where to start. (Or thought I knew.) The sections about history and war are downstairs so I spent quite a while searching and searching for Lincoln. Then, my sister called down to me and said all the presidents are upstairs. That was a bit odd to me.
Overall, I found plenty of books I was interested in. But, for a used book store it is on the pricey side. Around 8 bucks for a used book? I’m all for keeping these types of stores in business, but then reality tends to hit and I need to learn to settle with just a few books.

I actually didn’t find this place as mesmerizing as other people did.
The walls are stacked with books, some even flooding onto the floors, but I wasn’t impressed by any of them. I was actually surprised they didn’t have some of the books I was looking for, instead they had some books you’d find in Barnes and Noble.
The prices were exorbitant for the books they were selling as well, with a few exceptions.
Either way, I don’t think I’d check this place out again.

I have fond memories of hours spent perusing the stacks at the old South St location. The wonderful second floor layout and the cats that were always around somewhere. Flash forward 20+ years, and I still like to browse the «new» location, although it’s been here for years. I’m one of those who will call Columbus Blvd «Delaware Ave» until the day I die… so yes, it’s still the new location to me. I laughed when I read another review dismissing this place & comparing it unfavorably with the old South St bookstore, not realizing they were one & the same.
It’s true that this place is a little more cramped and disaorganized than before. But it’s a used book shop. That’s half the charm! Plus I like a place that ain’t too fancy, especially when books are involved. This means I can be the crazy lady on my hands & knees muttering to myself on the floor as I keep looking for the next great book just around the corner. I exaggerate, but only a little…
The prices here are pretty reasonable. If you look long enough, you’re bound to find something.

Would burning a Kindle count as burning a book? I don’t think so. I think it would make great kindling, after all (get it? get it?). There is no way to replace the feel, the smell, the friendship of a physical book. There’s the wear and tear of a physical volume, a history of abuse and repair that tells a story as rich as the one within its pages. Bibliophiles are a dying breed, but the ones left intend to fight tooth and nail for the preservation of the craft and artwork of the tome. From illustrators to editors, there are those who flock to the Book Traders of the world, to dusty rooms that still smell like the corner of your small town library.
The gentlemen that frequent and operate this store are part of the lore of the place, friendly but not too friendly, knowledgeable but not pretentious. Trying to find a used bookstore in downtown Philly isn’t exactly impossible, but it’s definitely not easy. Their prices are respectable — still expensive by used book standard, but you’ll save money when you compare it to the other options (Barnes & Noble or your ol’ reliable Amazon). They encourage browsing, in my experience, so stop by 2^nd and Market and roam the crowded shelves and aisles, overflowing with books old and new, thin and thick, good and, well, bad. Such is life.