125 Northwest Loop 410, San Antonio, TX

I already reviewed another one of this company’s locations, but each location does have its own vibe and this is the first Half Price Books I started going to when I lived in San Antonio from 2006 through 2009. During this time I was voracious for anything Bukowski, Kerouac, Hunter Thompson, Steinbeck, and the like, and I always found excellent editions of their books here. I have probably purchased at least a dozen collection of Bukowski’s poetry from the 80s and 90s in this location alone, so any time I’m back in SA, I hit this one up to dig for gold. It never fails to have something interesting!

3207 Broadway, San Antonio, TX

Let me start off by saying that I’m cheating a little here. This blog is about hyping small independent bookshops, and Half Price Books doesn’t reeeeally fall into that category. There are 120 locations (way more than I thought) but I have only ever been to two spots in San Antonio, Texas, and I have loved both. If they sold new books at new prices, I wouldn’t review them. But they sell everything under the literary sun and then some, and all at discounted (sometimes deeply discounted) prices. This place is a treasure trove and you absolutely must do yourself a favor and find one near you.