Raven Used Book Shop

I love this store. I could probably spend hours just browsing through their shelves, looking at all the different books. Their prices are definitely competive with Half.com and Amazon.com, and other used book stores I've visited. I don't usually find a lot of regular fiction, the kind of books you read in a day or two. However, they have a ton of books on so many different topics that you're bound to find something you want to read. The store is organized and clean, and the staff is helpful. No one minds you browsing for a while, which is a nice quality in a book store. I've only found clean, decent copies of books there, so I'm assuming that all the books are inspected before being priced and shelved. If you're looking for something new and different to read, but don't feel like paying full price for a new book, Raven's is a good place to check out. more

I like to explore Raven's on a rainy day. There are a ton of titles at cheap prices, and most people like to just wander in and browse around for a while. While their sister store in Northampton is a little bit bigger, the one in Amherst has plenty to offer. I never go in with the intention of buying anything, but without fail I always find a few books of interest that I find hard to resist. more

Even though these books are used, they are all in new-looking condition and sold at half (or less) than the new price! Can it get any better? The literature section is great but their history, politicial science, and humanities selections are awesome too. The staff always seems to know something about the book you buy and often have other suggestions as well. I can never leave the store empty-handed. more

This book store is hidden underneath a local Starbucks. If you venture in, you may find what you are looking for. It definitely caters to the local liberal student groups as it only sells used, or occasionally a few hard to find books. I noticed that the section devoted to communist and Marxist books seemed to take precedence. Whether this is simply due to their location in the store, I do not know. If you are looking for a novel, try one of the other stores in town. Otherwise its a safe bet they will have a book on your topic. more