Books-A-Million

I have never been here before but decided to stroll in on New Year’s Day as the parking lot was pretty empty so I thought it was a great opportunity. Wow what a selection. Of course done inventory was down but the selection of topics, authors, arts and crafts etc was big. It certainly is not just a basic book store. I found costs higher than Barnes and noble though for many items (of course after I purchased them) but all in all definitely a store I will go back to when I have more time to just walk through.

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I love book stores. Every time one closes (Borders) I feel like we all lose a part of what makes us… us. That said it’s great to have a large thriving book store in the Brandon/​Riverview area. In the Brandon Mall, which makes parking tough, this malls parking scheme was designed by numbskulls, it sometimes is worth the effort.
Books-​A-​Million has what seems to be just that, millions of books. Certainly something for all tastes. In addition to that, various related merchandise is scattered around the store for your shopping pleasure (I’m eyeing a Simon, remember those?). Equipped with a nice café type snack/​coffee bar and my favorite feature, one of the walls is nothing but magazines. You name it, they got it.
This is a very large store, clean, well lit and helpful staff, allow time to leisurely browse. Time well spent.

Finally! Free wi-​fi!!! They need more seats, though. The ladies’ restroom is disgusting.

Just called this store to ask about a book, Donna, was rude, stopped talking to me to talk to someone else about soda. Was not listening to me, said she didn’t even have it, couldn’t get it in till the 18^th. I hung up. Will not give them my business ever.

Wow, I tried to find out if BAM has a political agenda after visiting their Brandon store today. All books negatively depicting the president are prominently displayed along registers, doors, etc. Either those with the RNC are doing their groundwork or BAM is clearly leaning right. Which is out of line for a retail bookstore, either way.

I love Barnes and Nobles for the ambiance but with Books-​A-​Million you get just that. What seems like a million choices and all their isles are easy to locate. My favorite thing is their clearance on books and board games! Books for $ 3.97 then with the membership it has 10 percent off! The membership costs $ 17 dollars unlike Barnes & Nobles $ 25. And you get free wifi with your membership, Staff is always friendly and helpful with good music.

There’s always a surprise waiting for me at Books-​A-​Million. I live in the Northeast, but when traveling South I often find myself near one of their stores and and will invariably discover some hard-​to-​find I-​gotta-​have-​it book. My most recent trip yielded a book of Tiffany art, still wrapped in plastic and selling for at least $ 45 elsewhere, for only $ 15! A real steal! Mind you, not everything is a bargain, but if you spend a little time looking around you’re sure to be rewarded. And the staff is always friendly; the young lady at checkout was very personable.

When I walked in here I did so with every intention of reviewing it. And in my mind I said, «I’ve been here a few times and I’m pretty certain a 2-​star is the best they’ll ever get out of me.»
Obviously this visit dissuaded me and gained themselves an extra star.
That said, while the employees are extremely (almost overly) friendly, the store still looks… cheap. Compared to Border’s or Barnes and Noble I feel like this is the equivalent of having a taco from Taco Bell rather than Taco Bus (if you don’t know what the means, go Unilocal!for Taco Bus).
My point is this: It’s good/okay/satisfies-the-«craving», but when it comes down to it there are other, better, places that are just around the corner.

I enjoy this book store. They have a very good selection and regularly put on clearance sales. We happened upon a sale just before Christmas and walked out with 5 books for about $ 5 when the original cost/​list prices would have tallied up to about $ 70. My only downer is that their discount club costs money which is just stupid. I have a Borders membership that doesn’t cost me a thing and sends coupons all the time.

Books-​A-​Million coming to the Brandon Mall was like a dream come true. After Brandon’s old book store closed down a while ago, Brandon had lost an advantage that most other malls have. I love to browse through the aisles and check out the first few pages or last few pages of a book and get a feel if it’s something I want to buy. They also sell toys here for kids and a large number of magazines and newstand items, all on display in the store. A coffee shop is found inside the store too, so your options for coffee in the Brandon Mall only get bigger. Most employees I have met here have been very friendly and are quick to help you find a book when you are searching for one. They carry a wide variety of genres and tend to be having a book sale every time I come into the store. You can’t beat the convenience of it being inside the mall as well, it’s major advantage over Barnes and Nobles which isn’t too far.